“Youth hockey is becoming more adult”: Kornilov on the leaders of the Russian national team, its new coaches and favorites for the MFM

“Everyone can become a leader in this team”

- Nikolai Khabibulin and Igor Larionov entered the coaching staff of the team. Many media outlets were skeptical. Why was this done just before the World Cup, and what can they give the team in such a short time?

- In the case of Nikolai Khabibulin, I have no questions. This is a former goalkeeper, with great experience, and for good reason he began to practice with young goalkeepers in the summer. He can give a lot to the guys from the team, so he was invited there. It is known that goalkeepers are a separate caste, and Khabibulin perfectly understands the psychology of goalkeepers, and indeed young guys in general. As for Igor Larionov, it’s more difficult for me to speak here. Most likely, he will be responsible for the game in the attack, as well as in the majority. I think his appearance will also have a positive effect on the team, but we still don’t know which of Larionov’s mentor. Hopefully, as beautiful as the player.

- According to the opinion of North American colleagues, Yaroslav Askarov is one of the main favorites for the title of MVP tournament. Do you agree?

- Let's start with the fact that it is still not clear who will be the main goalkeeper. Do not forget about Amir Miftakhov, who has already traveled to the last World Cup, albeit as the third goalkeeper. He has already made his debut in the KHL. We know that Valery Bragin is not very fond of experimenting, so I think he will let both Miftakhov and Askarov play equally.

- Which of them will get their chance first?

- It is not known who will play against the Czech Republic, but then the team will play with Canada and the USA, and it seems to me that in these meetings the goalkeepers will play in turn. But on the basis of the group stage, the coaching staff will choose the main goalkeeper. And I'm not sure that Askarov will be the first number. Yes, he now receives many compliments in his address, and rightly so. And for sure will leave in the first round of draft 2020. But Miftakhov, I am sure, so simply will not give up the place of the first goalkeeper. In my opinion, the guys have equal chances.

- Which of the players in the current team can be a revelation and surprise more than others?

- I can’t single out one thing - there is no star in this team that would flare up brightly against the others. There were no big surprises in the line-up, while Bragin looked at many candidates. The leaders of this team should be Zhuravlev, Romanov, Denisenko, Dorofeev, Marchenko, Podkolzin - they all already have experience in playing at the Youth World Championships. I can list the whole team, because with us every player can lead. In addition, we have now selected a very balanced composition - both in defense and in attack. The task of the trainers is to make a real team out of these talents.

- Do you feel that the current team is the strongest in the last few years?

- The team, indeed, has everything in order to compete for the highest places. The VHL - KHL system works: that is, children who have already played with older men are called into the national team. Youth hockey itself is becoming more adult. But the favorite at this World Cup, in my opinion, is not. In general, the applicants for the victory are the same as always: Russia, Canada, Finland, Sweden, the USA.

- In youth tournaments, the defense game decides a lot. Judging by friendly matches and names, our youth team is fine. Or is it visibility and should be watched in business with serious rivals?

- Yes, I would still like to see matches with more eminent opponents, because our team played friendly matches with Slovakia and Kazakhstan. They are outsiders of their group, so for past games, really, far-reaching conclusions should not be made. Although I would note that in the match against the Slovaks, the team moved much better, and team interaction was already visible.

- What is Bragin's team the most vulnerable now? What are its cons?

- We are trying to look for advantages in the game of our team, but if there are minuses, we will see them very soon. One of our traditional problems is playing in unequal compositions. It can also be assumed that it will not be easy for the guys to break into someone else's defense. This is exactly how the Czech team will most likely play - the second number. So let's see. While we, indeed, apparently are some pluses, they just lie on the surface.

“There are no extra people in the team”

- Bragin substantiated the failure of Rodion Amirov to the national team by the fact that he is not a player of the third or fourth level. Can this be considered a criterion if the coach has at his disposal a gifted and vibrant hockey player who has a great future?

- Amirov is a player born in 2001, and we have one of the most adult teams and few children born this year. In addition, Bragin invites the strongest to the team, and Amirov generally began to receive playing time not so long ago. Let's think: who should have taken it instead? There are no extra people in this team. Amirov will still get his chance next year.

- Could this be due to the fact that Bragin has one of the links stably engaged in destruction and he preferred “workhorses”?

- Last year we had two power links, now only one is the fourth. It turns out that this team will play more attacking hockey, especially since the opponents in the group will allow it.

- How will the absence of Amirov and Dmitry Zavgorodniy, who broke his collarbone, affect the team’s “chemistry”?

- We have said enough about Amirov, but Zavgorodniy’s injury simply discouraged me. But he can only be praised for how he is progressing. After all, he was “uncoupled” last year, but he made the right conclusions and continued to work. And he made it so that this year the coaches no longer doubted that the team needed him. So if it weren’t for the injury, he would have been in it.

- The fact that the tournament will be held in the Czech Republic, and not in North America, is in the hands of the national team?

- If you recall, in Europe, Canadians did not win for a very long time, and the Americans, on the contrary, play well there. I don’t think that there is a big difference where to play, especially since teams come in advance, especially when you have to make long flights. So there’s time to get used to both the time difference and other sites.

- Is it possible to consider getting into the group with the Czech Republic, as well as with the USA and Canada in the group stage a good deal? You’ll have to fight from the very first matches - will it hurt to grope your game?

- No, and fans of such games will only please. In my opinion, meeting with serious rivals in the very first days is only a plus. And the last match, with Germany, probably will no longer have tournament significance. Of course, on the one hand, I want to score more points to reach weaker rivals like Switzerland, Slovakia or Kazakhstan. But if you recall the last time the team brought gold medals, then, in 2011, there was also a very difficult grid. We played with the Finns and Swedes, they defeated them literally "in the balance." So, I hope that we are waiting for a high-quality group stage and beautiful, productive meetings that will also help the team prepare for the playoffs.

- Who will become the main rival for the Bragin team?

- Czech. Then Canada, the USA and so on, according to the tournament bracket. In other words, all rivals are equally important, no one should be distinguished. You should always play only to win - until the very end.