The first thing Avangard fans need to understand is that today Ryabykin is not at all the Avangard that Hartley had. During the offseason, the team lost almost its entire line of defense – Kaski, Pokka, Emelin and Gotovets left. All of these are the key elements of the Hartley system, upon which the very Championship team was built. And at the beginning of this season, the main problems of the “hawks” are precisely related to this line – the match with “Siberia” was the first in which the “Vanguard” missed less than three goals in regular time. Among the club’s defenders, only one currently has a positive utility indicator – Anton Belov (+1). And Christian Yarosh, who left New Jersey this summer, is still absolutely “out of his element” (-4). In this context, things are not going well for one of the last leaders of the defense of last year, Viktor Svedberg (-3).
Newcomers cannot yet fully compensate for the loss of the four defense players mentioned above, and Omsk players lose in quantitative terms – only three new defenders have come in their place: Anton Belov left Dynamo Moscow , Christian Yarosh came from across the ocean, and “Admiral” was invited by Fedor Belyakov.
Yes, it can’t be said that everything is in order and in attack – the “hawks” throw only two goals on average per game. However, as Ryabykin himself admits, it’s a problem of style – the team strives to combine and score beautifully, but in the KHL to win you need to be able to score “dirty” pucks “. Also, again, the performance issues stem in part from a significantly weakened defensive line. The same Kaski scored 33 (13+20) points in 47 games last season, becoming one of the best defenders in the league.
There is a problem of centers. And if Knight and Bryukvin are still doing something wrong – both have 3 (2+1) points from five games – then, for example, Alex Broadhurst, who arrived from overseas, is still having obvious difficulty adaptation, having no points, speaking systematically in the second link. The same goes for Telegin.
Over the past offseason, “Vanguard” has changed a lot, and it’s here, as we see, not just in Hartley’s custody. Many leaders left – Prokhorkin, Semyonov, Tseglarik, the defenders listed above. Yes, others have taken their place, but it takes time to adapt. What happened in the “Vanguard” can be called a restart, and I personally don’t know under which coach this process would have been painless.
I just want to remind you that the leadership of the “hawks” once already “bite their elbows”, observing the rapid progress in other clubs of Igor Nikitin, in which they did not believe at the turn of zero and tenth. Where is the guarantee that in the event of Ryabykin’s dismissal, Avangard will no longer walk on the same rake?
It is also important to understand something else: in Omsk, they knew very well that after Hartley was exhausted, they had entrusted the team to a young specialist who did not yet have experience as a chef, even if he was on the Canadian coaching staff. And if the club took such a decision, it is because they fully understood the difficulties the team could face. And therefore, the bosses of the “Vanguard” have signed that, in this case, they are ready to endure and wait. It’s one thing to invite Znarok or Bilyaletdinov to the conditional, indicating in such a way that you need the result here and now. Another thing is a young coach with no experience. In this case, you seem to be referring to a long-term strategy.
Given the above, Ryabykin’s resignation at this time would seem like the height of illogicality. Of course, if few changes in the game and the results of the team, for example by November, there will already be many other reasons, however, the clubs that build a long-term development vector do not often even hesitate to sacrifice one or two seasons. , in order to build a team capable of fighting for the Cup in the future.
How will Omsk see all this? All that remains is to observe.
Pavel Novikov, Athletistic
Source: Sport
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
