Individual

Theo Matsikas | The Boy From Crete

Theo's Seera Picture

  Who is Theo Matsikas? Not many people have heard him, and we don’t expect you too. Theo is not a relatively big defence man, coming in at 6’0, and 200 pounds. Theo is 20 years old, from Crete, a small island in Greece. Theo has always been relatively small, and is only starting to begin on working to gain more muscle. He grew up playing soccer, as there is no hockey support in Greece, and quite frankly he did not know to much about the sport. At the age of seven, his family spent a winter in Edmonton, Alberta, visiting family. During that time he learned about the game of hockey, and gained interest in the sport. Theo would end up eventually putting on a pair skates for the first time, he was hooked, instantly. When he left Edmonton he brought a hockey stick back to Crete with him. Theo would end up practicing his puck handling skills, and shooting during his time back in Crete. Every other winter Theo would return to Edmonton to tune his game. At the age of ten, Theo moved in with his family in Greece. Theo would then be enrolled in hockey, at first he struggled big time, originally playing forward. Theo’s coach decided to play him on defence one game, great things happened that game. Theo earned first star honours for the first time in his life. The remaining part of that season Theo would go on to post 10 points in 30 games. Not bad for a kids first season. As he grew older and gained more confidence, his game vastly improved. Theo would  be close to a two point per game player, after his 4th season. Now 14, people really saw great things in his game, and knew he had a future in the sport. Scouts would starting showing up to all his games.

  All the scouts knew he had the skill to play in the big leagues, but would he grow into a bigger body? His size scared off many scouts. Once Theo got word of this he began to hit the gym hard then ever. six days on, and one day off. All this time in the gym began to effect the play of Theo, players were skating by him, out playing him in the corners, and all in all just making him look silly. Theo began losing faith in his game, and the scouts stopped showing up to games. This is where were at now, Theo took two season off, and worked as a grocery bagger. He felt that he was missing that passion that hockey brought to him. He joined a beer league and worked his way up to junior A, for team Seera in Edmonton. They started Theo on the third pairing, but since then he has worked his way up to the first pairing, and is playing all special teams. Theo is slowly gaining his dominant game back, and managing his work out time accordingly . Will there be a team that takes a gamble on him ?

PROS

Passing: Theo excels in his passing game. With his vision and mobility, you can expect tape to tape passes, short break out passes, long breakout passes, passes in traffic, he will make them. His coach in Seera mans him as the sole defender on the teams power play, everything goes through him. It is rare that the power play gets a point that he is not involved in.

Defence: Theo prides himself in his defensive game as well. He is great at closing gaps, and knowing when to pressure the attacker. Theo’s stick work is excellent, you can expect a large amount of take aways. Former teammates hated practicing against Theo, as he is very pesky with his body and stick work in the corners.

Strength: Another strong point in Matsikas's game is his strength. If he ever goes head-on with a big player, you can count on Theo taking the body if his stick could not make it work. His strength does not only play a factor in his defensive game, but it also plays a large factor in his offensive game. His strength allows him to shield the puck from attackers, and make the play continue.

CONS

Scoring: Although you can expect to see Matsikas on the score sheet, don’t it expect it to be goals. Theo does not have a dangerous slap shot, and sticks to mostly his wrist shot. As well, Theo tends to pass out of scoring opportunities which he has been faulted at, many times.

Checking: Theo will lay the body, but don’t expect it to be a menacing hit. He may bump a player or two off the pick, but his physical play is lacking at this time. This may become a problem for him as he starts to play stronger and bigger players. Theo will need more time in the gym, and more practice learning how to properly line up a hit.

English: With Theo being from Greece, he still  has a language barrier. Many people have said that he is not willing to take big steps in overcoming it. So it will be interesting to see how this will effect his career.

Theo is excited to take the next step in his hockey career.

Theo Matsikas -Unassigned 

Theo Matsikas - Unassigned 

Theo Matsikas - Unassigned