“More players have left the SKA for the NHL in the past ten years than from all other clubs combined” – Rotenberg

SKA Head Coach Romain Rotenberg told that the club is not prone to rash line-up changes, but is making targeted acquisitions to replace those who, among other things, are leaving for the NHL.

SKA have signed striker Sergei Tolchinsky on a five-year contract. The club also made a qualified offer for striker Arseniy Gritsyuk, which Avangard did not repeat. Both players have previously played for the Omsk team.

– What role do they see in SKA for Tolchinsky and Gritsyuk, given that they played on the same line?

– When we invite hockey players, we understand how we want to use them. But let’s not show all the cards. It is clear that we will never take a pig out of the bag – a transfer is always preceded by a complete analysis.

It’s great that Tolchinsky and Gritsyuk understand each other, but they also played not only Avangard. The two in the Russian national team of different ages crossed paths with SKA hockey players, so a variety of options are possible. Besides, I don’t understand those who say that SKA constantly changes its roster. We make targeted acquisitions to replace those who leave for various reasons.

More players have left SKA for the NHL in the past ten years than all other clubs combined. Should we replace them? Now that all the legionnaires are gone, they also need a replacement. We do point buffs to make the team better, but there’s no point in destroying everything and rebuilding. That’s not how hockey works. Again for most of the season we played with trebles played, changes were made mid-game depending on the situation, but the starting combinations changed very little, and that was mostly on the fourth tie . We have been playing for a long time and will only be happy if our players develop and play successfully for many years,” Rotenberg told .