Igor Larionov speaks after playing Ak Bars on the road

HC SKA head coach Igor Larionov:

"I want to note the wonderful atmosphere inside the arena. The opponents deserved to win, we were lacking freshness and discipline. These factors made the difference."

Brendan Leipsic's fast start to life with SKA...

"It's always nice when a player fits in well and immediately brings energy after arriving. We want him to continue playing this way. I like his line with Rocco Grimaldi and Joe Blandisi, they all speak the same language and have good mutual understanding. He's the freshest player in our team right now."

If Yegor Zavragin will get another chance...

"Yegor is an interesting and promising goalkeeper. We appreciate his qualities, which include his calmness and inner strength. However, Artemiy Pleshkov has only just returned from injury, and Sergei Ivanov was excellent against in Moscow against CSKA. At this moment in time, Artemiy and Sergei will play."

Faceoff struggles...

"Faceoffs involve all of the five skaters on the ice at that particular moment in time, not just the centre forward. You have to control the rebounds and loose pucks. As I have already said, we were lacking freshness and character today. It's not good enough to only win 28% of your faceoffs."