"The advances issued do not justify even 10%": Nikolishin about the game of the leaders of the Russian national team and the MFM semifinals with Canada

"In the match with Canada, we will have a struggle of characters"

- The Russian national team did not look bright in all the MFM matches.

With Germany, Igor Larionov's wards also had to suffer.

Does this mean that it is easier for the domestic team to play with attacking rivals than with those who are locked in defense, like the Czech Republic and Germany?

- If we want to win the title, we must be able to play with any opponent, regardless of whether he relies on defense or attack.

You need to be ready to show tactical flexibility, the ability to rebuild the game.

The fact that the Russian national team had problems in the matches with the Czech Republic and Germany indicates the existing shortcomings that need to be corrected.

- For example, what points are we talking about?

- You need to learn to play with teams that rely on defense.

Learn to hack their defenses, correctly rebuild and climb on a penny, and not just drive the puck around the perimeter.

At the same time, I still would not compare the meetings with the Czech Republic and Germany.

The Germans were showing attacking hockey.

Another thing is that the Russians played very productively.

They created few chances, but realized the few that were available.

At first, being in the minority, they successfully fled into a counterattack.

The boys played an excellent combination.

In the episode with the second goal, Yegor Afanasyev caught the puck well and brought Danil Bashkirov to the shot.

In addition, one can recall only two or three more dangerous episodes.  

- That is, we can say that in a meeting with Canada, Russia will have to be somewhat easier?

- It's hard to say what the hosts will show in the match with Russia.

They will play for the result, and coaches will have to make a choice in favor of one or another tactic.

But this match is very important, and both teams will try to show their best hockey.

A struggle of characters awaits us.

Whoever he turns out to be stronger at the decisive moment will win.  

- The very fact of the appearance at the MFM of teams that rely on defense does not harm the youth championship of the planet?

So, Larionov said that youth hockey "should be romantic."

- Why can't there be romance in defensive actions?

People are different, and everyone has their own romance.

If you don't have top-level performers, is there any point in playing hockey that will not bring you results?

Each team builds on the existing players.

In this regard, I disagree with Larionov.

Yes, youth hockey should be romantic and reckless, but at the same time, everyone wants to win medals.

- President of the FHR Vladislav Tretyak said that the Russian national team had entered the match “already the winner”.

That is, there was an underestimation of the opponent?

- And where could she come from?

Maybe when Tretyak played himself, he went out on the ice with this attitude.

I did not see any relaxation in the actions of the Russians.

And the Germans have a very good team.

Larionov's charges treated her quite respectfully and played as the opponent allowed.

It's good that we won, because the Germans created a lot of chances.

"You call the guys stars, but at the world level they are not considered such"

- Did the actions of the Russians in the quarterfinals cause alarm on the eve of the confrontation with Canada?

- For some reason, some people consider Germany a second-rate team.

Such people, perhaps, may have anxiety.

But look, in the Bundesteam, two people are drafted in the first round of the NHL (Tim Stüzle and Lucas Reichel) and one in the second (John Peterka).

Moreover, Shtüzle and Peterka are among the top five scorers of the current MFM.

- But Canadians are even higher level ...

- This is understandable, but where are our guys?

Where is Vasily Podkolzin?

Where is Rodion Amirov?

Where is Yegor Chinakhov?

Why don't they show themselves?

- What is the reason for this, in your opinion?

- Maybe the level of the leaders of the Russian team is not as high as we think?

You need to really look at things.

We are used to praising our guys.

On the one hand, this is correct.

On the other hand, they have to work off the advances issued.

So far they have not justified them even by ten percent.

You call the guys stars, but at the world level they are not considered such.

Here is Stunzl - a world-class star, and he justifies this title with his performance.

And Amirov and Podkolzin do not play leading roles even in the KHL.

Only Yaroslav Askarov keeps the brand.

Although in his actions, nervousness is sometimes felt. 

- Do you expect that the leading hockey players of the Russian national team, at least in the match with Canada, will finally reveal themselves?

- I am a Russian and a patriot.

Of course, I'm looking forward to it.

I would like our team to win gold medals.  

