WASHINGTON, D.C. — Jakub Lauko wasn’t dreading the task in front of him.
Frankly, he didn’t have enough time to even process the daunting measure that Jim Montgomery mapped out for him.
It had already sunk in for the 22-year-old winger that his place in Boston’s lineup was secured for Wednesday’s season opener against the Capitals — and with it, his first official foray up in the NHL ranks.
But as a spark plug and established scrapper penciled into Boston’s fourth line, Lauko wasn’t going to be eased into any matchups for his B’s debut.
Rather, it was Lauko and his line who earned the starting nod when the puck was dropped on the 2022-23 campaign. Their matchup? A Caps’ top line anchored by Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov.
Welcome to the show, kid.
“I don’t think I’m surprised,” Lauko said postgame of his starting spot. “But when Monty said I was going to (start), I was like, “Okay this is gonna be interesting.’ But I was actually happy, because I didn’t have any time to be nervous. … Just jump right into it.”
Of course, Lauko’s propensity to skate head-on into a challenge is why the 2018 third-round pick managed to outlast many of his AHL contemporaries during training camp and earn that starting spot with the big club.
On a checking unit featuring a pair of veterans in Nick Foligno and Tomas Nosek, Lauko offers a blend of old/new when it comes to his high-end speed and sandpaper style of play.
“His speed, his tenacity, and he’s fearless,” Montgomery said when asked of how Lauko landed a role on the roster out of camp. “He’s fearless going to hard areas. So we think he brings energy to our group, and that speed element is something that we felt we needed in our lineup.”
Of course, before he inflicted welts against the Capitals and countless other opponents earlier this fall, Lauko’s most imposing opponent might been his visage in the mirror — given the crossroads he found himself in just a few months prior.
Once thought of as a potential top-six weapon in Boston’s prospect pipeline, Lauko’s sojourn through the pro ranks has been far from linear. Once proclaiming himself as a “steal” in the 2018 Draft, Lauko seemed destined for a featured role in Boston, especially after a strong debut in the QMJHL where he helped the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies win the 2019 Memorial Cup.
But upon making the jump to the AHL, injuries and lapses in confidence ate away at valuable development time for Lauko. Over his first two seasons with Providence, Lauko only logged 45 games due to a variety of ailments — while the 2021-22 campaign was one to forget all around.
Beyond injuries, Lauko struggled to settle into a role, eventually landing into a fourth-line spot or outright getting scratched from the lineup. He only posted 16 points over 54 games in 2021-22, while finishing the year with a minus-28 rating (the next lowest rating was a minus-11).
“Injuries. Haven’t played well,” Lauko said of the reason behind his extended development time. “I had lost all of my confidence that I had from previous years and I just hit let’s say, the 'hockey rock-bottom.’ It was hard to drag myself out of it, but I’m just happy I kept working.”
Perhaps a return back to his native Czechia was the proper move, especially with Lauko’s potential path up to the NHL ranks looking more and more unlikely as an influx of younger wingers started to lap him.
But after a few weeks of reflection, Lauko stopped pondering the what if’s and went back to his usual M.O. — attack the problem, head-on.
“I just stopped worrying about it. I literally hit the reset button and had to find the joy in playing hockey again. Just joy to practice, go to training and I think over this summer I found it and I feel much much better than last year.”
Lauko — growing up in the Prague area — has been around fighters all of his life. The strength coach of his hometown team was a former Greco-Roman Olympic wrestler — and as Lauko began to train extensively with him over the summers, he began to ingratiate himself with the multiple other boxers, wrestlers and Muay Thai combatants in the area.
While he would usually incorporate some hybrid training into his offseason regimen in previous years, Lauko — looking to ramp up his conditioning — opted to train in the ring on a regular basis this summer, including two sessions a week with Czech fighter Jiri Zak, a former ISKA and WMC champion in kickboxing and Muay Thai.
Working with Zak was already enough of a challenge for Lauko. But he found no respite with the rest of the fighters he sparred and grappled with in the ring, noting that even opponents clocking in at 40 pounds below Lauko’s weight would routinely toss him like a ragdoll.
“Even when I’m sparring with them, fighting with them, it’s unbelievable strength, unbelievable conditioning. It’s crazy how hard it is. … Some training with them, I was sitting in the locker room (afterward) saying ‘What the hell did I drag myself into?’ I couldn’t even lift my hands or stand up. It was hard, but I feel like it’s going to pay off.”
The results are speaking for themselves.
Sure, Lauko’s job description on the ice doesn’t involve any wrestling maneuvers, chokeholds or devastating roundhouse kicks. But the Czech product believes the work he put in this offseason to get into peak physical shape, coupled with the various boxing-related warmup routines that he still follows, has allowed him to turn a corner in his career.
“I started like warm-ups before the game and before the practices that I learned from them. ... Because it's different, you will get your blood boiling a little bit. You'll get the legs and arms going, so it's really nice. Definitely feel like I can handle myself much more now on the ice if something comes up. I'll be ready."
Montgomery’s hopes of Lauko serving as an on-ice adrenaline shot and momentum-shifter were validated on Wednesday night.
Even though he finished with zero shots on goal in 11:36 of ice time, Lauko’s aggressiveness worked in Boston’s favor — whether it be a strong opening shift against Ovechkin and Co. or during a third period in which his knack for getting tangled up with opponents directly led to two Washington penalties.
"That was a good move by coach putting his line out there the first shift of the game, and they had a great first shift,” David Krejci said of Lauko’s game. “That set the tone and tempo for the first period,” Krejci said. “What was it, 2-0, in the first period? You can tell — he's this fast and get on the forecheck and that's why he's here. He's an energy guy. And he did just that. So really happy for him."
Wednesday stood as a promising first step for Lauko, but he acknowledged that there’s plenty more he needs to build into his game.
But the affable forward has plenty of momentum and motivation on his side, noting after Boston’s preseason finale last weekend that he felt “pissed” over the amount of online musings centered on his legitimacy as a starting contributor for this Bruins team. There will be additional opportunities to further stake his claim to that 4RW spot in the days ahead.
Of course, most of that consternation and fire had been quelled by the time he spoke with the media following Wednesday’s 5-2 victory over the Capitals.
Lauko had plenty of reason to smile. Not only had months of sparring and scrapping paid off with his first game as a Bruin, but his father, Roman — arriving from Czechia and getting to Capital One Arena just 10 minutes ahead of puck drop — was waiting for him in the tunnel of the arena, ready to share in his triumph.
“He was here. So I’m really happy,” Lauko said.