Andrei Nazarov and Maxim Chudinov speak before facing Severstal

Andrei Nazarov:

- Why did you name Maxim Chudinov as captain?

- I think that he's ready for this. We even prepared him for this during the summer. Maxim is a good leader, and this is a game for him in his hometown. While Ilya Kovalchuk is out, Maxim will be captain.

- Are Vadim Shipachyov and Evgeny Artyukhin not upset about this decision?

- I don't think so. The team has one united goal. If they coaching staff take a decision, the players will then accept it.

- How big of a loss if Ilya Kovalchuk?

- It wouldn't be right to say that no problems have been created as a result of this. Ilya was, and remains our leader. He's injured, but he will recover and come back to the side.

Maxim Chudinov:

- What feelings do you have before taking on Severstal as captain?

- Everything's fine. We've trained this morning and are preparing for the game.

- In what state is the team in?

- Everyone's in a great mood and are ready to fight. If we talk about our lines, then it doesn't matter who plays in the first or second. The main thing is that we are all ready to fight.

- Will playing in Cherepovets make it a special match for you?

- I get pumped up for every game the same way, but I spent a lot of time in Cherepovets. There will be a lot of fans today, and my family will come to the arena.

- Does the team have enough reserves to replace Ilya Kovalchuk with?

- We'll find out this evening. He is a big loss for us though, and it's a shame tgat he got injured in almost exactly the same place as last time.