The fatal third period. The Russians lost to Canada in the World Cup semifinals. "Deletions broke the game": Oleg Znarok on refereeing in the semifinals of the World Cup with Canada Swedes - in the final

Silver medalist of the 2002 Ice Hockey World Championship, former player of St. Petersburg SKA and the NHL Calgary Flames, Alexander Yudin, in a conversation with Gazeta.Ru correspondent summed up the results of the 2017 world forum, at which the “red car” won bronze medals.

- The Russian national team took third place. Is this result satisfactory?

- No, because if our place is not the first, then everything is bad.

- What are your impressions of the Russians' game in general?

- The team was finally gorgeous in the sense that all the players gave a pass exactly to the stick to their partner.

The last five years that I watched the national team, I was very worried that hockey players who could not give an accurate pass at speed were included in the squad. Those on whom the most losses of the puck during the game should not be in the national team and in the KHL in general. At this world championship, of course, there were also errors, but on the whole the team was good, acted quickly and cool, just a little bit out of luck somewhere.

- And what were you unlucky about in the semifinal match with Canada?

- For the first time in our life we were slightly stronger than the Canadians and lost to them, and at other world championships they were stronger than us, but we won them. This is hockey. Speaking about the game, our guys as a whole in the tournament created a lot of combinations - even too much. When the important game with the Canadians began, they began to give an extra pass - to engage in demagoguery. It was necessary already once - and quit! And everyone wanted to get the puck into the goal. What for? That was the mistake.

- In the match with the Finns, the Russian national team was leading 4: 0, but then allowed the opponent to make the score 4: 3 and almost missed the victory. The same thing happened in the lost matches with Canada (2: 4) and with the USA (3: 5). What, in your opinion, is the reason for the weak performance of our team in the last period?

- Well, if we were leading after two periods 4: 0 and 2: 0, it means that the coaching staff of Oleg Znark worked perfectly. It's not about them. If it were the other way around, then another story. Our team is also gorgeous, but young - that's the point. After all, this team is being prepared for the Olympic Games in Korean Pyeongchang. The guys are very confident in themselves and do not yet realize all their responsibility, do not understand that hockey is a game in which everything can change in three minutes.

They were not enough to maintain concentration for the entire 60 minutes - it is hard for such unharmed fighters. In particular, in the match with Canada everything was smooth, but then some defenders began to make gross mistakes, which led to this result. but

in the matches of this world championship, the guys gained the necessary experience, matured a little. Another Eurotrip will take place - and they will finally get on the right path.

- Another problem of our team at the tournament was the large number of deletions, and many believe that this is due to a lack of game discipline. Do you agree with this opinion?

- Yes, the lack of discipline can explain everything, not just removal. The national team goes so far as to try to regulate how hockey players walk on the street, how to relax, how much to call friends and wives, what to eat for lunch. About removal - even more so they say that there was not enough discipline.

But what are deletions? This is when a person gets tired, muscle acidification occurs, he lacks speed, strength and everything goes astray - he makes a mistake. That is why when healthy men of 30 years old are playing, they do not have acidification - they are already ready for this, they understand how to act so as not to overexert themselves. But youth plays in young hockey players - “But I wanted to, I could play here!”. In the national team, during important matches, such words should not sound. You have to play reliably - do it, that's all.

- Who from our team could you especially highlight in terms of the game?

- I don’t want to name anyone by their last names, let the coaching staff do it. If we talk about newcomers, then all the good fellows, they did not spoil the pictures. As for the rest, everyone also played well, just a little lack of understanding of how to act correctly in order to keep the score.

I don't want to divide the guys into players from the NHL and the KHL. There is no need to divide our country.

In the United States, our hockey players may be sitting tight, there is no one to talk to or to go somewhere, practice - and go home. Artemy Panarin grew up in SKA St. Petersburg, then he started playing in Chicago Blackhawks, but who knows - maybe he started playing worse there? And having reunited with our guys from the KHL, was delighted, woke up and made that result?

- If we talk about other teams, then who surprised you in a positive sense at this World Championship?

- I have liked the way Europe plays for a long time. Switzerland, Germany, France - all these teams have grown up, which quite recently, one might say, “walked under the table”. Hockey is growing - and that's great. Now you can't beat everyone on one skate. You need to take each team seriously and give all your best, otherwise you can lose - and there will be an unpleasant sensation. And is it a sensation?

A lot of Russian hockey specialists, who are not in demand here, left for Europe and trained everyone there, while other people worked in Russia, not all of whom are competent.

So we taught everyone hockey, gave everyone away.

