"The construction of a new arena in Chelyabinsk is overdue, but all in good time"

One of the most high-profile events of the current KHL season was the departure of Benoit Groux from the post of head coach of Traktor Chelyabinsk. The Canadian specialist worked with the Ural team for almost a year and a half, reaching the Gagarin Cup final with him last spring — a repeat of the highest achievement in the club's history. But in mid—November, he insisted on quitting, saying he felt "extremely tired, both mentally and physically." This step was unexpected for the club's management, which has not yet found a replacement for Gru in a month.

Until recently, his assistant, Rafael Richet, served as head coach, and at the end of November, two venerable assistants joined his staff — the current assistant coach of the Russian national team, Evgeny Koreshkov, who twice won the Gagarin Cup at CSKA headquarters, and the legendary defender of the USSR national team and NHL teams, Sergey Zubov, who also worked for several years at the national team headquarters and St. Petersburg SKA and the head of Sochi. Richet left Traktor last week, but the head coach has not yet been appointed, although in a week the team will have to resume the season after a pause for the Channel One Cup.

In an interview with Izvestia, Ivan Savin, general director of the Chelyabinsk club, spoke about the reaction to the departure of Gru, commented on the search for a new head coach, noted the most interesting results of the recent meeting of KHL club leaders, assessed the chances of building a new arena and shared his impressions of working in a similar position at the Chelyabinsk football club, playing in the first league (FNL-1) of the Russian championship.

"We expected that the Gru would fulfill its contract in full"

— When will the club finally decide on the head coach?

— When there is certainty within ourselves. To do this, we collect all the information and look at different options. And as soon as we come to an unambiguous decision, we will immediately announce the name of the new head coach.

— Evgeny Koreshkov and Sergey Zubov were recently appointed to the coaching staff as assistants. Can any of them become a head coach?

— I'll say this: we are considering all options. Koreshkov and Zubov are quite strong specialists. We invited them to the coaching staff, knowing about the strengths and weaknesses of each. We believe that they can do a lot in their positions for the club. Therefore, both Roots and Teeth are considered as well.

— When choosing a head coach, is there a priority between a Russian specialist and a foreigner from North America?

— There is one priority — it should be as useful as possible for the Traktor hockey club.

— Are there currently available AHL-level options among Canadian and American coaches, like Benoit Groux, or higher, who have worked in the NHL relatively recently?

— Of course, there are experts at the level of Benoit Gru.

— How unexpected was the departure of the Gru for you?

— It was quite unexpected when Benoit announced to us that he did not have the internal resources to continue working at Traktor. We expected him to fulfill his contract in full.

— During the offseason and the beginning of the season, did you see signs of the fatigue he referred to in his behavior?

— So let's say we saw these signs online and reacted to them. We were in constant contact with Benoit and worked out some situations instantly, doing everything in our power so that he could concentrate on his work as head coach. Therefore, despite all the nuances, as I said, we still expected that cooperation with the Gru would continue until the end of his contract. Nevertheless, he made the decision to leave. We weren't ready for it, but now we're moving forward. What happens next is much more important.

— Are the current negative results of Traktor related to the state of the Gru and its subsequent departure? Or are there other factors?

— The results are also related to the situation with Benoit, but this is not the only reason. There is usually no one reason for failures, just as there is no reason for successes. We know and analyze our vulnerabilities and try to strengthen them.

— What are the current positions in the club of Traktor general manager Alexei Volkov, who in recent months has received a lot of criticism for not retaining Vitaly Kravtsov in the offseason and only signing him in the fall, for the departure of Gru, who was his creation, for a significant upgrade of the squad compared to last season, which has not yet brought benefits?

— Alexey's position has not changed. He still rightfully holds the position of general manager of HC Traktor. He has a lot of work ahead of him, and he is actively involved in it. I sincerely hope that it will lead to the necessary efficiency.

