"I would love to play in a match between the KHL and NHL teams"

Having failed the first half of the season, Avangard Omsk was outside the playoff zone, but in the last three months it has risen to sixth place in the Eastern Conference and, after a recent 12-match winning streak, looks like one of the favorites for the upcoming Gagarin Cup. This became possible after the appointment of Canadian Guy Boucher as head coach in December and the signing of a group of new hockey players, including Konstantin Okulov, a three-time Gagarin Cup winner with CSKA Moscow.

His contract after being traded to Avangard was valid until the end of this season, but in early March, the Hawks signed a new three-year deal with the 30-year-old striker.

In an interview with Izvestia, Okulov explained the early extension of the contract, spoke about the reasons for the successful results of Omsk, and also commented on the news about the agreement to hold a match between the KHL and NHL teams reached at the talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

— Why did you decide to sign a new contract without waiting for the end of the season and the entry into the free agent market?

— At some point, I just didn't see the point in waiting for the end of the season. I joined Avangard at the end of December, waited a month for me to adapt to Omsk and my family to move. When Avangard offered me a new contract, I already saw how the club's structure works, what kind of arena it has, what kind of fans, and how the coaching staff trusts me. As a result, I did not see any obstacles to delay until the summer and not renew the contract with the team during the season.

— I also asked about this because there were rumors in the media and social networks about your and your family's alleged unwillingness to stay in Omsk at any cost after many years of living in Moscow, that an extension of the contract with Avangard is possible only if there are no better options for salary and ambitions of the club.

"I've read about it. And I don't fully understand why someone thinks that my wife or I are so used to Moscow that we don't want to live in Omsk. We're actually from Novosibirsk, and I played there until I was 22 for Sibir. It's near Omsk, so the rumors were strange.

— After all, you have lived in Moscow for seven and a half years. It happens that people get used to the metropolis and do not want to return to their historical homeland or somewhere near it.

— This is not our case, because my family and I enjoy spending three or four weeks in Novosibirsk every summer. Yes, I understand that we lived in Moscow for a long time, but during that period, and to this day, we love to return home. Therefore, when we moved to Omsk, which is neighboring Novosibirsk, it was strange to read comments that allegedly my wife or I did not want to stay in the city (smiles). The most amazing thing is that my wife was one of the first people to tell me that I needed to renew my contract. She was saying: "You play well here, you score points, they trust you, so you don't have to invent anything."

— Avangard is sixth in the East, but only two points away from fourth place. Is it really important to move up the table in the remaining two games?

— It's not about the place in the table, but specifically about our game. You can't just go out to the game and act carelessly, thinking only about the playoffs. You need to show your best game in every match — it will help you in the playoffs psychologically and mentally.

— Why did your team have a recent winning streak of 12 matches and is generally one of the best after the New Year?

— Our winning streak and generally successful results in recent months are simply competent coaching, team cohesion and the implementation of a single thought, unified actions on the court that lead to winning results. When you even lose somewhere, but you can correct mistakes and find a way to win back, it will also help you later in the same playoffs. The main thing is to competently analyze all your games, both lost and won.

— During your match with Dynamo Moscow, information came out in the public field that during the negotiations between Putin and Trump, an agreement was reached on holding a match between the KHL and NHL teams. How did you react when you found out about it?

— I can only say that it is a great opportunity for any athlete to play in such a match. I would really like to take part in it. I would love to play.

— Can this contribute to the fact that the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) will start returning our national teams to the world Championships and agree to Russia's admission to the Olympics?

— Probably, we should ask big managers about this. As an athlete, I certainly want Russia to return to the international stage. Not only in hockey, but in all kinds of sports. Many athletes lay down their lives for this, but they cannot perform. In this regard, it's a shame for the already established athletes, and especially for the young ones. Many people can have the same hockey World Youth Championship once in a lifetime, but our guys have not had a chance to show themselves at it for three years. So, if that match between the KHL and the NHL, which is being discussed now, is the first step towards the return of the national teams to the international arena— that's great.

— You played at the 2021 World Cup in Riga, the last one in which Russia participated. Is there a great desire to repeat this?

— There is this desire, of course. If I ever get to go to the World Cup or the Olympic Games in my career, I would love to do it. And I will do my best to earn a place in the national team at such tournaments.