SKA - Kunlun Red Star. Press-conference

HC SKA head coach Roman Rotenberg:

"First of all, I would like to thank our fans for their fantastic support which we really appreciate. We knew that this would be a physical game, Kunlun have plenty of North American players and their coach used to work in the SKA system. I didn't like how we played in the first period, we competed in an individual manner and we consequently held a serious conversation during the break. 

"The guys reacted well, playing hard for the remaining two frames, competing for the benefit of the team and displaying determination. If we hadn't had lost the duel for the puck when Kunlun scored their empty-netter, we could have won.

"Evgeny Kuznetsov's injury? Initially we thought it was a very serious one, but thankfully he'll actually be able to return earlier than we expected. He won't travel with us for our next road trip, but he will certainly be back earlier than two months from now. Ice hockey is a physical sport, there is a huge amount of pressure on the shoulders and knees."

HC SKA forward Mikhail Grigorenko:

"How do Kunlun differ from Russian teams? Their players have been playing together for a long time know, they have great mutual understanding. It's always tense when we play them."

HC SKA forward Sergei Plotnikov:

"Kunlun stand out from other teams in terms of their physicality and ability to deflect the puck on target. I thought that we played pretty well overall, but we conceded too many cheap goals. Nevertheless, the fact that we almost forced overtime shows just how much character this group has."

HC Kunlun Red Star head coach Mikhail Kravets:

"Overall, if we ignore the closing seconds, I think that we played excellently from start to finish. When you play against such a pro-active team like SKA, you have to protect possession, move the puck forward and avoid getting stuck inside your own zone. 

"Why did we stop counter-attacking in the third period? I wanted the players to continue pressing, but when you're leading by a such a large score, you automatically begin sitting back. We allowed SKA to enter our zone too easily. There's no need to be afraid of any opponent."