Regenda Has 'Dream Come True' by Making Ducks Roster

Standing in his locker room stall after practice at Great Park Ice, Pavol Regenda had to pause for a moment to take it all in.

"I've got to find the words," he said after a big deep breath and a hearty smile. "But I'm getting better."
Regenda, who speaks better English than he gives himself credit for, still doesn't yet know how to describe a whirlwind summer and an ascent to hockey's brightest stage halfway across the world from home. But it's clear to anyone who has watched him lately, he's let his play do more than enough talking.
One of the first offseason acquisitions for first-year Ducks General Pat Verbeek, Regenda signed with Anaheim as a relatively unknown commodity to even most well-educated North American hockey fans.
An undrafted winger who became something of a late bloomer, Regenda (pronounced Ruh-GEN-dah with a hard G) broke out in a big way last season in his native Slovakia, where he led all 23-and-under players in the country's top professional league with 39 points in 43 games.
Months later, he's now accomplished a lofty goal after a thoroughly impressive training camp - a spot on Anaheim's season-opening roster.
"It hit me pretty hard when I found out," Regenda said. "I've been working for this my whole life. It's a dream come true. I probably still don't realize what it means and what it will be like coming to the rink, but I'm just so happy."

"He has good size, good skill and good sense," Ducks General Manager Pat Verbeek said on Ducks Stream's 'The Beek' (full episode drops Tuesday). "He's made the Opening Night roster and we'll see where it goes…He's earned the right to start the season here. He had a great preseason."

On his day to bask in the joy of his accomplishment, Regenda was quick to point out what it means to his friends, family and the hockey community back home, where another Slovakian native making it to the NHL is cause for celebration and something that brings him great pride.
"Not many Slovakians have been in the league but we are really starting to grow and that's such a great thing for us," Regenda said. "That makes me so happy, I have chills from it. You had your idols as a kid and now you can be that for someone else…The best thing is to have their support. You play hockey for them."
Regenda was not one of the players with his name written in permanent black ink on the Ducks projected lineup in July, instead playing his way onto it after wowing his new coaches and management every step of the way throughout the summer.

With the benefit of seeing his game progress up close for the past few months, you really don't have to squint too hard to see why the Ducks brass was interested in Regenda in the first place. He has NHL size (6-3, 219) and impressive mobility for that frame. He's shown a willingness and aptitude at causing havoc on the forecheck, soft hands around the net and a hungry desire to reflect on his game's shortcomings and how he can improve.
He first stood out at development camp, showing the enticing skillset Anaheim had coveted but also the polish you would expect for an older player skating alongside his teammates just starting their transition to pro hockey. That led the way to a strong showing in the rookie tournament, his first chance to play an opposing team in a Ducks sweater and an opportunity to show that tenacity and competitiveness in a game setting.
"The young man has traveled a ton and played a whole lot of hockey already," Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said. "It started in development camp and he opened up eyes very quickly there, even though he was a little bit older and more developed than some of the guys there. You could see there was a prospect there.
"He's got some size. He's got some strength and he's got a nose around the net. He doesn't have a fear of going there. That's where his rewards have been."

Regenda admits he gained confidence throughout the summer as he grew more comfortable with his surroundings and he seemed to carry that momentum into the preseason, where he got a long, hard look from Anaheim's coaching staff.
He played in six of the club's seven exhibition games, the most of any Duck. He led the team in preseason scoring and goals, finishing tied for second among NHL leaders in the latter. He also paced the club with a +7 rating.

"I've just been in front of the net, where I'm supposed to be," Regenda said. "That's kind of my office. I've been trying to play my game and guys have been finding me there. Scoring goals is always good and has given me confidence. I just have to continue with that."
But what was most impressive to Eakins was the way he responded after what they both agreed was a "down" game, Anaheim's 2-1 loss to LA on Oct. 2. Regenda didn't play well, and he knew it. Eakins thought he was likely showing some fatigue after weeks of grinding through camp, but the young forward made no excuses.
"I had a hard game and didn't feel good," Regenda admitted. "I try to bring energy and 200% to every game...If you don't play well, you're not going to play. I want the ice time. I want to play. I've been fighting for a spot, so I have to play well."

That maturity, coachability and eagerness to learn stuck with Eakins as a glimpse of the type of person he was coaching.
"One of the most important things of not only players but human beings is being able to self-evaluate fairly," Eakins said. "He knew that and that's encouraging. It wasn't a blow off like 'Oh well, I just had one rough night.' He understood he didn't play well and that's what you want to see. What he did after was a response and a great response.
"He should be proud of his preseason."
That response was his best game of the exhibition season, a three-point night in a comeback win over the Kings at Honda Center. Skating alongside Max Jones and Derek Grant, the trio took over the game in the second period, scoring three quick goals to help Anaheim overcome an early deficit.
"I love the line," Regenda said. "We're all big guys. We're strong on the puck and play easy hockey. We play to the net, and that's how we score goals."
"We relied on each other," Jones added that night. "We trusted each other and held each other accountable to work hard."
Regenda has also found comfort in leaning on those linemates, who he credited in helping acclimate him to the team's system of play and understanding his positional responsibilities.
"Granter and Jones have a lot of experience and can give me a lot of help," Regenda said. "Every practice they talk to me on the ice and help me. I'm lucky to play with those guys. It gives me a lot of confidence."

"He's been very well supported," Eakins agreed. "Granter has very quietly had an excellent camp and obviously Jonesy is fired up. He's playing a big man's game right now. We're very encouraged by those guys. We're hoping a lot of that grit, will, commitment and compete wears off on the others."
With Opening Night now just two days away, Regenda knows that, as Eakins commonly says, making the NHL is the "easy" part and now starts a new journey - the one to stay there.
"I have to work hard every day. It doesn't matter if I'm here or back home. Why would I stop now?" Regenda said. "If you get here, it's not a one-day thing. You've worked to get here for a long time. I'm going to do that every day.
"I'm going to prove I belong here."