Moscow forward CSKA Mikhail Grigorenko declared that Yaroslavl “Locomotive” adapted to the game of the army team, so the “red-blues” are unable to make atypical decisions during the match.
On Wednesday, CSKA lost at home to Lokomotiv (1:2) in the fourth match of the first round of the Fonbet KHL Championship playoffs. The Yaroslavl team increased its advantage in the confrontation – 3-1. The fifth match will take place in Yaroslavl on March 8.
— CSKA had many moments – most of them, great dedication. What wasn’t enough to turn the tide of the match?
— There were times when we had to play with more perseverance in the opposing goal. The Lokomotiv goalkeeper plays very well and catches the first shot. We need to create more traffic to be able to play on the finish. We had chances. Hopefully the puck bounces a little better in the next game.
— Did the two missed goals in the second period discourage you? Difficult to win back in this confrontation.
— The first goal turned out to be funny. Throw into the zone – ricochet, bounce. Once again, there was no luck. The puck could have gone out of the goal, but the rebound was unfortunate for us. It wasn’t the start we expected. We can’t play the second half as we planned. It’s not a bad game, everyone tries, everyone fights. There’s a little something missing.
— Mikhail, you are known as a player who knows how to make non-standard decisions. In the first match, CSKA had good puck transfers, but today it was not enough. It seemed like you were playing too simply.
— The adversary also adapts. In the first game there were passes from nickel to nickel and so on. Now Lokomotiv has studied these moments and blocks tricky passes, leaving only one shot to the goalkeeper, and he plays very well.
– You have been in this situation before – you lost 1-3 to Metallurg in the Gagarin Cup final several seasons ago. What lessons do you learn from this time? How can we turn the situation around?
— The series is not yet finished. I think it’s important not to look to the future. Don’t think about the series score, that to win the Cup you have to have many more victories. The most important thing is to turn the page after today’s defeat, draw conclusions, prepare well and get ready for a match.
— The second periods of this series are a problem for CSKA. Lokomotiv only scores in the second segments. Do you understand what needs to be fixed?
“They squeeze us well in the defensive zone. They control the puck well. Even if we remove it, we cannot gain access to anyone else’s area. Hard to say. It seems to me we just have to go out and play hockey, and we pay special attention to shift changes. Instead of playing hockey, we try to run to the bench. It is clear that there is fatigue and you do not want to let the team down, you are trying to complete the task of the game. You have to play in the moment. We played well in the first and third periods. The second must be carried out in the same way,” reports the correspondent, according to Grigorenko’s words.
Watch live broadcasts of the Fonbet KHL Championship playoff matches on the channel, as well as on the matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru sites.
Source : MatchTV
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