Roman Starchenko: "I fell in love with the game as a child, and I still do"

Roman Starchenko, a legend of Kazakhstan hockey, passed the 400-point mark in the Kontinental Hockey League in last week's game against Metallurg. In an interview with the Barys Press Service, the celebrated forward recalled the early stages of his career, talked about the most interesting moments in the national team, and also said that he is ready to contribute to the club in any role.

- Roman, it's 800 matches, that's a cool number. Do you remember your first game in the KHL?

- My first game was in Nizhnekamsk. I think we won it in overtime or in a penalty shootout. There was excitement, of course. After all, it was a new stage in my career, after the Premier League I moved to the KHL and immediately got into the lineup. I don't remember the game itself, but I certainly didn't score any points then.

- This is already your 16th season in the KHL. Which year is most memorable and why?

- Each year is memorable in its own way. There have been good and bad seasons, both for the team and for me personally. I remember the season when Ari-Pekka Selin came to Barys. For many of the guys, including me, it was the first experience of working with a foreign coach. Then also made the first round of the playoffs for the first time.

- Interesting fact. On the day you played your first match at the adult level, your current teammate Vsevolod Logvin had not yet been born. Do you consider yourself a mentor uncle right now?

- I don't feel like an uncle. I guess I'm still young at heart anyway. In terms of advice - yes, somewhere I give advice, somewhere the guys themselves come up and ask. If necessary, I can "chew out" too (laughs).

- Nowadays, young players have a great opportunity to develop in all directions thanks to the Internet. How was it for you?

- Yeah, things were very different for us. Everything was basically coming from old-school coaches. We did what we were told. Now the guys have more chances to develop on their own, everything can be seen on the Internet: additional training, nutrition, recovery regimes and much more. Things like that certainly didn't happen when I was a young player.

- You're quite an accomplished player, father of a large family. Tell us, what do you find your motivation in and maintain your level year after year?

- It's all simple here - it's a love of hockey. There's not much more to say.

- Have you ever had moments in your life when you wanted to say, "I'm done, I'm quitting hockey"?

- No, never had any such thoughts, not even close. I fell in love with the game as a child, and I still do. The desire to play doesn't go away.

- It is impossible to pass by the national team of Kazakhstan. Tell us, which tournament or match in the national team jersey do you remember the most?

- There were a lot of bright and bad matches here as well. Probably the last World Championship in Riga sits in my memory most of all now. We played on our own guys and showed, in my opinion, a decent result. It was also an interesting experience there in Riga during the 2021 Pandemic World Championships. It was hard to stay in a hotel for three weeks, we could not go out for a walk. And for a couple of days we stayed in our rooms all the time. Plus we played without fans, the feeling is not the same when there is no support. Despite this, that tournament turned out to be the best in the history of our national team. We scored ten points and until the last game we were in contention for the playoffs.

- KHL legends Sergey Mozyakin and Danis Zaripov have finished their careers in recent seasons. Until what age is the legend of Kazakhstan hockey going to play?

- It all depends on my health and how much the club will need me at one point or another. For now I'm ready to bring benefits to Barys, but if they tell me that I'm not in the lineup, then I'm ready to finish my career.

- Has it ever crossed your mind that you could also play on the same team and even the same line with one of your sons?

- Such thoughts come from time to time, but how feasible it is to realize in practice is still unclear. My older son is into hockey and loves the game just as much. But I don't want to plan ahead just yet.

- All experienced players say that as you get older you have to work even harder to keep yourself in shape. Do you agree with that?

- Of course, now we need to focus more on just recovering and preparing ourselves for training and games. Apparently, when I was younger, I could jump out and do a workout without much warm-up. Now you need to prepare your body every day for exercises and recover properly. Especially since that season the schedule has become quite intense, games almost every other day, a lot of flights. I try to rest every free minute, eat healthy.

- You got to another round number on Sunday - 400 League points. Should fans expect 500 points from Roman Starchenko?

- It's always satisfying to reach some sort of round mark. But for me, it doesn't really matter that much. Hockey is first and foremost a team game and teamwork. And only when you win, your goals or assists bring good emotions, more satisfaction. 500 points... I don't know how much longer I will play, but as a new target for myself, it would be nice.

- Especially considering the fact that you could be the best sniper in the club's history?

- Only journalists remind me about it all the time (smiles). I didn't know about this fact until the season started.

- Have you already thought about what you want to do after you finish your career as a player?

- Of course, when you spend your whole conscious life in one sphere, you want to continue working that way. If there is an opportunity to stay at Barys and pass on my experience to young players, I will gladly do it. It doesn't matter to be a coach or a manager. The main thing is to help, and learn something new at the same time.

General Partner of Barys HC - SWF Samruk Kazyna JSC

Partner of Barys HC - Tourism and Sports Industry Support Fund CF

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