"We played with a very structurally strong team"

Last week, one of the most intense series of recent years ended in the KHL playoffs. Only following the results of the last seventh match, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl defeated Avangard Omsk in the quarterfinals (4:3). Moreover, the Railwaymen won the decisive meeting only in the second overtime (3:2). For Avangard, the result of the season can be called satisfactory, since the club failed in the first half of the championship and was outside the playoff zone for a long time. After the leadership change in the fall, the team was significantly updated, and at the end of December, Guy Boucher, a well-known Canadian specialist, was appointed its head coach.

In November, among others, goalkeeper Nikita Serebryakov, who turned out to be unnecessary for St. Petersburg SKA, joined the hawks, who two years ago helped Vladivostok Admiral achieve the highest achievement in its history — reaching the second round, for which he received the prize for the best goalkeeper of the season before last. With him, Avangard rose to sixth place in the Eastern Conference, passed Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the first round of the playoffs of the current Gagarin Cup winner (4:2 in the series), and then almost knocked out Lokomotiv, the finalist of the last draw.

In an interview with Izvestia, Serebryakov told why it was not possible to pass Lokomotiv, how Guy Boucher led the team out of the crisis, and also reflected on his departure from SKA and shared his emotions from the change in the rules of refereeing, named after himself.

"What teams go through in a couple of seasons, we went through in five months"

— At what point did you miss the chance to win the series against Lokomotiv?

— An interesting question. If we fully analyze the situation, then we must recall the unsuccessful start of the season, due to which Avangard lost the top seed, finishing the regular season only in sixth place in the Eastern Conference. Because of this, we had a series with Metallurg, which we won after six matches, but during it we lost a lot of strength and emotions. After all, we played with the champion. Then immediately there was a series with the "Locomotive" — unfortunately, the "Admiral" did not finish off the "Tractor", which was a small hope (smiles). As a result, we ended up at Lokomotiv, which was under construction for three or four seasons, and it took a long time to prepare for the trophy campaign. As a result, we played with a very strong team structurally. And in fact, one goal was missing.

— You remembered how the Admiral did not put the squeeze on Traktor in the first round. If he had succeeded, he would have got to Lokomotiv, and you would have played Dynamo Moscow in the second round. Would it be easier to pass it than Yaroslavl?

— I didn't say that. It's hard to make a wish... Although there may be a small "but" here. Yaroslavl finished the regular season in first place for a reason.

— You remembered the unsuccessful start of the season when you said where you missed the chance to win the series with Yaroslavl. Did the playoff bracket that Avangard got because of sixth place give them no chance to turn the situation in their favor?

— Nothing is impossible. We had chances to pass Lokomotiv, especially since everything was nearby, and just one throw decided the outcome of this series. But, of course, when you come from the lower seeding, it's much harder. Because, I repeat, in the first round we faced the winner of last year's Gagarin Cup, and in the second round we faced the finalist. It's hard emotionally, very hard physically. But as a team, we have done a lot, and we have been through a lot in recent months. That's why I'm grateful to every Avangard player and every person in the organization for what we've managed to do.

— Avangard very often increased in the series with Lokomotiv in the third period, even in the seventh match, it was in the third twenty minutes that they won back from 0:2. From the outside, there was a feeling that Guy Boucher purposefully set the goal to withstand the high speeds and pressure of Lokomotiv at all costs and to increase when the opponent was exhausted.

— These are incorrect impressions. Guy told us a lot about how to act offensively and defensively. And we didn't have the task to endure, relatively speaking, two periods, and then everything would be fine. In any case, Boucher told us to try to go on the attack, he told us what weaknesses the opponent had. Unfortunately, we didn't use them — anyway, Lokomotiv was strong. I repeat, for several years now, this team has not actually changed either the composition or the coaching staff. The people inside know and feel each other well. And we knew what kind of opponent we were facing. Maybe it wasn't in our power to choose how the match would start. But we tried to tune in to every game and do everything that depends on us.

— Does the current management, coaching staff and most of the squad also need three or four years to become like Lokomotiv?

— Oh, it's hard to think about it. Probably, what many teams go through in a couple of seasons, we went through in four or five months. And they almost passed the team that might become the champion, the winner of the Gagarin Cup. In any case, she is the leader of the championship. It's hard to talk about this topic. But let's look at next season. I think Guy got to know our championship better, and now we know his requirements.

"In the playoffs, no one remembers who won how many games, who played how many zero games"

— In the middle of the season, when you, the other players and the new head coach arrived, was the devastation serious?

— No, there was no devastation. Basically, we tried to give our best every game, no matter what kind of coach we had. In the first month after joining Avangard, I managed to work under Sergei Zvyagin, under Andrei Podkonitsky, and since December under Guy Bush. With all the experts present, we tried to give our best and do everything to win. But when Guy came and told us his vision of the game, his style of work, the guys accepted it. And we see the result.

— How was Guy Boucher able to raise the team so quickly in the middle of the season after such a roster update?

