Tiskové zprávy

In the wee hours of the morning, the Homeless Dads pulled the trigger on acquiring standout goaltender, Aljaž Jan, from HK Zmagovalci of the Slovenian IV.8 for a transfer fee of 120.000. Mr. Jan had been the starting goalkeeper of Zmagovalci since their inception, and looks to help the Homeless Dads get into a better position for the playoffs.

"When we noticed Jan on the transfer market, we knew this could be our chance at an elite keeper in our first year of existence," Homeless Dads president Tom Jane said. "I spoke with (head coach) Tuomo (Riihihuhta) and (general manager) Stefan (Stanka) and they agreed that he would be an excellent addition to our club and could contest for the starting role as soon as he arrives from Slovenia."

When asked if this meant starter Lawrence Sykes job is in jeopardy, Mr. Jane had this to say: "Jan is the more talented guy now, but Larry is the face of the franchise in goal. Larry is going to have to lose that starting job. And were going to ease Jan in there since he's coming off a grueling schedule in the Slovenian leagues. We'll probably rotate starts until the playoffs and go with the hot hands."

Mr. Riihihuhta echoed the sentiment: "Sykes has gotten us to within striking distance of the league crown. This move is not a reflection on Sykes, but a reflection on how good of a keeper Jan is. Sykes will be getting the start on Friday against the (California) Flames. We'll work Jan in over the weekend at one of our friendlies and hopefully he'll get his first league cap on Monday."

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One of the busiest men in the league has to be GM of the Homeless Dads, Stefan Stanka. The addition of Aljaž Jan gives the team 16 incoming transfers in the past week.

"I've only been with the team 50 or so days, but I like what Tom Jane represents and stands for, but yes this has been the busiest I've ever been," said Mr. Stanka with a smile at about 4 AM local time already clutching a cup of coffee and breakfast, ready for a long day. On Jan, Stanka added: "Aljaž is shaping into a damn good keeper. Butterfly keeper, but one of the most agile kids I've seen in a while. Rarely gets caught out of position. Our physio, Dom (Vrba), is an avid skier and caught a game whilst in Slovenia on holiday and told us to keep an eye out on this guy. He posted back-to-back shutouts whilst Dom was in Ljubljana. Hopefully Dom's the lucky charm and Aljaž can keep up that run."

Aside from all of the additions, Mr. Stanka has had to buy-out the contracts of 6 former Homeless Dad players and has 8 more players on the transfer wire, as well as 4 staff members.

Mr. Stanka reflected on some of the moves: "Unfortunately, as a young team, you have to overload on players and staff in order to see who takes advantage and can stick around for the long term. It's tough to let them go because they're all good people, but that's just the bad part of the job. Giving (former players) Heath Patel and Vernon Lee their walking papers was particularly tough. They could play any position they were asked and had helped get this franchise off to a good start, but they simply got too far down the depth chart. Then a couple of acquisitions like Sam Markovič and Mike Michalík didn't work out for either party and they're back up on the transaction wire, too."

When asked who stands out amongst the 16 new players on the Homeless Dads. "Aljaž Jan, for sure. He's going be challenging for the starters spot in goal immediately. We also acquired this rock solid Hungarian defensemen, Mihály Bakos, who has impressed Tuomo so much that he's already on the top D pair. Máté Klausz is another good Hungarian that can play any skater position and should stick with us for a good few years. Martin Grežo, Ondrej Habera, Lambert Wyka and Boguchwał Olech are few other guys to keep an eye out for, but they may be worked into the lineup more slowly."

But Stanka's eye sparked up as he assuredly left the best for last as he cracked a smile and spoke fondly: "Friedrich Matthias, now that's a name we can hopefully write our ticket on. The kid has a virtual laser beam from anywhere on the ice and is tough enough to get involved in the dirty stuff. Not to discredit (team captain) Bobby England, but Matthias could be the next captain."

When asked if he could be biased towards his fellow Austrian, he just bellowed: "Well that's just how we breed them in Austria."

Without doubt, it has been an interesting first year for the Homeless Dads, and the man spending Tom Jane's busk money, Stefan Stanka, is more than earning his salary. Tom Jane just wants his kids back, and Mr. Stanka is hoping to ensure that.

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