Former HC defenderSochi » Nikita Shchitov appreciated the successful performance of the team at the start of the Fonbet KHL championship.
Last season, the Sochi club did not reach the playoffs and currently occupies fourth place in the Western Conference standings, gaining 8 points in 7 matches.
— At the end of last season, I already said that if Mikhail Berdin played regularly, without injuries, then the team would succeed. And now 80% of the success depends on him, although Maxim Tretyak also played a match well. Foreign players who were able to strengthen during the offseason also look good. Matvey Michkov will also play and help the team. I think this season Sochi has a real chance to qualify for the playoffs if everything goes the same way.
— Has the psychology of the team also changed? We played confidently against top clubs, for example Ak Bars.
“When a team with weaker skills shows up to play against such a powerful opponent, then they are mobilized at over one hundred percent. If you don’t log in to the game, you will miss many goals. Therefore, the coaching staff motivated the players, they caught the puck for themselves. This victory made it possible to overcome the psychological barrier. Sochi realized that they could play with any team. In the last match against Siberia, we managed to use the weather and the beach of Sochi to the maximum, so that in the first half the opponent could not gather forces and move away from this climate. The team has its home advantages.
— It turns out that the rivals are relaxing in Sochi?
— When the team arrives in Sochi, they find themselves in a vacation atmosphere. Whether you like it or not, it relaxes you. Additionally, there are high mountains and a rather stifling ice palace. The home team is used to such conditions, but the opponents feel it strongly. Therefore, we must carefully prepare for the matches in Sochi and the hosts must take advantage of this,” RB Sport quotes Shchitov.
Watch Fonbet live broadcasts of the KHL championship on and other holding channels, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.
RB Sport
Source : MatchTV
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