— He has a lot of experience. He watches videos a lot, analyzes the opponents and tells us — in terms of attack and defense. This was new to me. It's interesting to listen to him.

— Explain in more detail, what new things did he bring? Have the requirements changed for you as a goalkeeper?

— Well, why am I going to tell all the secrets? As for me, there were no new demands on me. I have a goalkeeper coach, Alexey Alexandrovich Zhigarev, with whom we work. Guy doesn't touch us — he immediately realized what kind of relationship we have, and he never gets involved in our work. We have a definite plan, and we're sticking to it.

— Even taking into account Guy's tactics, did you have to adjust the work of the goalkeepers?

— Well, how to adjust it? How is Manchester City football starting every attack with the goalkeeper (smiles)?

— All the same, there are nuances in terms of movement in the goal, telling defenders to block shots more or vice versa, all other things being equal, try not to block the goalkeeper's visibility.

— Well, yes, there is such a thing. But even before Guy's arrival, we talked with both the defenders and the defensive coach. We discussed how best I could interact with them, at what points, how I should act, and how they should. Back then, we were just getting used to each other, because there were a lot of new hockey players in Avangard. And this work continues further — we are discussing where it is better for the defenders to catch the puck on themselves, where it is better to step aside. This is a common job that depends not only on the Guy, but also on all the guys.

— Does the large number of shots that you reflected in the series with Lokomotiv remind you of the season before last with Admiral? Or should we still make allowances for the difference in the levels of the Vladivostok team and Avangard?

"I've never thought about it." I don't look at or pay attention to such comparisons. The most important thing for me is to win. Because in the playoffs, no one remembers who won how much, who played how well, how many games he played to zero, how many shots he deflected. Everyone remembers only the champions. I just tried to do everything to win.

"It's fun when the rules are changed because of you"

— One of the most striking episodes in this playoff happened in the second match of the series against Metallurg, when Magnitogorsk defender Nikita Kamalov drove up to your goal, took your water bottle and drank from it. How did you react?

— With humor. Apparently Nikita wanted to play on my nerves. It's a common story for the playoffs.

— Did he manage to unsettle you?

— If he's already on vacation, then probably not (smiles).

— How ready are you to talk about SKA and your departure from the club?

— Listen, this is a big organization, which has its own moments, which are available in every club. And because of which the squad is being updated, players are leaving. I was interested in SKA anyway. I am very grateful to Peter for this time. Unfortunately, it turned out to be only a year of collaboration. But it was an interesting experience — thanks to every person in the organization, all the players, for being there. I will always look back on it positively.

— When did you realize that your paths with SKA would diverge? Already in the spring after losing the series with Avtomobilist? Or in the summer, closer to the beginning of the new season?

— Haha, that's a bit of a provocative question. But, to be honest, I didn't think about it. In the sense that I always tried to give myself completely to the game and training, no matter what. It's hard to answer this question.

— You are far from the first goalkeeper who has not been in SKA for long. But it seemed that they would make a long-term bet on you in St. Petersburg, judging by how six months before your transfer from Admiral, goalkeeping coach Yuri Klyuchnikov moved from there to St. Petersburg, under whose leadership you spent a successful season in Vladivostok. It seemed that they were taking him to SKA specifically with the expectation of you. Were you surprised that you didn't stay at the club for long anyway?

—Not really. Why should I be surprised? The team has big tasks. But unfortunately, last year we couldn't even make it to the semifinals. It's such a game, such a job. Therefore, you should not pay attention to such breakups.

— Back in the summer, during the preseason, Klyuchnikov stopped being the only goalkeeping coach, and Maxim Sokolov was transferred to the main team in addition to him. Did it suggest that something was going wrong with you?

— Unfortunately, yes, it happened. It's hard to say anything else here. Yuri Viktorovich and I have a great relationship. We still communicate and support each other. But if I'm not mistaken, what you're talking about started somewhere in the middle of August. And I already realized that something was going wrong.

— Was it before the Puchkov pre-season tournament in St. Petersburg?

— Yes, yes, it was back at the training camp in Sochi. I tried to find a common language with Maxim Anatolyevich Sokolov, but apparently I did not find it. That's all.

— A year ago, one of the decisive moments of SKA's losing streak against Avtomobilist was your removal for tripping, which caused a lot of controversy. How did you react to the fact that the refereeing rules were changed next offseason so that you could not be removed now?

— Well, it's really cool! Of course, it's fun (laughs)! Even at presentations, it was said that this was the "Serebryakov rule." That's why it was fun, funny, and interesting. I initially signaled back then and I didn't agree with that decision a little bit. But it's fun when the rules change because of you.

— Have you made history?

"I don't know about the story. But at those presentations, when the refereeing management told the teams about the new rules, this change was called by my name.

— You have a contract with Avangard for two more years. Do you expect more stability in your career now than in SKA?

— It's hard to say this in our work, but yes, I hope that our cooperation with Omsk will last a long time.