- The fact that the top scorer of the Russian national team at the tournament, Vasily Ponomarev, has only three goals (Canadian Dylan Cozens has seven) suggests that Larionov has assembled a strong, even team, where everyone is able to prove himself, or rather that the leaders are not show their maximum?

- Do not forget that Ponomarev does not play in the majority.

He threw Germany in the minority and scored a double against the United States.

Vasya has never been very effective.

And here we again come back to our forwards, who are still scoring a little.

Where are they?

Podkolzin came to the third MFM in his career, but limited himself to two goals in a meeting with Austria.

It is clear that he is a leader, captain and a real fighter, but you need to be productive and gain points for performance, lead the team along.

- In the match with Germany, Larionov's team received five penalties.

What is the reason for such a large number of fouls?

- Do you remember what the deletions were.

The man grabs the puck with his hand and gives it to Askarov.

Sheer stupidity.

Then seven people jumped out onto the ice.

Violation of the numerical strength.

This is inattention and loss of concentration.

Well, the Germans have not yet abandoned the majority.

In the minority, ours played great and even managed to excel.

But if we retire so much with the Canadians, the result will be different.

With masters, Russians shouldn't be in the minority at all.

- Should we expect that in the match with the “maple leaves” the referees will sue the hosts?

So, after a meeting with Germany, Larionov admitted that he asked the arbitrators to be "more fair."

“I don’t think this is possible.

In North America and the NHL, this is simply not accepted.

In general, refereeing is the last topic to pay attention to at the MFM.

If we lay down the straw in advance and blame the work of the referees, we won't get far.

I would not take Larionov's phrase too seriously.

Said and said.

I am sure he will urge the players not to pay attention to the refereeing, whatever it may be. 

- At the beginning of the tournament, it was said a lot that our team had problems playing in unequal compositions.

In your opinion, has the coaching staff solved this problem?

- In the game with Sweden, we managed to score three goals at once in the majority.

But in the match with Germany, it did not work.

Moreover, it was not possible to create special moments.

Unfortunately, this component still leaves much to be desired.

I would not say that we managed to fix something.

"The main trump card of the national team can be called Askarov"

- Canada looks very powerful at this tournament.

For the same Germans, Andre Turiny's wards scored 16 goals, Russia only two.

Is this figure worth taking seriously?

- Definitely not.

Firstly, only 15 people were included in the German national team for the opening game.

This was the very beginning of the tournament.

Secondly, the Canadians got a fairly easy group.

To date, Maple Leaves have shown their full potential in only two matches: with Finland and the Czech Republic.

Now they are waiting for the third meeting in a row, in which they will need to give their best.

Let's see how stable Turinya's team will be.  

- Cosens has already scored 13 points in five matches of the tournament.

How to restrain such a hockey player?

- It is worth paying attention not only to Cosens, because in addition to him, there are many guys in the rival who scored a sufficient number of points.

These are Peyton Krebs, and Quinton Byfield, and Connor McMile.

The coaches will have to determine exactly how to close the leaders of the Canadian team.

Perhaps Larionov and his assistants will decide to play personally with this link.

But they may well make it harder for the opponents to get into the shock position. 

- Judging by your words, the Russian national team can hardly be called the favorite of the semi-final confrontation.

- The motivational factor will be decisive.

The main trump card of the domestic team can be called Askarov.

I think he is the strongest goalkeeper in the tournament.

A lot will depend on his actions.

The main thing is that Yaroslav knows how to play decisive matches and win them in a great way.

And I still hope that the team leaders will come out of the trenches at a difficult moment and show what they are capable of.   

- Can the desire to take revenge for an offensive defeat in the final of last year's MFM motivate the Russians?

- From the composition of last year's national team, only three remained in the current squad: Askarov, Podkolzin and Maxim Groshev.

Therefore, it is unlikely that the defeat additionally motivates the team.

Nobody remembers what happened in 2020 anymore.

- Wouldn't it be better to meet with the hosts in the final? 

- It would be easier not to go anywhere due to the coronavirus pandemic.

If the Russian national team wants to take the final first place, then it must beat everyone.