“The contract with Radulov is a definite risk for Ak Bars. We discuss famous players who returned from the NHL to Russia

“At CSKA, Radulov’s road was closed”

– Alexander Radulov officially signed a contract with Ak Bars for two years. Can he become the top scorer in the KHL again, like in his best years?

– I strongly doubt that the last season in Dallas was too unsuccessful for Radulov. True, this may be due to an injury or other health issues that Alexander may have already resolved. If so, then the attacker can achieve his optimal performance. Although Radulov’s style of play consumes too much energy and requires very high functional preparation from the player.

– What is already difficult to demonstrate at 36?

– Yes, but, on the other hand, Radulov himself has already said that he does not feel his age, that he is still young. But with veterans, there is always a risk. You never know when they go down. And it comes right away. It is very rare for this to happen gradually. As a rule, on the contrary, strongly. A person plays, plays, then once – and failed. Radulov, I guess, has a big contract at Ak Bars. Therefore, the management of the Kazan club took a risk here. Let’s see how reasonable that is.

– Decipher how Radulov’s style consumes more energy?

– He is always in the fight, constantly climbs to the heart of the matter. This involves a large number of collisions, which in turn lead to at least microtrauma.

– By the way, why did Radulov choose Ak Bars, and not CSKA or Salavat Yulaev, where he successfully performed before?

– In CSKA, the road was closed to him, judging by the statement of Esmantovich. And Alexander could go to Ufa. I think now Ak Bars was just giving him better terms.

– Could the arrival of Oleg Znark in Ak Bars influence his decision in one way or another?

– I do not think so. When it comes to status players like Radulov, the name of the coach does not play a special role.

“Alexander, most likely, would not have become a star of the first magnitude in the NHL”

— Was it worth it for the striker to leave the KHL in 2016, where he spent the best years of his career?

It was a question of desire. Radulov wanted to return to the NHL. I wanted to prove, myself included, that he is a player of this level. There is a very clear solution here.

– Did you manage to prove it?

– I think so. Alexander had a good first season after his return. This allowed him to sign a good five-year contract. By this he proved everything to himself and to all others.

– Could Radulov have become an NHL star if he had not returned to Russia in 2008, but developed his career abroad?

— Most likely, Radulov would not have become a star of the first magnitude. But he would clearly be above average in the NHL.. Let’s just say he would be the No. 2 star. With Crosby, Malkin, Ovechkin, Stamkos, I wouldn’t compare it.

– And if you compare him with Kaprizov, Panarin?

– No, it’s all the guys in the front row. Just like Kucherov, for example. Radulov could perhaps reach the level of Tarasenko.

– Many age leaders gathered in Ak Bars now – Radulov, Shipachev and Zaripov recently signed a contract. But there’s also Kagarlitsky – Kazan’s top scorer last season.

– So let’s see how Znark manages to unite all these famous guys around a common idea. Here you can see the work of the trainer well. Because, on the one hand, it’s not easy to build a team of such leaders, but on the other, there is work to be done.

“Tkachev has a high level of skill. But he still hasn’t implemented it.»

– Maxim Mamin returned from Florida to CSKA. What’s wrong with him in the NHL?

– Like Radulov, Mamin wanted to prove to himself that he could play in this league. And in principle, he proved that he had had a good season. But Maxim, most likely, could not have signed a lucrative NHL contract. At CSKA, he will be one of the team leaders. And in Florida, the third or fourth link was waiting for him. Therefore, mom’s career develops logically. And it’s not a bad career. He did the right thing by leaving for the NHL a year ago. And now he came back, because the army team offered him good conditions.

– It’s just that from the outside Mamin’s relationship with Florida seems special. He goes to the NHL, has a good season there, breaks into the main team and… comes back to CSKA. It’s happened twice already. Will he go back abroad at 30?

– I don’t think Mamin will take the NHL by storm again, given the three-year contract with the army team. Of course, anything is possible. Here, Nichushkin has reached a high level after all his troubles. Maybe Mamin will show something enchanting here. But his return overseas in three years is already unlikely.

– Having tried himself in Los Angeles, Vladimir Tkachev also returned to his native Avangard.

– Tkachev is one of the top 3 players in the team. He has to go on the ice in the shock link, play in the majority, spend a lot of time on the ice. To enter the top 3 of the NHL, his class is not enough. But in Avangard, Vladimir has every chance of becoming a leader.

– Why can’t this talented striker find his team?

— Tkachev has a high level of individual skill. But here he does not take the team to the next level. There are hockey players who can immediately see that one team is with them and another is without them. Umark was like that at Salavat Yulaev, Morozov at Ak Bars, Mozyakin at Magnitogorsk, Kovalenko at Lokomotiv, Kaprizov or the same Radulov at CSKA. Tkachev can become a player of the same level. But so far this has not happened.

– What does Vladimir need in order to grow?

– Well, look – Tkachev was the top scorer of the season in SKA. And suddenly the people of St. Petersburg part with him quite easily and painlessly. This is a very serious call! Whatever the disagreements, no club will give up their most productive player so easily.

If, for example, we rate hockey players on a ten-point scale, then nine or ten will be awarded to those who lift the team to another level because of their play. I remember once asking the NHL scout: “Who’s going to win the Stanley Cup? He first replied, “Well, what are you? How can that be predicted? Then he thought about it and said, ‘Although you know… If Lemieux is fine and passes the injury-free season, so Pittsburgh. That is, Lemieux is a hockey player who radically changes the game of his club. Now in the NHL, the game of the team depends, for example, on McDavid, Makar , Kucherov, Vasilevsky… Their defeat is a real tragedy.

– How much does Tkachev now shoot on a ten-point scale?

– About seven. But he can still grow. After all, Mozyakin also did not immediately become a top player. Although his talent has been talked about since his youth. But they also often added: weak, won’t shoot. And Sergei gradually reached this level. At Magnitogorsk, he was a defining player for several seasons. And in Atlanta too. So Tkachev, in principle, can. His class allows it. If Vladimir isn’t changing Avangard’s game with his presence, it means he’s not realizing his full potential.