Flyers: Voracek's journey to first All-Star Game a long one

When he was 8 years old, Flyers right wing Jake Voracek kept watching the same tape over and over and over in his parents' apartment in Kladno, Czech Republic.

His father Miloslav had to record the 1997 NHL All-Star Game on a VHS tape because it ran on TV about 3 a.m. local time, when young Jake was fast asleep.

"I remember one of my memories of the All-Star Game was (former San Jose Shark) Owen Nolan pointing to (Buffalo goalie Dominik) Hasek at the corner of the net when he had a breakaway," Voracek said. "He sniped it there."

In a couple of weeks, Voracek will have the opportunity to make his own All-Star magic. The league announced Saturday that the points leader will be part of the All-Star Game Jan. 25 in Columbus, where his NHL career started.

"It's gonna be something special," said Voracek, a first-time All-Star. "It's something you dream of when you're a kid. You see all those players in that one game. It's something spectacular. I'm so glad it will happen. It's gonna be great. I worked really hard for it."

When Voracek was a young kid, idolizing fellow Kladno native Jaromir Jagr, he may have dreamt of being in the NHL, but wasn't too sure. Even when he was 16, playing juniors in the Czech Republic, he wasn't too sure about playing in North America.

His agent, former Flyers defenseman Petr Svoboda, convinced him he should try. He also convinced the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

"We wouldn't have had a scout over there at that time," said Cam Russell, who coached Voracek in Halifax and is now the team's general manager. "You're basically going on the word of an agent and crossing your fingers."

Voracek was taken first overall in the Canadian Hockey League's import draft in 2006 even though the Mooseheads hadn't scouted him. Few teams in juniors have the budget to send scouts to Europe to check out talent.

It worked out pretty well for Halifax. Voracek led the team in points his first year, before the Columbus Blue Jackets drafted him seventh overall in 2007. His second year, he was fourth in the QMJHL in scoring with 101 points.

"You spend a lot of time looking at hockey players and wishing that this guy had that guy's heart and that guy with a big heart had his hands," Russell said. "Well, Jake's the kind of player that had it all. He had the skill. He had the work ethic and he had the character and the heart to go with it all."

Before leaving juniors, Voracek led the Mooseheads to the playoffs and a bitter semifinal series against the Gatineau Olympiques and current teammate Claude Giroux, who was also selected to the 2015 NHL All-Star Game.

"He was a top player in the league in juniors," said Giroux, who was second in the QMJHL in scoring that season. "You could see he had a lot of talent and a good attitude. Playing against him was pretty tough. He was pretty strong."

"It's just kinda funny to see those two playing together," Russell added, "but the stuff he's doing in the NHL now is what he was doing in Halifax."

Voracek didn't become a start overnight. In his three seasons with Columbus, Voracek made the playoffs only once as the team waded in mediocrity.

"When you're not feeling comfortable in a situation it makes things difficult," said goalie Flyers Steve Mason, who was a teammate in Columbus, too. "You feel like you're walking on eggshells a little bit. Since Jake's come here, he's completely taken off.

"There's times in Columbus where you could see it was an inch away from happening. Now that it has happened, he's so fun to watch."

Others had the feeling it would happen, too.

"There's always been huge potential," said Flyers general manager Ron Hextall, who scouted Voracek when he was an assistant GM with the Los Angeles Kings.

"Jake was a high draft pick and could have probably even went higher than he went. The potential was there, but potential is only that until a player decides to totally commit and reach it. He's doing a good job. It's pretty hard right now to find a flaw in Jake Voracek. His fitness, his diet, his commitment to being a top player has been excellent."

At the NHL's halfway point, Voracek leads the league in points over perennial powerhouses like Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and newcomers like Dallas' Tyler Seguin. Before leaving Columbus, the most points Voracek racked up in one season was 50. With an assist Saturday, he has 50 points in his first 42 games this season.

"Since he's been with us, he's been improving every year," Giroux said. "For me it's pretty special to play with him. He's fun to be around. He's a great guy and he wants to be better, too."

Voracek has been working hard in the past few summers, training in Montreal to be as good as he can be.

He doesn't know if he has reached that mark because in his words, "I don't think anyone knows where their ceiling is."

"I mean, it's hard for me to say," Voracek said. "I can't answer you because I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not. I don't know."

Reach Dave Isaac at disaac@ courierpostonline.com. Follow him on Twitter @davegisaac.