WINNIPEG – After spending the summer back home in the Czech Republic, its back down to business for Winnipeg Jets netminder Ondrej Pavelec. Pavelec started last season as the Jets number one goalie, lost the job to Michael Hutchinson and then won it back before the playoffs.
“Only one goalie can play the game.” Pavelec said. “So it’s always competition and that’s the way its supposed to be. You know its good. Pushing each other to be better goalies. I mean it’s something you are looking for.”
Pavelec, 28, is coming off his best season statistically with career bests in goals against average, save percentage and shutouts. And he did so alongside two of his childhood friends but both Michael Frolik and Jiri Tlusty departed over the summer and Pavelec will miss them as both friends and teammates.
“So I made the playoffs the first time with my two best friends. So it was really cool.” said Pavelec. “You get only once in your life, you can have that probably. It’s too bad they can’t be here but you know it’s a business.”
And Pavelec admitted he’ll miss having a few of his countrymen in the dressing room.
“It was the years I had you know a Czech or Slovak player who speaks the same language, and then there was years there was nobody there.” Pavelec said. “It was always nice to have somebody that you can go to dinner and speak in the same language.”
But with them or without them Pavelec is ready to help the Jets take the next step.
“We gonna try to get better.” Pavelec said. “I mean day by day we’ll see. We gonna try to go farther this year.”
Pavelec is one of three goalies slated to dress in the Jets first exhibition game on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild.
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