"I believe that I will still play for the national team in the Eurotour or at the World Championships."
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- "I believe that I will still play for the national team in the Eurotour or at the World Championships."
Chelyabinsk "Traktor" has been leading the Eastern Conference all season long. And although it has recently let its main pursuers in the form of Ak Bars Kazan and Salavat Yulaev Ufa, the Ural club is considered one of the favorites for the playoffs starting at the end of March. Its current success is due to the spring appointment of Canadian Benoit Groux as head coach and the signing of a number of newcomers, one of whom was center forward Alexander Kadeikin.
The former forward from Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, Salavat Yulaev Ufa and SKA St. Petersburg has quickly become one of Traktor's leaders, and last week he took part in the KHL All-Star Game in Novosibirsk.
In an interview with Izvestia, the 31-year-old hockey player shared his impressions of the event, assessed the results of the Chelyabinskers in the KHL, noted the high competition in the league and talked about his emotions about the three-year suspension of the Russian national team from international competitions.
-What was it like to participate in the All-Star Game for the first time?
- Great atmosphere, it was nice that on both days the arena in Novosibirsk was packed to capacity. And the Master Show competitions were colorful - that's the most interesting thing at the Match of Stars.
- Which ones did you like the most?
- The shootouts. Especially their costumed part, when the guys dressed unusually for their performance. I think they all prepared well for this show. And there was a lot of competition among them for a colorful performance.
- Are you talking about the Avangard players, led by Nail Yakupov, who performed the shootout in Mexican clothes?
- Yes, about Nail Yakupov, too. But not only about him. Stefan Da Costa dressed as Asterix and Dima Silantyev dressed as Bogatyr were funny. Timur Khafizov also beautifully sparodied Evgeny Kuznetsov with his style of shootout execution. In general, there was something to see.
- Why didn't you come up with unusual images or other traditional for the Match of Stars creativity?
- I guess it's not for me anymore. I'm not that kind of person, I think. Moreover, we were warned who would be taking the shootout. I wasn't on the list, so I didn't think of something extra. I'm more of a hockey guy.
- As a person who was at such an event for the first time, are you satisfied with what you saw?
- Yes, it was nice to be in this place and have a good time. Plus it was an opportunity to reset in the course of the season, to take a little break for a couple or three days.
- Taking into account the fact that in the last month "Traktor" had no trouble scoring points, was this pause important?
- You could say so. We really haven't scored many points lately. Although we played quite well, but we were emotionally full, so it was hard to get points. I wouldn't say that there was a slump in terms of results, but we needed a break to reset, to draw a certain line under the past part of the season and then to pick up the slack a little more to get in good shape before the playoffs.
- Why did "Traktor" lose its advantage in the East over its rivals, although in the first half of the season it was leading by a serious margin?
- We have to realize that our team in its current form has only been together for the first year. If we look at Lokomotiv, they've been playing under their coach for three years now, and the roster is somehow already assembled. It is clear that we all want more, we always want to win and be in first place. But the team is just being built. At the same time, it is going well in the season. And now the question of the place in the table and points will slowly fade into the background, because there are only 13 games left before the playoffs. And the most important thing is just beginning.
- Does it make any difference from which place to go to the playoffs?
- There is no difference, but I'd like to go first. At least to have home court advantage. To start the series at home right up to the finals.
- What's the reason for Traktor to go up in the first season of Benoit Groux's tenure?
- We have a good team with a good selection of players who always try to show their best - that's the head coach's requirement. Good work ethic, good atmosphere in the locker room. A lot of things help us, you can't name just one thing. There must always be a whole set of factors that lead to good results.
- Not so long ago, Tractor played an away game with Kunlun in Mytishchi. Were you surprised that the game was attended by more than 3 thousand spectators, although earlier the Chinese team in the Moscow region was attended by only a few hundred people? Was it noticeable how the atmosphere in the arena changed?
- Perhaps the atmosphere has really changed.... There were a lot of our Chelyabinsk fans there, too, I don't know what that had to do with. Of course, it's nice when more people come. But the last time we went there, there were 500 people there. It was bad and it was conspicuous. And now the situation is more or less normal.
- Why has the attendance increased so much in the KHL this season, and why have empty stands disappeared?
- Why should they be empty at all? The league has a good level now. The competition is good. You can see from the results and the table that all the teams are tight. That's why there is interest among spectators. And there is a lot of interest. And in small towns it is just crazy. Everywhere we play with full stands. For me it's a normal situation, not unexpected. I don't know why it surprises anyone. The competition has increased - even in the West you can't predict which pairs will be in the first round of the playoffs and who will go further. At least, it's hard for me to predict.
- Are you sure about Traktor in the East that you'll go further?
- I don't know, we'll see. The most important thing here is not to be overconfident. We should talk less. The most interesting things will start in the playoffs, and we'll figure it out there.
- Soon it will be three years since the Russian national team hasn't played on the international stage. As a man who was constantly called up to the national team for Eurotour stages and almost didn't make it to the Olympics in Beijing, are you having a hard time with this ban?
- It's hard to answer like that... I didn't cry at night, but it's clear that the national team is much more interesting. Playing for the national team is always a new level, a new bar, a new horizon, where you want to go. And now we are a little bit hung up in the sense that we are boiling in our clubs. On the other hand, we have more time to work in teams to hone our skills, to prepare for games in the KHL. I think that's one of the factors for the high competition in the league I was talking about.
- When the ban happened, was it especially upsetting that you didn't make it to the Olympics, although you were on the extended list of the national team ?
- Well, what can you do now...
- You didn't make the final roster because of Covid, right?
- I had Kovid then, but I wouldn't say that I didn't play in Beijing only because of him. It was more for game reasons. But what to remember about it now. I don't think about it much. I take it for granted. So I have to focus on something else. Which is pretty much what I'm doing.
- Doyou follow the news about the IIHF decisions on sanctions against the Russian national team ?
- No. I see them, of course, but I rarely follow the news. I try to keep abreast of events, but not more than that.
- Do you believe that you'll still play for the national team at the Eurotour or possibly at the World Championship?
- I don't think about it, but I probably believe it. In principle, there's still plenty of time.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
