Leeds Knights: Hard times embraced by Bálint Pákozdi ahead of Swindon Wildcats return
BÁLINT PÁKOZDI freely admits one of the first NIHL National fixtures he looked for when Leeds Knights schedule was revealed in the summer was that of Swindon Wildcats.
It should come as no surprise, really, the 26-year-old having spent the majority of his senior career in Wiltshire.
The fiercely competitive left-hander spent four enjoyable years at Swindon under player-coach Aaron Nell, even winning an Autumn Cup in late 2021 at the expense of the Knights.
But a desire to work again with Knights’ head coach Ryan Aldridge - who he first played under at the Swindon-based Okanagan Hockey Academy - was the chief driving force behind his wish to move to West Yorkshire.
The fact Aldridge had made Leeds serial winners was clearly also a factor.
For the past four years, Pákozdi and his Swindon team-mates used their games against the Knights as a yardstick for where they were as a team themselves.
And as the Hungarian-born forward prepares for his first return to Swindon since leaving, he finds himself in the familiar position of playing catch-up - this time the Wildcats being the team that is setting the pace, having raced five points clear at the top of the standings with a third of the campaign gone.
While a win is an absolute must for the Knights in terms of their wish to reach the National Cup semi-finals, it is also vital to retaining their regular season league crown.
Even if it makes him unpopular with some of his friends and former-team-mates come the final buzzer on Saturday, Pákozdi is determined not to let his former team gain any further advantage in the title race.
“Swindon has been a big part of my career,” he said. “Aaron (Nell) gave me my first contract in this league and I had some good years there and a lot of fun.
“I’m honestly really excited to go back there and play - it has been circled on my calendar for a long time now.
“I think I looked at who we had on the opening weekend and then the next fixture I looked for after that was away to Swindon!
“I’ve still got a lot of friends there. I know a lot of the team that is still there - they’ve obviously signed a couple of new guys there this year - but all the core group, I still speak to some of them every now and then.”
Leeds will have 17-year-old forward Edgars Vengis back from suspension for today’s trip but are likely to make gameday decisions on the readiness of import forward Artuts Mickevics and young defenceman, Liam Hine.
They will still be without injured experienced defencemen Jordan Griffin and Lewis Baldwin, as well as forward Mac Howlett, who is battling illness.
Despite the shortage of bodies, Leeds have been able to stay in the title picture and Pákozdi believes Aldridge’s reliance on youngsters to get through such a trying time will pay dividends in the long run.
“It’s great for everyone to be honest,” he added. “Obviously you want to win and the main goal still is to win the league again but, at the same time, it’s a learning curve, it is a long season and at some point we will have everyone back.
“The core group that is playing right now is going to be really strong because of all the adversity that we have had to go through - especially the younger guys who are gaining more and more experience.
“I don’t think there are many 16 and 17-year-olds that are getting this much ice time elsewhere in the league. It’s been tough at times but it is great for us as a team and a club and will be better for us in the long run.”