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Player of the Month

The European Hockey.Net European Player of the Month is awarded to the player with the most oustanding performance over the course of the month

Nominations are collected at the end of each month, then a vote by the site's admin team decides the winner.

March 2006 - Reto von Arx

There was no stopping Swiss club HC Davos' first line in March. The centre-piece of their success was veteran forward Reto von Arx whose post-season play left nothing to be desired. In just ten games he notched up 18 points to win the European Hockey.Net Player of the Month Award for March.

His dominant play led to his team reaching the Swiss playoff final in which they eventually found their Waterloo against HC Lugano. Swiss hockey journalist Urs Berger of hockeyfans.ch noticed a "new" Von Arx on the ice this year.

Reto von Arx was the dynamo behind Davos' stellar March month
Photo: to / hockeyfans.ch

"He has a huge impact on and off the Ice", he says. "His game has changed from last years. He now takes on more responsibility for the team and is the leader on and off the Ice."

The NHL lock-out in 2004 saw several NHL stars end up in Switzerland. They affected the Swiss players immensely. The results of this have already been demonstrated by the Swiss during the Winter Olympics in Torino. Reto von Arx was also affected feels Berger. "He tried to elevate his game in the past but had the responsibility in the dressing room. It seems, to me, that he got a huge impact from last season from Joe Thornton and co."

Despite having been a top player in Switzerland, Von Arx has always been in the middle of debates. He's either loved or hated to death. He gave up a possible NHL career with the Chicago Blackhawks after returning to Switzerland when he was demoted to the AHL in 2001 and also declined invitations to the national team after a feud with head coach Ralph Krueger.

Back in 2002 in Salt Lake City, Von Arx and Marcel Jenni were sent home from the team after a night out in town. Whilst Jenni accepted his punishment, a one year ban, and apologised, Reto von Arx refused to do so as he felt he is responsible enough to decide what is right or wrong. Since then the centre has refused most invitations to join the national team and the few he did accept were not very successful. It explains his absence on the Swiss Olympic team as well as the upcoming World Championship team.

Reto von Arx is a SC Langnau product. The team is not unknown for producing Swiss NationalLiga players. Amongst others there are Martin Gerber, Daniel Steiner and Steve Hirschi who saw their development in Langnau. After two seasons with Langnau in the Swiss second league and having starred on the Swiss junior teams, he received his chance to play in the top league.

HC Davos acquired the 19-year old player, a move they never regretted. He had a decent first season with the traditional top team in which he scored 10 points in 34 games. It was followed by a pair of seasons in which he hit the 20-mark before elevating his game to join the top scorers in the league with 40+-points per season.

This season he broke his personal point record with 14 goals and 34 assists in 44 games and followed it up with 17 points in the playoffs.

It is unlikely to see the 29-year old dress up for another team although Berger leaves room for that. "I think he will go where his coach Arno del Curto will go," Berger feels. "Without him around, he will lose his mentor and will get in trouble." Urs Berger also questions the desire for other teams to take on this 'labeled' player who isn't liked by too many inside the Swiss hockey scene.

For now there is no reason for Von Arx to think about a move. He comes off his best ever season and has a lost playoff final to make up for next season. With his stardom in the Davos area and a nice contract signed, the forward is just coming in the prime of his career.

Unfortunately for the hockey fans around Europe, the only chance to see him play will be to visit a Swiss league game as his only international seems to come from the European Champions Cup if his team manages to win the league.

Related links

Reto von Arx's profile