SKA - Lokomotiv. Press-conference

HC SKA head coach Roman Rotenberg:

- It was a very interesting match against a strong opponent with excellent coaches. We spent almost the entirety of the second period shorthanded. We lost a lot of energy during that time, and we subsequently played without concentration in the third frame. Our players responded to our conversation which we had during our time-out. I would like to dedicate this victory to Zakhar Bardakov, who received a serious injury in our last game against Lokomotiv in Yaroslavl. This is a big win for us, we managed to earn the victory in a really tough game. However, we have to work on our mistakes and improve our discipline.

- Did your time-out have the desired effect?

- The task of the coaching staff is to help the team. The guys earned a really important win today, this was a challenging match. Moving forward, we have a lot of things which require improvement.

- You are winning a lot of games as a consequence of late goals. Where is this confidence coming from?

- We have to point out the whole team and our captain.

There was a chance that Dmitrij Jaskin wasn't going to play today, but he was on the ice. Injuries are a part of ice hockey. I was frustrated that we were shorthanded for the second stanza, we only have ourselves to blame. You can't beat opposing teams if you are always killing penalties. In order to deliver the knockout blow, you have to have a winning mentality. God sees everything, the strongest deserve the luck. We have to work even harder, though, all opposing teams are studying how we're playing. Opponents always play their best ice hockey against us.

- SKA seemed to become tired after the second half of the second period. How do the players feel physically?

- Everything is fine with the team's physical condition, you saw that we managed to win this game. We had spent almost the entire second period playing with only four players on the ice. Our guys on the PK did a great job, the only goal which we conceded shorthanded was scored because of a technical mistake which we committed. It means a lot to us to win a match in which we were shorthanded for long periods, we found a way to win. Taking into account that we have so many games, it's vital for us to recover psychologically. Victories make you feel better emotionally. We'll now prepare for the next game, we will analyse what happened today as to make sure that we will avoid making the same mistakes again. When it comes to the schedule, then everyone is in the same boat.

- Did Dmitrij Jaskin compensate for his penalties with his winning goal?

- Ice hockey is a game of mistakes. Each player should respond to his errors in the right way. There are certain reasons concerning why Jaskin plays the game the way he does which I cannot tell the press, but he showed character and scored a crucial goal. He repeated what he had achieved against Dynamo in Moscow earlier on in the season. We want to win matches more confidently, maybe our early goal in the first period made us too relaxed. We will improve.

- Why did SKA take so many penalties?

- As a consequence of technical mistakes and other aspects. Thankfully, Dmitrij was able to compete today and he scored the game-winner. I won't reveal too much information about how we operate, as we will soon play again on Wednesday. Instead of revealing too much information, I want to surprise the opponents! There was a factor concerning the rink size, our ice is 26 meters whereas in Yaroslavl it's 28. Lokomotiv needed time to adapt. In upcoming matches, we need to shoot more, crash the net and play modern ice hockey.

HC Lokomotiv Yaroslavl head coach Igor Nikitin:

- What was your plan for this match?

- Our plan was to score more goals than SKA. We made too many mistakes, they resulted in us losing this game. Ice hockey can be like this.

- You had a lot more shots on target than SKA.

- We played at the same level throughout the three periods, but we only started scoring goals in the third. Three goals are enough to win games, but we conceded cheap markers. We created chances for SKA with our poor play near our net. When this happens, it's tough to have hope of winning.

- Why aren't Alexander Polunin, Pavel Kraskovsky and Yegor Korshkov playing in one line together?

- They haven't been in a line together since the start of the campaign. In recent matches, we only put them together again because of injury and illness problems. We're searching for the best line formations. Naturally, we always take into account the opponents and their strengths. We want to win games.

- Can you compare this match and your recent meeting in Yaroslavl earlier on in the month?

- In comparison to that game, we had even more scoring opportunities today. The match went back and forth, and sadly it ended with SKA having the advantage. There were a lot of mistakes from both teams today, but tiredness is taking its toll on everyone.

HC SKA defenseman Nikita Kamalov:

- It was a good game against strong opponents, we had to work really hard for the win.

- Why did SKA struggle so much in the third period?

- Yaroslavl started the third frame with a lot of energy, they had nothing to lose. For our part, we started defending too much and playing in the wrong way. The main thing is that Jaskin saved us in the end!

HC SKA forward Emil Galimov:

- I enjoyed this match, our guys did a great job to win. Why were there so many penalties? Lokomotiv played well, there were a lot of duels on the ice and no one wanted to lose. It was a tense game.