- In the final, Canada lost to Sweden in shootouts (2: 1). What is your impression of the Swedish team? Was she really the strongest in the tournament?

- I think that our team should have been in the first place. Although in general there was no team at the tournament that was clearly stronger than the rest, everyone was equal. Many have played with each other by one goal. For example, the Germans and the Canadians in the quarterfinals of the tournament (the "maple" won 2: 1. - Gazeta.Ru), the Russians and the Swedes in the group only in shootouts decided everything (2: 1 in favor of the Russian national team. - Gazeta.Ru " ). And the score after overtime in the final was 1: 1, which speaks of the equality of Sweden and Canada. On the other side,

I am glad that it was not the Canadians who won the final, otherwise everyone would have squealed again - “NHL! NHL! The NHL hockey players won! " Loose.

After all, Canadians play simply: hit-run, finish. They did not have super speeds. Just healthy guys, a little trained, and they've had a lot of luck. Of course, those who are "lucky" are lucky. But I'm glad for the Swedes - I was rooting for them in the final.

You can get acquainted with other news, materials and statistics of the 2017 World Ice Hockey Championship, as well as in the sports department groups on social networks

Today, May 17, in Denmark, where the 82nd World Men's Ice Hockey Championship is being held, the first matches of the quarterfinals took place. The strongest team of the tournament, the Canadian national team, won over the Russians in overtime, with a score of 4: 5. The Russians scored goals against the maple leaves in the main time were distinguished by: Ilya Mikheev, Alexander Barabanov, Sergei Andronov and Artem Anisimov. Canadians scored goals: Pariko K., Nugent-Hopkins R., Terris K. and Dubois P-L. The Russian national team leaves the championship.

Quarterfinals. Russia - Canada... Score 4: 5

All goals of the Russia-Canada match at the 2018 World Cup:

0: 1 - 04:45 Pariko K. (McDavid K., Eberle J.) (puck pocketed with most Canadians)
0: 2 - 31:51 Nugent-Hopkins R. (McDavid K., Pariko K.) (puck sold with most Canadians)
1: 2 - 32:53 Mikheev Ilya (Anisimov A., Zaitsev N.)
2: 2 - 37:32 Barabanov A. (Dadonov E.)
2: 3 - 47:11 Terris K. (Schwartz J.)
3: 3 - 48:44 Andronov S. (Zaitsev N., Soshnikov N.)
3: 4 - 52:36 Dubois P-L. (Zhost T.)
4: 4 - 54:34 Anisimov A.
4: 5 - 64:57 O'Reilly R. (McDavid K., Ekblad A.)

USA - Czech Republic - 3: 2
Russia - Canada - 4: 5
Finland - Switzerland (the game is not over yet, the match starts at 21:15 Moscow time)
Sweden - Latvia (the game is not over yet, the match starts at 21:15 Moscow time)

Attention, do not miss the broadcasts of the semifinals and the final of the main hockey event of 2018 from Denmark. Detailed results and calendar of all matches of the tournament in our special online section "World Cup 2018". A detailed TV program of live broadcasts, traditionally in "TV broadcast". Videos of all the games of the Russian national team at the World Ice Hockey Championship, the best moments, saves and much more in the "Video Hockey" section.

Meanwhile, the World Cup presents a surprise)) Switzerland defeated the Finns))
We were preparing for the Finland-Sweden final, but everything changed ...
Well done Swiss, snatched the victory! And the Finns are really “sausage”)) I liked the match very much.
The Swedes coped with Latvia, but in a struggle.

And yet our clever girls. And they played great.
Why the hell didn't they put the Cat?

A great match, the decoration of any tournament! The Canadians were objectively stronger)) From the very beginning, the World Cup said that this was not the championship line-up of our team! So everything is on the case! Canada is the champion!))

It is a pity that we lost. The game was interesting, powerful, and nervous. Well done boys. Removal, of course, was superfluous.
This is how our players would play at the World Cup.

We lost ... It's a shame, there were opportunities to take the game.
Whims, Gusev, Datsyuk could have played more brightly. Ours did not have enough pressure and desire to win (

FHR President Vladislav Tretyak supported forward Kirill Kaprizov, whose removal led to the defeat of the Russian national team from Canada (4: 5 OT) in the quarterfinals of the 2018 World Cup.
“Yes, I approached Kaprizov in the locker room, he was very worried, he wasn’t wearing his face. I told him: “Listen, Kirill, it was a very dubious removal. I understand your feelings, but you are great, you played great in the tournament. "
Goalkeeper Igor Shesterkin, I think, played at the level today, of course, I would like him to play “to zero” in such a match, but he played normally ”

Doubtful removal ((It's a pity that the puzzle ((

Everything is logical, maximum, the weakest and worthless team over the past 10 years, a third of all passengers, it is not clear why they were invited to the national team ... As well as the incomprehensible appointment of a worthless pull coach, it's time to press Tretyak for such a coach and the national team ...

some not cool Canadians (((Could give us freedom)) Thank you guys for fighting until overtime, and not like in 2015, where it was 6: 1.

