Magnus Hellberg: "My save in the first period gave me some confidence"

- Was this a difficult game for you?

- Yes, Minsk came out hard in the first period. Nevertheless, the players helped me out as they allowed me to see the puck, and I am happy that we managed to recover from the match in Finland two days ago. We proved that we are a good team.

- What happened in Helsinki?

- It was a really bad defeat for us, especially taking into account our history against Jokerit. We have to be ready for every game, because, when we're not, these things can happen. I am happy that we showed character in this game to get back to winning ways.

- Which aspects from this match can SKA take into the battle with Spartak in Moscow?

- I think that we controlled the game well, even if Minsk started the first period in an aggressive manner. The match was under our control after we scored a couple of goals. We know that Spartak Moscow are playing well this year, so it will be a difficult match. However, if we show our best ice hockey, we have a great chance to win. We must play with character and for each other.

- You made an unusual save during the first period.

- I saw that they had a 2 on 0 counter, and I came out to sweep the puck away. It was a superman moment. That save gave me confidence, and hopefully it was the same for the rest of the players too.

- Sometimes you are starting to speak Russian. Are you taking lessons?

- I speak a little bit of Russian, and I am beginning to understand more. Hopefully, I will be able to give a full interview in the Russian language soon.

- Dinamo took away your potential shutout in the concluding minutes of play.

- It would have been worse to concede that goal in the first period. Of course, I wanted a shutout, but the most important thing is the two points.