SKA – Sochi. Press-conference

HC SKA head coach Roman Rotenberg:

“It’s clear that our team wanted to win. Just as we had expected, the opponents focused on defending solidly and catching us on the counter. Unfortunately, we committed individual mistakes today which I can put down to the challenging training process which is ongoing; we’re working really hard both on and off the ice. However, at the same time, it’s unacceptable to play like this at home.

“We need to play in a simpler manner and win the duels. In our next game, I can promise that we will display our brand of ice hockey and take our game to the next level. We have to win the battles on the slot and not allow the opponents to crash our net. Yegor Zavragin? We substituted him today in order to give him a chance to rest.

“Tony DeAngelo made a mistake for Sochi’s opener? Well, was he the only SKA player who committed an error? Of course, Tony can play better and we’ll speak about that particular incident. Mistakes happen, but ice hockey is a team game.

“Why are we playing in our old jerseys? It’s down to the comfortable material which they’re made of. We have to remember that we won two Gagarin Cups with this jersey! The main thing is that our players feel comfortable wearing them. Will we continue wearing this jersey in our upcoming matches? Yes. Sadly, Evgeny Kuznetsov couldn’t play today because of illness.”

HC Sochi head coach Sergei Zubov:

“We’re happy that we earned two points while playing well. This was a great test for our group, we were playing against a top side.

“It was vital that we scored the first goal. Maxim Fedotov isn’t even in our line-up after being one of SKA’s leading defensemen in the preceding Gagarin Cup playoffs? He’s trying, but probably he isn’t mentally ready for the responsibility which we are placing on him. Maxim will take to the ice in our subsequent matches.”

HC SKA forward Ivan Demidov:

“Thank you to our fans for their fantastic support. The opponents were always a small step ahead of us, this is what decided the outcome in my opinion. We need to have calm, cool heads when presented with scoring opportunities.”

HC SKA forward Zakhar Bardakov:

“We conceded poor goals. In my opinion, we simply need to draw the right conclusions from this match and move on.”