It's a pity ... but there could be a Hollywood plot;)

I watched the second half of the match. I liked both the game in general and the game of our team. In principle, we had an equal game with the Canadians. No luck with deletion. Playing 3 versus 4x in overtime is too big a handicap

There was no shortage of predictions and opinions before the super match. Here is some of them.

The President of the FHR, when asked by journalists whether he was embarrassed by the fact that Oleg Znaro I have never beaten Canada, I replied: D about 1972 we did not win against them either. We have a good team. Two equal opponents will meet. Everything will depend on discipline, the match with the Americans showed that sending off breaks the game. "

The well-known coach also spoke about the deletions. Yuri Novikov... “We need to play more by controlling the puck and we need to increase the number of shots. Particular attention should be paid to discipline. You just have to burn out unnecessary deletions, "he told the Championship.

On May 19, the Russian national team, which returned from Paris back to Cologne, held a training session, which the striker missed Vladislav Namestnikov... Instead, in a link with Nikita Kucherov and Artemy Panarin played Evgeny Kuznetsov... The coach of the Russians explained the situation. “There was no point in admitting Namestnikov to training with injections. But we are all ready to leave at any moment. Most likely, we will play 13 forwards and 7 defenders. "

Vitolins also spoke about the upcoming semifinal. “The main thing is to play easier in your own zone, not to look for unnecessary difficult passes. The team that plays more reliably from behind will win. Both we and they have masters in attack. If we play as against the Czechs, we will score our goals, ”he said.

The ex-coach of the Russian national team shared his opinion on the game Russia - Canada Vyacheslav Bykov... “It all depends on how the opponent allows us to play, and on our ambitions. Ours will impose their own hockey on the Canadians! " - he said to the "Championship".

The forward of the Russian national team Yevgeny Kuznetsov spoke in a very original way about the upcoming game. “Am I ready for a tough game? Well, I'm from ChTZ (one of the districts of Chelyabinsk - author's note), can you intimidate me with something? I would not say that they have some tough guys there. All the guys who play, who both skate well and can play the body. Moreover, it is not so easy to catch someone on a large site, ”he told R-Sport.

As Harijs Vitolins said, our team announced 13 forwards and 7 defenders for the match with Canada. The link combinations have remained the same as in the last training session before the match. Evgeny Kuznetsov came out in the top three with Nikita Kucherov and Artemy Panarin. Vladislav Namestnikov was declared the 13th forward.

Compared to the quarterfinal match against Germany, there has not been a single change in the composition of the Canadian national team.

Canadian comeback

Canada - Russia - 4: 2 (0: 0, 0: 2, 4: 0)

Despite the starting protocol, the Canadians nominally came out on the third link in the first throw-in. Matt Duchenne, Sean Couturier and Alexa Killorn... And then this trio created a dangerous moment at the gate. Andrey Vasilevsky- the puck suddenly bounced right on the patch. However, the Russian team in response sat on the gate. Calvin Picard.

In general, in the first period there was an approximately equal game with a slight advantage of the Russian national team, but the Canadians did not allow to create really dangerous moments. Five minutes before the siren, the first removal in the match happened - Mark Scheifele dropped Sergei Andronov... But in the next two minutes, the Russians had nothing to write down for themselves, except, perhaps, a failed throw Vadima Shipacheva.

Immediately after the lineups leveled off, Andronov again fell under a forceful reception - this time he was attacked Braydon Shann, and so that the doctor of our team had to put a plaster on the player's broken face, and the arena workers had to remove drops of blood from the ice. However, this time the judges did not record any violations. At the end of the period, the teams exchanged dangerous attacks, Valery Nichushkin.

The second period began with two penalties in a row for the Canadian national team. In the first two minutes, a luxurious moment had Evgeny Dadonov, whom the partners brought to the throw in the center of the goal. However, the puck changed direction at the last moment, hitting one of the defenders. The shelling of Picard's goal continued, but apart from a significant improvement in the statistics of shots, the Russian team failed to achieve anything. The Canadians defended quite calmly, not allowing ours to play effectively at the final stage.

