Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev in an interview with , he said that during a confrontation with the Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin everything is decided by team tactics, but special attention should be paid to the attacker both in the majority and in equal compositions.
Tampa placed Sergachev on long-term injured reserve this week. In 33 matches of the season, Sergachev scored 19 points (2+17) with a utility indicator of -15. Ovechkin ranks second on the league’s all-time goalscoring list with 830 goals, 64 behind Canada’s Wayne Gretzky (894).
— Tell me, as a Tampa defender, if you play against Washington, do you pay special attention to Alexander Ovechkin on the installations? Maybe you’re keeping it on purpose so it doesn’t break Gretzky’s record?
– We are not told to constantly watch over Sasha. When you go out to play, you understand that he is on the ice. And it’s better to play closer to him. You do it automatically. The man has nearly 900 career goals in the regular season and playoffs. It would be strange not to hang out with Ovechkin.
On the majority, you play much closer to him. Because he has a strong and precise throw. And in equal compositions you follow it. But you always play according to the team’s tactics. And it is impossible to drop everything and run after Sasha in the defense zone. So we act on tactics and see what happens. If he comes to your part of the ice, you try to get closer to him,” Sergachev told .
Source : MatchTV
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