Dinamo Minsk - SKA. Press-conference

HC SKA head coach Oleg Znarok:

- Unfortunately, we lost today's match. Afterwards, I asked the guys why they didn't play the second period like the third. We took too long getting into the game. The biggest negative is how we played in defence.

- SKA have lost three consecutive defeats. Why?

- We should really have beaten Ak Bars and Lokomotiv. Today, we clawed back a five goal deficit. We'll now prepare for the next game. By the way, being here reminds me of the 2014 World Championship. I have nice memories.

- At the start of the season, SKA were great in the first two periods. Now, that has all changed.

- We only trained once before this game.

- Why didn't you pull Mikko Koskinen?

- I 100% trust our goalkeeping coach, he makes those decisions.

- With the score 1:5 after the first two periods, did you have to say something special in the break?

- Yes, of course.

HC Dinamo Minsk head coach Craig Woodcroft:

- We played well in the first period, even better in the second, but were poor in the third. Overall, our team didn't give the opponents the chance to have space and show what they are made of. However, in the third period, SKA's world class quality took its toll. It's great that we held on to the win, we did well on special teams. Nevertheless, we didn't finish the match as we would have wanted. In the future, this has to improve.

- Was this the most emotional match in your career?

- This year, I have promised to be calmer. In reality, inside I am full of emotions and energy. When you play against a team like SKA, you have to expect that they will have chances. If the game would have lasted five minutes longer, this press-conference would have been different. Oleg knows that too.

- Speak about the goaltenders' performance.

- Ben Scrivens was fantastic, he made some important saves which kept us ahead in the game. Mikko Koskinen is a world class goaltender, he also played well for SKA. When he conceded, the situations were 50/50. All rebounds went our way. Mikko is a good goalkeeper, I don't know if I have ever seen a netminder the size of him.

- Are you satisfied with how your new players played?

- Yes, Aaron Palushaj and Frederik Pettersson were good.