In the middle of the second period, for the first time, the Russian national team remained in the minority, and Anton Belov pushing Travis Konecny, went to the penalty box at once for 10 minutes - the judges identified a blow to the head. Our team survived, and soon the first goal took place. The combination of the Russian national team turned out to be luxurious. The Canadians, spellbound, watched Kucherov, Panarin and Kuznetsov weave lace in their zone. As a result, Kuznetsov, who was standing in front of an empty corner of the goal, had plenty of time.

And after two and a half minutes, the Russians finally realized the majority. The combination was similar to the one after which the first puck was at the gate of Canada. Only this time everything was performed by Panarin, Shipachev and Gusev. Moreover, the puck came off the stick of the SKA striker during the final effective throw.

At the end of the period, Andrei Vasilevsky had to demonstrate all his skills, and the goalkeeper of the Russian national team coped with several dangerous attacks of the Canadians, including at the moment when ours were in the minority. Deleting Artyom Zuba spilled over into the third period, but the Canadians took 17 seconds to print Vasilevsky's gate - Mark Scheifele effectively put the club under the throw Nate McInnon... But this, as it turned out, was only the beginning of major troubles for the Russian national team.

The inspired Canadians sat on the Vasilevsky gate, and Tanya managed to "burn out" the deletions, as planned by the coaching staff of the Russians. One after another went to the penalty box Anton Belov, Artyom Zub, then touched the Canadian goalkeeper Evgeny Kuznetsov. And five minutes before the siren, the advantage of the Canadians was embodied in the goal of Macinnon. To top it all off, Vladislav Gavrikov was injured and went to the locker room.

But the nightmare third period for the Russian national team did not end there. Another attack of the Canadians ended with the puck from the skate Sergey Plotnikov To Ryan O Rayleigh, who finished it off into the net - 3: 2 three minutes before the siren. The coaching staff almost immediately replaced Vasilevsky with an extra player, but it all ended with the fourth puck of the Canadians - already into an empty net.

The Canadian national team will play in the World Cup final, the Russian national team will compete for bronze. Their rivals will be determined in a few hours.

Statistics

0: 1 Evgeny Kuznetsov (Artemy Panarin, Nikita Kucherov) 32:16

0: 2 Nikita Gusev (Vadim Shipachev, Artemy Panarin) 34:50, big.

1: 2 Mark Scheifele (Nate McCinnon, Colton Pariko) 40:17, big.

2: 2 Nate McInnon (Travis Konecny) 55:07

3: 2 Ryan O Rayleigh (Mike Matheson) 56:58

4: 2 Sean Couturier (Ryan O Reilly, Colton Pariko) 58:53 - p.v.

Goalkeepers: Calvin Picard - Andrey Vasilevsky

Znarok: "There is nothing to blame the players for"

The head coach of the Russian national team Oleg Znarok, the president of the FHR Vladislav Tretyak and the team's players commented on the defeat in the semifinals.

“We played a good game today. I have nothing to reproach my guys with. They fought from the first to the last minute. Somewhere we were unlucky, this is a sport. Getting ready for the next game. I would not say that moving from Paris was a factor. We arrived in a good mood, "R-Sport reports the words of Znarka.

FHR President Vladislav Tretyak believes that the fate of the match was predetermined by the removal of the Russian national team.

“We played well for two periods, but the penalties broke the whole game. I think when we played against the goalkeeper, it was an accidental deletion, and everyone else was on business. We could beat Canada, we were leading 2: 0, the game was in our hands, but the deletions broke everything, ”the words of the Tretyak“ Championship ”conveyed.

Evgeny Dadonov, forward of the Russian national team:

I cannot answer what happened in the third period. I don’t think we’re worried. The deletions may have gone. I don't discuss refereeing. Two periods turned out to be a game, and in the third - no. I would not say that Canada was invincible. (Championship).

Dmitry Orlov, defender of the Russian national team:

An offensive defeat ... You yourself saw the third period. We played badly and retired. We let them score one, they got nervous. Then there were deletions, and this became the main reason for the defeat. Everyone wanted to win this game, and the match was very good, we were very close to winning. We shouldn't have played like that in the third period. (R-Sport)

Swedes - in the final

Sweden - Finland - 4: 1 (1: 1, 2: 0, 1: 0)

The second semifinal began with massive attacks by Tre Krunur, but the first goal was not a result of a combination of the Swedes, but the result of an unexpected throw Alexander Edler... And what a throw! Not only that, neither Edler himself nor the Finnish goalkeeper saw the puck in the goal. Harry Suter and. Only the ringing of the bar indicated that the puck should be looked for more carefully. As a result, the referees barely managed to remove the "shell" stuck in the net.

