Valeri Bragin: "It was a very difficut match for us"

HC SKA head coach Valeri Bragin:

- It was a very difficult match for us, we didn't play with speed. Severstal have a young, aggressive team, the first two periods were poor. Nevertheless, after we took the decision to move to three lines, we improved. I'm thankful to the guys for gaining emotions, showing their character and winning.

- Did the players understand the situation themselves after 40 minutes?

- I told them to play with more aggression and for the defensemen to join our attacks. From the first shifts of the third period, it was clear that we wanted to win.

- What needs to be done for SKA to play like that in the first period?

- The main thing is to finish games well. However, we need to start matches better than today.

- Will Yaroslav Askarov be ready for the junior national team's training camp in Novogorsk?

- Yes, I think so. Will the junior national team players be with us in Ufa? Yes.

- Why does Vasily Podkolzin play so much better with Ivan Morozov and Kirill Marchenko than with anyone else?

- I won't go into any detail. Vasily plays well with other players too, but he feels more comfortable with Ivan and Kirill. He's a young player, so he has good and bad periods.