"I take off my hat in front of the guys, they showed a Russian character"
The Russian national team showed itself brightly at the 2021 Junior World Championships.
On the one hand, in the final she suffered an offensive defeat from Canada - 3: 5.
On the other hand, during the entire tournament she played many memorable matches.
“I take off my hat to the guys, they showed a Russian character.
We played for the country, I'm not ashamed of them.
I don’t think the Canadians have seized the initiative.
At some point, we lost concentration, it affected the account.
I am satisfied with the goalkeeper Sergei Ivanov, there are no questions for him ... I will speak about Matvey Michkov.
A talented player, he has a very bright future.
He is illogical, extraordinary, but he is a goal-man ", - the Championship quotes the words of the team's head coach Albert Leshchev.
According to him, it was especially difficult to select the national team for the UChM-2021, since last year no tournaments in this age were held due to the coronavirus pandemic, but in the end everyone "was like one family."
But the hockey players themselves were unhappy with themselves.
So, the main star of the championship Michkov, who scored 12 goals in the USA and became both the best sniper of the tournament and its top scorer, noted that the domestic team went to the YCCH only to win.
“Silver is not the best result.
We are going to forget this tournament and prepare for the next games.
Everything is ahead, we will work further and take gold.
God grant that everything will work out, ”said the 16-year-old striker.
In turn, another Russian forward Nikita Chibrikov lamented that the Canadians realized their chances in the final and caught Leshchev's wards on “micro errors”.
After the offensive defeat, the first vice-president of the FHR, the head of the Russian national team's headquarters, Roman Rotenberg, also encouraged the young hockey players.
“For the second year in a row we won silver, thanks for the work of the coaching staff, all the guys, the staff.
Let's look at the picture, analyze the game and draw conclusions in order to win the next tournament, ”the functionary emphasized.
Rotenberg also said that in the near future Leshchev will join the coaching staff of the first Russian national team.
“Bragin, Leshchev, Titov, Shafranov - they will work with the national team.
Of course, our junior team did not have enough viewing tournaments.
And the recovery was very important, after all, the Canadians had more time to rest before the final, "- quotes the words of Rotenberg" Championship ".
FHR President Vladislav Tretyak also congratulated domestic juniors on winning medals and called the national team a "good team", which made a memorable comeback in the very first match of the tournament with the USA.
“This tournament has shown that these guys have great character.
We have good youth growing up, but the attack is stronger than the defensive players.
I just enjoyed the action of our attackers.
They did not succeed in everything, but they played witty, graceful.
I think that our national team should follow an example of how they attacked, how they played in the majority, ”the Sport24 functionary quotes.
He called the final match against Canada “the crown of hockey”.
But, according to the head of the FHR, the Russian players "did not have enough strength" after the hardest meeting with Finland.
“The Canadians were luckier.
We had a decent finale, so congratulations to everyone on the silver medal.
For the second time in a row.
Unfortunately, we did not get to the gold, - added Tretyak.
"We have everything to dominate in the coming years"
Most of them were supported by the team and experts.
For example, two-time Olympic champion Vyacheslav Fetisov noted that domestic hockey players held a worthy tournament, despite being defeated by Canada in the final.
He also urged not to compare Michkov with Alexander Ovechkin.
“We have many examples that from such an age, when the guys show promise, to big hockey, something happens in life and it is not always possible to bring them to this quality.
But we hope, the guy is talented, that he will be able to break all the records of our famous hockey players, ”said Fetisov to RBC.
And his partner in the USSR national team, Alexander Kozhevnikov, noted the serious progress of junior hockey in Russia.
If earlier the national team for this age could not even reach the final, then at the last two World Championships they took silver.
“In general, Leshchev's team looked very dignified.
It can be seen that our juniors have significantly improved in recent years.
The program of the training system "Red Machine" is bearing fruit.
In a year, the Russian national team will be able to win the junior championship of the planet.
Our team will become even stronger, ”suggested Kozhevnikov.
The world champion Pavel Bure supported him.
According to him, after the collapse of the USSR, the country had to wait for the appearance of world-class talents, and now they have the opportunity to "engage in their development."
“We have not only Michkov, but also a large group of very strong young players who, according to their potential, are capable of growing into world stars.
The program is working, we are on a par with the world's leading teams, but we still have to improve.
We have everything to dominate in the coming years, the main thing is not to stop working.
This applies to the system, and the coaches, and, of course, hockey players, "Gazeta.ru quotes Bure.
The former head coach of the Russian national team Vladimir Plyushchev also developed this topic.
He believes that Leshchev's wards deserve to rise to the highest step of the podium at the end of the championship.
“The level of training of our juniors has grown significantly in recent years.
For the second time in a row, they reached the World Cup final.
Five years ago, such stability could only be dreamed of.
Now it is already a reality.
Our team is young and promising.
Many of the guys were a year younger than the other participants.
Moreover, I would note not only the young talent of Michkov, who for his age shows a very mature hockey.
We have four to five players of this level.
That is, we are not just waiting for talents to appear, but we are putting their production on stream, "Plyushchev told the Championship.
Another two-time Olympic champion Boris Mikhailov was also satisfied with the game of the Russian national team at the YChM-2021.
In his opinion, the team looked decent, including in the final match, but Canada turned out to be stronger.
“Throughout the championship, domestic hockey players looked decent and fought until the last minute.
I can only say encouraging words addressed to them.
With serious work, they can grow into promising and wonderful hockey players.
How do I rate Leshchev's work?
Positively.
Isn't the second place at the World Cup a positive result?
Especially at the debut tournament, ”Mikhailov said.
But the Olympic champion Alexander Pashkov, on the contrary, found a reason for criticism and urged not to over-praise the national team for second place.
“There are problems, Leschev will be responsible for this.
Let him look for them.
Ivanov's weak play?
I never criticize goalkeepers.
It has its own strengths and weaknesses.
This should not be discussed on the Internet.
Silver can be evaluated in different ways.
For example, I do not consider it an achievement.
And I didn't count on gold, because our team, despite the good composition, had absolutely no experience of playing with the Canadians.
Therefore, a victory in this situation would be a miracle, ”Pashkov stressed.
In turn, world champion Andrei Nikolishin lamented that despite the serious progress of junior hockey in the country, the Russian national team can fight Canada, "only using super-efforts."
“In small things, Canadians are faster, more powerful and stronger.
We have a lot of good talented guys, but they are in the attack.
Our defense, of course, leaves much to be desired, with all due respect to the guys.
The start of the attack is very slow, hence the problems.
We do not know, we are not trained how to play in standard situations.
This is the problem of our youth hockey ", - quotes the expert" Sport-Express ".
Finally, the famous commentator Dmitry Guberniev highly appreciated the performance of the Russian junior team.
However, he also agreed that it was almost impossible to beat Canada in the final.
“The guys are great fellows! We have a great team with our stars and superstar Michkov. The national team played well, at times confidently and reliably, but to win in such finals, a lot needs to work out. Hockey should be close to ideal, there should be luck in the game in the majority and in equal compositions. The team played well, but not brilliantly, and that was not enough for us. But this is a sport, guys are great. I am proud of the guys and this team, we will see them again at the YChM and MFM ", - quotes the commentator Sport24.