However, the Swedes failed to build on the success. Almost the first moment at the gate Henrik Lunkvist ended with a goal. Goal made Juhamati Aaltonen, who managed to leave out of work three rivals, obviously relying on each other, and throw the puck under the shot Joonas Kemppainen... The forward, who became a player of Salavat Yulaev this offseason, did not miss.

In the second period, the Swedish press continued, with the only difference that Tre Krunur did not allow themselves to make mistakes anymore, but they themselves brought the score to 3: 1, clearly using the removal of the opponent. Only Syateri's heroic play allowed the Finns to take a break without losing more - several times the Vityaz goalkeeper saved the team in practically hopeless situations.

In the final third, the Finns tried to turn the tide of the game and gave an impressive five-minute, during which Henrik Lunkvist had to work hard. The Swedish goalkeeper coped, and Joakim Lundström's puck in the 54th minute became the turning point.

As a result, the teams of Sweden and Canada will compete for the gold of the world championship tomorrow, the teams of Russia and Finland will compete for the bronze.

Statistics

1: 0 Alexander Edler (Niklas Backstrom) 1:49

1: 1 Joonas Kemppainen (Juhamati Aaltonen) 4:45

2: 1 John Klinberg (Oliver Ekman-Larsen, William Nylander) 24:36, big.

3: 1 William Nylander (Niklas Backstrom) 34:52, big.

4: 1 Joakim Nordström (Markus Kruger) 53:52

Goalkeepers: Henrik Lunkvist - Harry Sateri.

The skating rink went through the beauty. Canada left Russia without a final

The Russian national team led in the semifinals of the 2017 World Cup with a score of 2: 0, but could not keep the victory and missed Canada in the final.

There have been no semi-finals with Canada since the days of young Ovechkin

When they say “the final of the dream,” you won't be mistaken: it’s definitely about the match Russia - Canada. This hockey classic is so steeped in history that it even has traditional stages. This is not only the final, when the best teams of the planet face each other, as was the case in Quebec, Bern and Prague, but also the quarterfinals. And go and figure out where there is more drama: to lose in the decisive match to a principled rival or to lose early chances for at least some medals, having collapsed from the height of ambitions? If Quebec is usually remembered as the best final in the history of the World Championships, then Vancouver and Turin are, first of all, the tragedy of one team. Olympic splinters still sit firmly in the heart.

But the semi-final is the rarest stage for the Russia - Canada matches. Not every fan, even with experience, will remember all the cases. Before our national teams met at the World Cup last fall, the Russians and Canadians had not played in the semifinals for over ten years. 2005 year. Vein. The Russian national team under the leadership of Vladimir Krikunov squeezed into the semifinals through the Finns, and played a match with Canada, somewhat reminiscent of the battle with the Americans in Salt Lake. By the 22nd minute, the Russian national team was losing - 0: 4, but did not give up, played three goals and, until the last, forced the great Martin Brodeur to spin at the gate. The Canadians then went further, but, being battered by our team, they lost dry to the Czechs in the final.

Prague 2015 - like a thorn for seven players and Znarka

Then in Vienna, quite young Ovechkin and Malkin were lit. For 12 years, a generation has changed, and now the Russian national team is led to the battle with Canada by those who watched the semi-finals of the 2005 World Cup almost out of the sandbox. The leaders of the Russian national team recently performed at the youth world championships, at times absorbing the habit of beating their peers from Canada. In fact, this semi-final is the first really big match for the generation of Kucherov and Kuznetsov. Each of them has already played at major tournaments, but have never been the one whom partners and the whole country are looking at with the expectation of a feat. It's time to get out from behind Ovechkin and Malkin. When, if not now?

Seven players from this team suffered the most painful defeat in their lives two years ago in Prague. Six goals from Canadians in the World Cup final left their mark on the careers of Antipin, Mironov, Shipachev, Panarin and others. But above all, that fiasco undermined the coaching reputation of Oleg Znark. Even the Minsk success after that failure was looked at from a different angle, remembering that negligible stars came to the capital of Belarus for the post-Olympic tournament. Canada has since become an unconquered peak for Znark. To say that what is happening at Lanxess Arena has become a challenge for him is to say nothing.

The habit of hitting Canadians. Why this generation of Russia is causing fear

Canadians fear that they will be beaten by Russia in the semifinals of the World Cup. Why are our new generation afraid in the homeland of hockey?

