Defenseman of the Ukrainian national team Yevgen Cheberko shared his impressions from the first days of his stay in Canada and talked about his expectations for the Canadian Shield tournament.
"I consider myself not exactly a debutant, as I have already been with the national team. But it was a long time ago, five years ago. I perceive this challenge as a new opportunity to show myself. It’s easier for me, as I don’t need to adapt after a long flight. I am close to home here — I flew for about an hour and 20 or 30 minutes. I see how tired the guys are, but I believe that after two or three days they will adapt as well.
When I received the call, I first informed my wife and mother, who lives in Ukraine. The emotions were positive, as I have been waiting for this call for a long time, I worked a lot for it and am ready to show myself.
I have played at this stadium twice against "Toronto," and in both matches we won. So the emotions are good. There are many Ukrainians in Toronto, so there will definitely be fans at the arena. They supported me, so when the national team plays, there will be a wonderful atmosphere.
I watched not very many matches of the Canadian national team, but I know that their coach is American, Jesse Marsch, who worked in Austria at "RB Salzburg." So I think that Canada can be compared to the Austrian national team. They press a lot, play one-on-one, and open up to zones. They have many players who compete in Europe, so the match will be interesting.
Three main facts about Canada for me — hockey, cold, and tasty bread," — said Cheberko.
