Réway’s strong confession in Citronáda: He admitted to great depression, praised Spiš and regrets leaving Montreal – Other – Hockey

He was one of the greatest talents of Slovak hockey and fell to the bottom. The 28-year-old striker Martin Réway also talked about the darkest moments of his career in the Cintronáda program on RTVS, where he was the guest of the world champion from Gothenburg, Richard Lintner.

At the beginning of the session, Réway recalled the WC under 20 years, where as the captain of the national team he helped the national team under the leadership of coach Ernest Bokroš to win bronze medals.

“These are the most beautiful memories in my hockey career so far. I was already there for the fourth year and my tasks got bigger every year,” said Réway.

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Two years before the successful junior championship, he was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the 4th round of the NHL draft. And he was not far from reaching the dream NHL.

“I managed the camp, I stayed until the final elimination. I got a lot of experience – seeing the older guys train gives you a lot. “I spent most of my time with Jaroslav Halák and Tomáš Plekanec,” Réway revealed.

In the last six months, the pupil of Dolné Kubín made a rapid restart of his dying career. As recently as December 2022, he was playing in the second German league in Freiburg. But shortly before the play-offs, he returned to Slovakia and was the driving force in Spišská Nová Ves.

He finally made it to bronze medals with the team, and his goal in the 7th match of the quarter-final series against Banská Bystrica is especially memorable. Lintner asked him how he went from being a player in oblivion to becoming almost an adept for the national team jersey before the World Cup in Hockey.

“There was a lot of luck involved, especially in choosing the right club, Spišská Nová Ves. It’s nice that I scored that goal, but before that we played a 3-on-5 breakdown, I saw guys throwing shots, fighting for each other. I knew there would be a moment for a goal and a way to give it back to them,” explained Réway.

In the next part of the show, he did not even avoid the dark period of his career. In the past, it was almost impossible to see Réway on live television. “I was going through a process. I had years when I was very depressed and appearing on television was not pleasant for me,” admitted the hockey forward.

He confirmed that he feels better every year and works hard to improve his mental and physical condition. “I feel better and that’s why I had a better season now than in previous years.”

The worst period came in 2016 and 2017, when he did not play hockey at the top level for one and a half years. Subsequently, he tried to restart overseas, in Montreal and in the AHL team Laval Rocket.

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“If there is a moment that I would like to go back, it is when I left Montreal of my own free will and went to Slovan.” The reason for returning was mainly psychological well-being and the need to return home to Slovakia.

“I was a year and I couldn’t do anything at the time, I went there with a weight of one hundred kilos, my fitness was horrible. Well, I needed to go away, to Slovakia. Looking back, I should have stayed there, because the second chance may not come,” added Réway.