Viceroys could not miss the battle with Canada

As you know, even the dead play in the playoffs. And even more so in the playoffs of the World Cup with Canada. Vladislav Namestnikov, who took over the puck in the match with the Czechs, returned to the game with injections, but missed the training of the Russian national team upon returning to Cologne. Until the end it was not clear whether the Tampa forward would be able to go on the ice, and Harijs Vitolins assured that the decision on him would be made on the day of the game. Vladislav was eventually declared the thirteenth striker, and Kuznetsov came out in the first link, as during the quarterfinals, with Panarin and Kucherov. After sitting the first couple of shifts on the bench, Namestnikov began to appear periodically on the ice with a fourth link, replacing either Tkachev or Barabanov. Only after the tournament will we find out how severe the injury of our striker was and what it cost him every minute on the court, played through pain.

Even the Czechs started out more powerful than Canada

Looking at how the Canadians in the match with Germany inflicted twenty shots per period, it was just right to expect something similar from them in the semifinals. Canada and a strong start are almost synonymous. Instead, having created one moment in the first minute, the "maple" ones lurked. They turned on only in episodes, occasionally locking our guys in the zone for one or two minutes. Even a great defender like Orlov sometimes got stumped when trying to launch an attack. For the rest, in the first period, Znark's wards had an advantage.

Everything was not bad with the number of shots (11-7), and with the quality, but every time luck was not on the side of the Russian national team: somewhere the ricochet would work for the Canadians, somewhere Picard would drag, and sometimes the Russian forwards were let down by a banal lack of skill ... Had the conditional Panarin been in Tkachev's place, a cross to the far post would probably have turned into a goal, and not a miss on an empty goal. At the same time, Andrei Vasilevsky did not get bored either, but he was opposed by not those "gorillas from the cage" that jumped out in Vancouver, and then in Prague.

"The moment has come when Russia will beat Canada." World Cup semi-finals predictions

The Russian national team will beat Canada, and the skill of the Swedes will help them pass the Finns, experts say.

The hunt for Andronov - as an attempt to intimidate Russia

When Vlasich attacked Andronov at the beginning of the first period, they did not pay much attention to this. When the CSKA striker put Scheifle in, some tendency was already visible in this. And after Shann, in his only shift during the period, “split” the center of our power trio, there was no doubt: the Canadians announced a hunt for Andronov. It seems that the goal for furious power techniques was not accidental: the Canadians always find the biggest and strongest guy in the opponent's squad and begin to beat him systematically. So that other, smaller comrades, were discouraged. It's good if, as a result of such attacks, it turns out to send the big man to the infirmary, but the main thing is still psychology. Catching Andronov, the "maple" tried to intimidate the entire Russian team. It didn't work out. After another hardest hit, Sergei got up and continued the game, and the Russians did not even think of hiding on the bench from the angry Canadians.

Gusev's hands were shaking, two people watched Kucherov

Literally everyone, from coaches and players to Tretyak, repeated before the match: the main thing is to play with discipline, to avoid sending off. What killed the Russian national team in the match with the Americans could by no means be repeated with the Canadians. And for almost half of the match, the Russians held out without a single removal. But the "maple" grabbed the penalty minutes on an unforgivable scale for such a match. And the fouls they whistled very different, including for violation of the numerical strength. Isn't it a space for the best in the Majority Championship? However, both of our special brigades, which previously used more than half of the attempts, encountered problems when meeting with Canada.

Kucherov became the main striking force in the majority for the Russian national team. Nikita was repeatedly taken out on the throw, and he did not even think to be modest. Yes, only not after every shot of him the puck reached the gate. The Canadians, realizing that in front of them one of the best snipers in world hockey, guarded Kucherov two by two, trying to block everything that was possible and impossible. Another problem immediately emerged: Canada gives in the majority much less time and space than any other team in the tournament. Our special teams had to move the puck faster, to which the same “Shipachevites” were not used to it. And Gusev, for whom this is the first major tournament, sometimes just had his hands shaking. When a technical forward every now and then misses the puck and makes the wrong decisions, nothing but excitement can be explained.

Beauty in Russian, or Simply "Kuznetsovschina"!

Throughout the tournament, the Russian national team has played in such a way that one would like to call it a "red car" without irony. And the point is not even that the Znarka team swept the Danes and Italians out of the way. What matters is how the guys did it. From the first match to the semifinals with Canada, the Russians immersed us in deep nostalgia for the USSR national team - the hockey performed by our team was so aesthetic. Diagonals, tricky discounts, constant search for partners - this is what has always distinguished Soviet hockey, and in Cologne it has become the signature style of this team. However, it is one thing to mock outsiders, it is quite another thing to do the same with Canada. But that's why the guys who played at the youth level regularly beat the ancestors, without feeling the slightest piety, play in this team.