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"The fans' interest implies the arena's capacity of 12-15 thousand."

— In early November, I spoke with Alexey Texler, Governor of the Chelyabinsk Region. He announced plans to build a new hockey arena. Is there any understanding of how feasible this will be in the coming years?

— According to Alexey Leonidovich, which he said earlier, the victory in the Gagarin Cup was a condition for the construction of a new arena, a condition for a real discussion of this issue. Unfortunately, we did not complete this task last year, so we cannot initiate this conversation yet. Everyone understands that the construction of a new ice arena for Chelyabinsk is overdue, but all in good time. We know that these are difficult times, so we need to appreciate what we have. And thanks to Alexey Leonidovich's support, we have a lot.

— What is the optimal capacity of the arena for Chelyabinsk?

— Fans' interest in Traktor implies the construction of an arena with a capacity of at least 12-15 thousand seats. We have a great interest in hockey, for which we are very grateful to our fans. They have always supported Traktor both in difficult times and in successful ones. The fans in Chelyabinsk are special. And I bow low to them for supporting the team at all times.

— What topics were of particular interest to you at the KHL club leaders' meeting in Moscow?

— My colleagues and I conducted a reconciliation of how different points of the league's development strategy are being implemented until 2026, and how close we are to the set targets. I noted for myself that the KHL attendance is breaking all records (this season the average attendance is almost 8 thousand spectators, the best result since the KHL was founded in 2008 — Ed.), in terms of the percentage of occupancy of all arenas, it demonstrates unprecedented high rates in the entire history of the league. This is a powerful signal to all of us that we are moving in the right direction, that we are making an interesting product that is interesting to more and more people, and we need to continue this development further.

— A year ago, the KHL announced the creation of a working group on reviving the junior fair, but now league president Alexei Morozov has announced that this institution has been postponed. What do you have to do with the idea of reviving the draft, which has been debated for years?

— There are a lot of questions about this from our side. Even when implementing this project, we need to take into account the interests of clubs, teams, and youth schools that actively focus on the development of young talents. The key point is that we need to protect the rights of our students, in whose upbringing and development the club invests serious resources.

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"Football and hockey managers should strengthen each other"

— In the summer, you were also appointed general director of the Chelyabinsk football club. How involved are you in this work?

— I work quite closely with the football club. But Sergey Khabarov, the general manager of FC Chelyabinsk, takes over a significant part of the work there. He closes the sports section, which makes it quite comfortable for me to combine two positions, so the effectiveness of my work does not suffer from this combination either in FC Chelyabinsk or HC Traktor. It is clear that Traktor is a priority right now, as we have key difficult decisions ahead of us that need to be made.

— What have you seen in football in six months?

— It has its own specifics. We try to use the best practices developed in hockey in football. But there is also a reverse movement — everything interesting that exists and works in football can be projected onto hockey. There is good communication between our teams here. And I believe that this symbiosis is bound to succeed, due to the fact that there is high-quality management not only in sports, but also in media and commerce. In this regard, football and hockey managers should strengthen each other.

— FC Chelyabinsk rose from the second league to the first in the spring and has now gone on a winter break in sixth place, two points from the zone of transitional matches for the right to enter the RPL. How would you rate the chances of being licensed to participate in the Premier League competitions if the team actually goes there in the spring on a sporting basis? Given that Chelyabinsk does not yet have a stadium with a capacity of 10,000 spectators, which is required by the RPL regulations, the issue is extremely relevant.

— In the near future, there will be a number of meetings that will give an objective understanding of where we are now in terms of infrastructure readiness for a step forward. Moreover, I will say that all opportunities will be used and all actions taken to prepare this infrastructure. We want to create a comfortable environment for our fans. It's not just about the possibility of joining the RPL, but also the need to create comfort for the audience. In terms of coming to the stadium, spending time in the arena. Moreover, FC Chelyabinsk has received very serious support from the fans, who come to every match in the number of several thousand.