Before “Locomotive » Maxime Berezkine after the sixth game of the second round of the KHL playoffs with “Avant-garde “said his team was very close to victory, but could not take the final step.
Avangard in the sixth match of the second round of the Gagarin Cup defeated Lokomotiv away (3:2).
– Don’t you think that Lokomotiv sank psychologically in the match?
– No, that didn’t seem to be the case. We played very well. It’s just that in the second half you have to act better, overlap, carry your defenders.
– Lokomotiv created many chances, but what was missing to win?
– I repeat, the second period decides a lot. We covered them well in the first two matches. They didn’t even have the strength to take the puck from us. We have to get back to it.
– How would you evaluate your progress in the playoffs? You have already scored 9 (3+6) points in 11 matches.
– I don’t care about my game. The main thing for me is that the team wins.
– Will it be difficult to play the seventh match, which will take place in Omsk?
– I don’t see anything complicated. The seventh game is always the most interesting. We have to show that we have grown over the year. And we must achieve victory.
– Why did Lokomotiv start playing with the puck less during the series, allowing Avangard to deploy? You dominated.
– Avangard simply adds that as the series progressed, they changed their game. Somehow they started to play it safe; they do not join us as defenders. We have fewer counter-attacks. They save more energy and therefore play with the puck more often.
– How to react to an opponent whose game has changed?
– Of course, we monitor everything. But I believe it all depends entirely on our team. We can turn the tide and everything will be fine. We just need to get open for each other, move the puck faster so they can’t keep up with us. Thanks to speed, when the puck moves, we will create chances.
– After winning with a score of 7:0, Lokomotiv lost the game. Did you feel it?
– No. I believe in every game we go out, fight and play only to win. Credit goes to Avangard for what they added. But I think we allowed them to do that.
– Do you think Lokomotiv is betraying its matches when victory is already in your hands?
– I agree. Today’s match showed that. We were leading 2:0, and there were a few moments where we could have easily made it 3:0, taking the affair to victory. But the opponent took advantage of their chances and we lost,” Berezkin was quoted as saying by correspondent.
The score in the best-of-four series was tied (3-3). The seventh match of these teams will take place on Saturday in Omsk.
Watch live broadcasts of Fonbet KHL Championship matches on Match Group channels, matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru websites.
Source : MatchTV
I’m Emma Smith, a dedicated journalist and avid storyteller. I have been writing for news websites for the past 5 years, reporting on hockey news and delivering in-depth analysis of the sport. In my current role as Author at Athletistic, I write about hockey events from around the world to keep followers up-to-date with what’s happening in the sport.
