Athletistic / Hockey. In February 2014, Russia hosted the Winter Olympics for the first time in its history. Four years earlier, the Winter Olympics were held in Vancouver, and Russian sport reached its lowest point there (the Russians won only three gold medals). That is why many were cautiously waiting for the Russians’ results at the home Games. Many people threw in the towel and said that how Russia performs in many sports is not so important, because the main thing is to succeed in hockey.

In those years, the Russian national team was the locomotive of world hockey and its composition included unique players. In 2012, the Russians won the World Championship and were considered almost the main favorites for the home Olympics. But everything happened completely differently: Russian athletes performed brilliantly at Sochi 2014 (even despite the subsequent stories of Georgy Rodchenkov and the actions of the IOC and WADA), and the hockey players frankly failed.

In the summer of 2011, the Russian national team was led by Zinetula Bilyaletdinov. The legendary Soviet and Russian hockey player did not express a particular desire to leave Ak Bars for the national team, but before the home Olympics, high-ranking state officials approached him with an offer to work in the national team. In the very first round, the team led by Bilyaletdinov became world champions, winning tournaments in Finland and Sweden in May 2012. However, a year later, the Russians failed at the World Championship, losing to the American team in the quarterfinals.

The failure at the 2013 World Cup did not force the leadership of the Russian Hockey Federation (RHF) to take extreme measures and change the coach six months before the 2014 Olympics. Bilyaletdinov prepared the national team for Sochi. It would seem that he should have accepted the failure at the world championship quite calmly, but this slap in the face will greatly affect the further development of events.

Photo source: Russian Hockey Federation

If before the 2013 World Cup, the Russians, due to the composition and history of hockey development in the country, relied on attacking actions, then after the failure, Bilyaletdinov abruptly changes the vector of development and decides to play it safe. This results in the final composition of the team for the Sochi Olympics. Zinetula Khaidarovich takes two playmaking lines and two destroyer trios to the 2014 Olympics. In principle, most modern teams play according to this system, and it is often the representatives of the third and fourth trios who win the Stanley Cup. However, it is not so much the composition of the team that has changed, but the style of play – the Russian team decides to play not for itself, but for the opponent.

In the opening match of the Sochi Olympics, the Russians warmed up against the Slovenian team, beating them with a score of 5:2. In this meeting, not only the main stars of the national team – Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin – but also the 18-year-old forward Valery Nichushkin were able to score goals. Ovechkin and Malkin were united in one trio and were supposed to lead the team. This was the case in the meeting with the Slovenians, but then they would not score a single point in the remaining four matches at the Olympics.

In the second half, Russia had to play against the USA. This meeting ended with the defeat of the Russians on penalties (2:3 G), but it was the best performance of Bilyaletdinov’s team in the entire Olympic tournament. Our team was in no way inferior to the silver medalist of the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, and all the goals against Sergei Bobrovsky came only after two saves by Alexander Radulov. In addition, one cannot fail to mention the controversial refereeing, which deprived Russia of a clear victory in regulation time.

Photo source: NHL

In the last match of the group stage, the Russian team did not open the gates of Slovakia even once in sixty-five minutes. In the second shootout in a row, the Russians still managed to break the resistance of the Slovaks, but due to the loss of a point awarded for a victory in regular time, they were unable to directly advance to the quarter-finals of the 2014 Olympic Games. As a result, Russia had to play an additional match in the 1/8 finals, while the best of the teams that took second place in the group stage was the Finnish team. The tournament grid turned out to be such that if it reached the quarter-finals, the Russian team would have to play with the Finns.

In the 1/8 finals, Russia’s opponent was the Norwegian team. From the first minutes on the ice, it became clear that the coaching staff, led by Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, had changed the combinations of units for the first time during the Olympic tournament. But even without this, the Russians should have defeated the Norwegians without problems and reached the quarterfinals. In general, this is how things happened: Russia won with a score of 4:0 and qualified for Finland. It was clear that the changes started before the meeting with Norway were designed with the match against Finland in mind.

In addition to changes in the combination of outfield players, the Russian national team had a difficult situation with goalkeepers. Semyon Varlamov came to the Sochi Olympics as the main goalkeeper, having played with Slovenia and Slovakia. However, his replacement was the best goalkeeper of the 2012/2013 NHL season, Sergei Bobrovsky, who was assigned to play with the United States and Norway. Before meeting the Finns in the quarterfinals of the Olympics, the coaching staff had to make a difficult decision. In many ways, it became the key one.

Photo source: OKR

The Russia – Finland match took place on Wednesday, February 19, 2014. On the morning of that day, it became known that Semyon Varlamov would replace the main goalkeeper. But this decision would turn out to be a serious mistake. Already in the 27th minute of the match, Sergei Bobrovsky appeared on the ice, but at that moment the score was 3:1 in favor of Finland. Bobrovsky would not allow the Finns to print it in the remaining 33 minutes, but the Russians would never celebrate their goal at the Olympics at home again. Fate decreed that the beautiful story of Russia’s victory at the national Olympics was not destined to come true. The Russians left the Olympics for the second time in a row after the quarterfinals.

It is worth noting that Zinetula Bilyaletdinov acted courageously and took the blow – after the Olympics he left the post of head coach of the national team. I remember his words at the post-match press conference against Finland:

– It’s all my fault. If I didn’t complete the task, it’s my fault. I tried to do my job professionally. Apparently, something didn’t work out for me. Was Vyacheslav Bykov eaten after the Vancouver Games? Well, eat me now, and I won’t exist anymore. For the World Championships in May, they’ll find another coach, but I won’t be on the team anymore, you’ll devour me. Do I stay? Yes, I’ll continue to live. I want to continue working, but it’s no longer a question for me.

The reasons for the Russian team’s failure will be analyzed for several more years. There is no precise verdict to date, but this will not lessen the bitterness of failure. In just three months, the national team will go to the 2014 World Cup in Minsk under the leadership of Oleg Znarok. It is with him that the Russian national team will win Olympic gold medals for the first time in 26 years, but this will happen in the absence of NHL players. Perhaps it was in Sochi that the generation of Ovechkin, Malkin and Bobrovsky missed their last chance to become Olympic champions.

Nikita Serbakov, Athletistic



Athletistic