Sergey Mozyakin: “They didn’t want to take me to the Olympics. But Znarok made the decision on his own.

On Saturday I came to Magnitogorsk, where the “Legendary Match” took place. Sergei Mozyakin” The best scorer in the history of our hockey has officially retired and his jersey with the number 10 has been hoisted under the arches of the Metallurg Arena.

Before the match itself, I interviewed Mozyakin, asking him to remember the main tournament of his life. And this is the golden Olympics in Pyeongchang, which Sergei simply could not attend.

“It was only with age that I understood Tikhonov’s advice”

— Were you worried before the “Legendary Match”? It’s the feeling you get when you’re little and a lot of guests come to your birthday party.

“I started to worry not only on Saturday. We have been organizing this game for a long time. And the last two weeks have been the most difficult. But on the morning of the match day, I didn’t feel very comfortable either. There was such a slight jolt.

— Have you invited guests yourself?

– Yes, I called everyone personally. And then he contacted the organizers, who organized the logistics, provided tickets to their relatives and made plans. In general, I saw Danis Zaripov playing his farewell match. He said then that his head was spinning. Now I felt it myself.

— What flashbacks of your career did you have that day?

— Yes, I remember quite a few moments. Not even a hockey career, but already a coaching career, when we won the Gagarin Cup with Magnitogorsk this spring, and I worked on the bench. It is also an unforgettable championship. Sometimes at home we rewatch some significant episodes as a family.

– For example?

– Yes, I just look at whatever catches my eye.

— When did you meet Andrei Razin?

— We were still playing together at CSKA when I started. Remember, even the photo was old, when Razin and I were sitting on the hockey goal. They were in the old palace, we always passed by there. And then Andrey and I decided: “Let’s climb on it and take a photo.”

Then, many years later, we met in Magnitogorsk, on the Metallurgists’ Day last year. And spontaneously the thought came to us: “Shall we sit on the gate again?” Well, we repeated that old photo, except that we were sitting in ties and jackets. In general, time flies by very quickly.

— You were called the last star pupil of the great Viktor Tikhonov.

— I was very young then. Maybe I didn’t understand some of the advice very well. But then, over time, I realized, remembering what Tikhonov had told me, what phrase he had addressed to me… There were a lot of such advices, and with age I realized how right Viktor Vasilyevich was.

“We sewed the Russian flag onto the lining of the jacket”

— Can we say that the highlight of your career was the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang?

— I won’t say directly that it was the peak. But I have been fighting for the Olympics for a long time. I wanted to take part in them. There are just a lot of emotions and desires that have accumulated. After all, I have never been taken to the Olympics. They were not even invited to the training camp. And I went to my first games at almost 37 years old. And we also won gold there.

I consider myself lucky. Thanks to head coach Oleg Valerievich Znark, who insisted that I go to Pyeongchang.

– They didn’t want to take you?

– Yes, there was a council of coaches there. And they might not take me. I was doubtful. If they didn’t take me, I wouldn’t be too surprised. Because at that time I was injured. And I didn’t skate much before the Olympics. To be honest, I was not in good shape. Then the training camp passed and I already recruited him. But my position was weak. But Znarok believed in me and took me.

— And you scored 4 (1+3) points in six games and made your contribution. Roman Rotenberg recently announced that a film will be made about the Olympic gold. What do you think of the idea?

— In terms of the plot, those Olympics were incredible. You don’t even need to invent anything. There have never been such endings. And if people get involved and everyone finds out what was in the team at that time, it will be even more interesting! How much effort we put in, how we went to Pyeongchang without a flag and anthem! How we altered our things so that there was no tricolor on them… At the same time, we sewed the Russian flag onto the lining of the jacket, so that it would be closer to the heart.

Someone will say that in the final we were lucky to score in the minority, when the goalkeeper had already been removed… But the strongest are lucky, and we deserved the gold. And luck should accompany you throughout your life. It cannot be adopted without defeat. But the sweeter the victory.

And when you get into your coach’s team and you win gold, that’s a great achievement. In general, I’ve been very lucky with coaches throughout my career.

“Kuznetsov’s slow-motion shooting is a masterpiece”

— You’re not watching the Summer Olympics now?

“In recent days, my head has been completely preoccupied with the match, and I have been excluded from all the news. From next week, it will be calmer.

— But you probably heard that Evgeny Kuznetsov is returning to the KHL.

“It will inspire the whole league.” It’s always nice when guys with names like that come home. And the players will have the enthusiasm that they want to show up and beat Evgeniy Kuznetsov. It always gives you a little boost.

And in this situation, I really want Zhenya to get a boost. Because he has been unlucky lately. Something happened. And I hope that Kuznetsov will straighten out his career in Russia and it will go on the right track. He can start his hockey life with a clean slate, but he can still achieve a lot.

— You are a grandmaster yourself, but did Kuznetsov surprise you with something on the ice?

– Of course, yes. His slow motion shots are a masterpiece. And this is exactly his sign. And in general, Zhenya does well with his skating and winning abilities. Even in his youth, when he was still playing in the KHL, he stood out from everyone. What can I say, from the very beginning it was clear that the man would achieve a lot.

— Will you be on the Metallurg coaching bench again in the new season?

— I told you earlier, for now I will return to the club to train the youth. Nothing has changed since then. In this job too, a lot has accumulated and I was absent for six months. Now we will catch up.

— What do you think about the news that the KHL is becoming independent?

“I hope we have done it and that such reforms will be beneficial. I think it is true that the league has become independent. And we can introduce our own rules as we see fit, without asking anyone, and we will not be interfered with from outside. We are moving in the right direction.

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