Slavakov is not necessarily a player that needs extra motivation in order to succeed as a player. All his life he has wanted to play hockey, and now he gets to live the dream every night. But even for him, during those long trips on the road, he every now and then needs to find a way to keep that motivation going. When he was a kid growing up in Siberia, Slavakov received a small wooden hockey stick, almost like a figurine of sorts. It was made by his father, who carved it out of a reindeer antler from a buck that he ended up killing himself. His father died when he was a kid, so it’s something he always keeps with him for that little extra motivation if he ever feels like he needs it. He also has a picture of Mount Fuji on his gearbag to remind him of his new home in Japan and of all the friends he’s made as a part of that team.