Kuznetsov is one of those who do not feed with bread - let them outrage Canadians. Remember his "Something like that" thrown at young North Americans at the World Cup? There is about a ton of symbolism in the fact that it was he who found himself in front of an empty gate when our strike unit traced a deadly beauty geometric figure in the Canadian zone. Zhenya would have had time to eat those candies with liqueur, the smell of which he had smelled the day before from one of the Russian journalists, so chocolate conditions were created for him by Kucherov and Panarin. Well, pure "blacksmithing"! In less than three minutes, the majority of Shipachev's troika figured out something similar, but also unique in its own way. The Russian national team showed the Canadians the qualities for which our hockey has always been famous.

Period-long patience that burst

If the Russian national team had scored everything they had created, they would have gone to the second break with a score of 5: 0, no less. Yes, only Picard, hardened by the game in the hopeless “Colorado”, had almost the best match of the season, and our forwards, after two masterpieces, began to frankly fool around. Add a drop of composure - and for Canada this match would have ended long before the final siren. The one who would hammer a nail into the lid of the Canadian coffin was supposed to be the one who plays the Viceroys, but the goalkeeper stood in his way. And then the inexplicable began ...

The entire third period took place in the Russian zone. The maximum that our hockey players could do was to reach someone else's blue line and throw the puck into the zone without much hope of success. Znark's wards spent half the decisive period in the minority, which literally sucked all their strength out of them. The team was first let down by captain Belov, Kuznetsov violated the rules for some reason in a foreign zone, and Shaifli took off the first puck when young Zub was serving a penalty on the bench. You can nod at the judges who began to trim the removal, but in fact the Russian national team was summed up by the same discipline.

In the third period, the Canadian team transferred our team to the team five times. It was a period of patience, a period of clenched teeth, a period of the magnificent Vasilevsky, thrown to be torn apart. The string was taut to the limit five minutes before the siren, when Nathan McKinnon evened the score with a penny, and two minutes later Ryan O'Reilly sent the puck under the bar. Canada played to the limit for only one period, but this was enough to make a “cabmeck” and break the hearts of millions of Russians.

The defeat from the Canadian national team will be included in the list of the most painful and offensive failures of the Russian national hockey team. After the second period, no one had any doubts that Znark's wards for the first time in six years would beat their principal rival and reach the final of the World Championship. "Maple Leaves", having conceded twice in less than three minutes, frankly fell down.

But what happened in the final period defies any analysis. The Canadians, after talking with the coach in the locker room, returned to the ice in a completely different mood and simply swept the Russian national team. The four missed goals were a verdict for the national team. The team that demonstrates really good hockey at the World Cup will, at best, receive bronze medals.

Vladislav Tretyak, President of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, was the first from the national team to speak out about the game. The legendary goalkeeper criticized the judging panel, which, in his opinion, too often removed Russian athletes.

Another legendary hockey player, two-time Olympic champion Alexander Kozhevnikov spoke out much harder against the judges.

“The team fought and played, but the referees did something incomprehensible. They did unique things! So the guys are great, they fought, but they were not allowed to play. All this annoys me. Something had to be done with the implementation, it was difficult with it. And the guys are great, they played great! " - added Kozhevnikov.

But the two-time Olympic champion Boris Mikhailov did not blame the referees for the defeat of the Russian national team.

“You need to ask the head coach with the staff what happened in the third period. But they had to manage to lose with a score of 0: 4, "Mikhailov noted.

"I have nothing to blame the hockey players for"

In turn, the mentor of the Russian squad Oleg Znarok, who again failed to beat the Canadians, did not miss the opportunity to criticize the judges and said that he had no complaints about his hockey players.

“Canada - with a victory. We played a good game, I have nothing to reproach my guys with. They fought to the last. Somewhere out of luck. Getting ready for the next game. The deletions broke the game, made such mistakes. Canada's defeats have nothing in common. They gave unjustified deletions. Probably started trimming. Today I hoped that we will win. When it was 2-0, we could have scored more goals. What kind of psychology, if such deletions are given to Evgeny Kuznetsov ?! We will try to recover and fight tomorrow. We have a very good team, this is a very offensive defeat, ”said the coach.

Znarok also said that the state of Vladislav Gavrikov, who left the site in the third period after a collision with an opponent, leaves much to be desired.

“Everything is very bad,” the specialist was short.

Znarka's counterpart John Cooper noted that the game between Russia and Canada was incredible.

