The Hungarian sports community was hit again with some devastating news: Gábor Ocskay died because of cardiac failure during the night of March 24. Normally, a death of this type would not make the headlines; it is not that uncommon. But with sportsmen, people always turn their heads, especially in a country like ours.
Gábor was 34 years old, not that old for an ice hockey player as players in the NHL sometimes play at the age of 40+. He dedicated his whole life to hockey. He started his career in 1983, at the age of eight, at Alba Volán SC. He played for that team only, although I'm sure that other managers would have welcomed him at their teams. He was one of the most skillful players of his team and also the national squad. For most of his 17 years in the national team, he played in the top line, along with his best friend, Krisztián Palkovics. They were the dynamic duo of the national team, knowing each other's thoughts from looks and gestures.
Ice hockey is one of the most underrated sports in Hungary. Mostly it gets into the news because of either huge successes or terrible conditions. For the first part I could mention qualifying for the World Championships, the highest-ranked national event, or Alba Volán playing in the Austrian League. The second part, well... Not enough money or well-equipped facilities - just the usual stuff. However, after last year's qualifying tournament, everybody was looking forward to this April.
Gábor always dreamed about playing at the World Championship. He fought for that goal for 17 years, and when it finally was about to arrive, Fate decided other. He was a 9-time Hungarian champion, played 187 games in the national team. According to eurohockey.net, he played 531 games overall, scoring 843 points. He will be with the team during the games in April although it won't be visible on the score sheet. Rest in Peace, Gábor!
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