CSKA head coach Sergei Fedorov commented on Yaroslavl Lokomotiv’s play in Gagarin Cup matches, comparing it to New Jersey’s style of the 1995 model.
On Friday, in the first game of the second round of the Gagarin Cup series, CSKA beat Lokomotiv 2-0. Yaroslavl made 35 shots at the goal of CSKA, the military team – 13.
– As a hockey player you played against New Jersey in 1995 and as a coach you fought with the Finnish team in the final of the Beijing Olympics. Don’t you find that the style of Lokomotiv is close to the play of these two defensive teams? Is it possible to say that the Yaroslavl team shows stifling hockey?
“And I wouldn’t call it stifling hockey. They show aggressive hockey. And very clear. From the moment we have the puck, they tire the whole space. It is not easy to overcome these redoubts.
But we always told the guys that speed would help us. There must be a clear first pass. And the middle zone should ideally be passed in one pass.
Lokomotiv does not play a defensive game. Not even at all. With their initiative, possession of the puck, they play south-north, shoot the puck deep in the zone and create a lot of pressure. But not always, not every time. With our pressure, they advance the puck.
We are ready for their pressure. We trained and practiced not only against Lokomotiv, but also against other opponents during the season. However, today the advantage was on the side of Yaroslavl. But we played on the spot – that’s the term.
I will not compare with the NHL. Yes, New Jersey played ostensibly defensive hockey. But it is only clear hockey when there is a game without a puck in its place, ”reports the correspondent of in the words of Fedorov.
The second game of the series up to four wins will take place in Moscow on Sunday, March 19.
Watch live broadcasts of the Fonbet KHL Championship playoff matches on the federal channel , thematic channels of the holding, as well as on the matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru websites. March 18 from 4:45 p.m. (Moscow time) live on – the second meeting in the series between SKA and Torpedo.
Source : MatchTV
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