“Great hockey game. Happy to be part of this match. It's incredible. Both teams played great. Yes, there was a plan to put Pareiko against Kuznetsov's line. It worked. We forced the opponent to retire and managed to score. I can’t single out any of the players of the Russian national team - all the guys played to the limit, ”said the coach.

"Could be on horseback, but were under horseback"

But the hockey players of the Russian national team after the game had no time for comments. They all simply refused to believe what had happened. Perhaps, Artemy Panarin, who did not go into his pocket, assessed the situation most succinctly.

“Loathsome defeat - leading the score, we lost. They could have been on horseback, but found themselves under the horse, ”Panarin complained.

According to the hockey player, the Russian team started playing too early to keep the account and paid for it.

“We tried to play every shift, but it happens sometimes that you lead, you start to get nervous, get thrown away. Complete bad luck in fact. It is triple a shame that they were playing the whole game, the deletions are permanent. But tomorrow is already playing. The Canadians scored an early goal at the beginning of the third period, then the slippery game went on, everyone was worried - and lost. We played well, at the beginning we had the initiative, at the end we didn't need to throw on the sides, it didn't work out, ”Panarin noted.

Forward Evgeny Dadonov could not even find the reasons for the failure of the Russian national team in the third period.

“I cannot answer what happened in the third period. I don’t think we’re worried. The deletions may have gone. I don't discuss refereeing. Two periods turned out to be a game, and in the third - no. I would not say that Canada was invincible, ”the striker said.

But the defender Dmitry Orlov tried to carefully analyze the unsuccessful segment and stressed that the match was turned over by the first puck of the Canadians in the majority.

“We conceded in the minority at the beginning of the third period. Probably because of this, uncertainty went. If we had held out, then maybe there would have been a different game. We knew that Canada would run to recoup, the coaches told us about it, but we did not fulfill their requirements. We tried, fought for the puck. There were two unsuccessful rebounds, after which the Canadians scored goals. We had to play better and not give them a chance. Were there deletions in the third period in the case? May be. The judges judge differently, nothing can be changed, "Orlov said.

According to the hockey player, the domestic squad should have acted more calmly with the score 2: 0 in their favor and not make stupid mistakes.

“We are trying to defend ourselves. The mood was on the majority, we could still score, but we did not succeed. Some of the guys sat and lost the pace of the game. It's hard to realize that we have failed. When the score was 2: 0, we had to play calmly and not make mistakes so that they attacked and failed, and we acted on counterattacks, but this did not work out. The match for the bronze, of course, must be won. There is one more game left, we have to go out and fight. We play for the national team, full stands come to watch us, we can't just go out, "Orlov added.

Almost all Russian hockey players refused to comment on the refereeing, however, forward Sergei Andronov expressed his opinion.

“Biased refereeing? There were many deletions, but I do not know whether it was biased or not, although often it is not even clear why they are being deleted. Equalized? Who knows. We understand that we missed a big chance, and it's a shame for the fans, they supported us well, ”he shared.

"Russia is the most difficult opponent of all we played with"

If the Russian hockey players after the game, for obvious reasons, were not eager to communicate with the media, the Canadians, on the contrary, were very welcoming. And they can be understood, because after the second period, few believed in the salvation of the "Maple Leaves". To the credit of the Canadians, they constantly noted that Russia is a very strong contender.

“I think that the Russian national team is the most difficult opponent of all with whom we played in this tournament. Very fast team, good puck movement, many good hockey players. When the score was 0: 2, we said in the dressing room that we must continue to play according to the plan for the match. When we scored the first goal, we felt that the game was being given and we needed to increase the pace, ”said striker Colton Pariko.

Supported by teammate and defender Michael Matheson, who especially liked the game of Kuznetsov, who opened the score.

“As for Russia, Kuznetsov is one of the best forwards in the tournament. But after the second period, we continued to believe that we could return to the game and win, ”the Canadian stressed.

“I think we have completed our mission. We had moments, and we realized them. Luck was with us, I was lucky when I scored. The guys played great. At a certain point, we stopped thinking about something else and just started playing hockey. We managed to win single combats, and our chances increased. We had confidence and we had 20 minutes to recoup. We believed in each other, ”the striker said.

In turn, goalkeeper Calvin Picard said that the partners felt calm after the second period, and admitted that he did not care who to play with in the final.

“There was no panic when the score was 0: 2 in the locker room, everyone was in a fighting mood. From the very beginning of the third 20-minute minute, we seized the initiative and were able to turn the tide of the match. With whom to play in the final? Personally, I don't care. Both Finland and Sweden are great teams. Maybe we'll watch the second semi-final, ”the goalkeeper said.