Patrick Thoresen: "We tried to stick to our game plan"

- What did you feel when scoring the first goal?

- Tony made a good forecheck in the neutral zone, forced their back line to make a turnover, I tried to find Ilya Kovalchuk on the far side, and he made a great play.

- Why did Ak Bars force you into playing only in defence in the second stanza?

- Yes, we became too passive. That also happened in the last game, as we sat back too early and couldn't score. That shouldn't happen, and that's something which we have to work on. We have to play for 60 minutes, not giving them a chance to play their hockey.

- Did you change your tactics after scoring early on?

- Not really, we tried to stick to our game plan throughout the whole 60 minutes. Obviously it's important to score goals, especially the first one. It gave the team a lot of confidence.

- SKA need just one more win to take the Gagarin Cup, and you are one of the few players who has experience of such matches. How can you not become too nervous?

- We have to keep playing our game. We can't think too far ahead, it's just one hockey game. The toughest win to get is the fourth, and Ak Bars will fight for their lives. We will have problems if we don't give our all, and we have to treat it like just another game.

- What was going on between you and Alexander Svitov?

- It's the playoffs, you try to do whatever you can to get under the skin of the other players. Alexander Svitov is a great player, and I tried to get under his skin.