"I'm glad for Shipachev — his head is working very well"

Torpedo has become one of the main discoveries of the current KHL season. Even before the New Year, the team was in the group of leaders of the Western Conference of the regular season. But since the end of December, Nizhny Novgorod has had problems — five defeats in the last seven matches. Among them were extremely productive games, in which Torpedo lost 6-7 to Spartak Moscow and Severstal Cherepovets. A series of setbacks led to the club dropping to sixth place in the conference.

Nevertheless, he is only one point behind the fourth place, which will give him the advantage of his place in the first round of the playoffs. In the last game, Nizhny Novgorod showed signs of overcoming the crisis, winning a strong-willed victory over Dynamo Moscow. In the third period, the opponent led 3-1, scoring two goals in one minute. But towards the end of regular time, Torpedo reduced the gap in the score, and in the last minute, striker Egor Vinogradov sent the game into overtime, where Alexei Isakov's team put the squeeze on the opponent and won (4:3). In an interview with Izvestia, Vinogradov explained the results of Torpedo, told how central striker Vladimir Tkachev, who came from Siberia in November, strengthened the team, and commented on the historical record of Dynamo Minsk forward Vadim Shipachev, who scored the 1,000th point in his KHL career.

— What helped you not to panic after missing two goals in the third period and turn the game in your favor?

— Well, what's there to panic about? They just showed their character. We need to move this to the next game. Moreover, there will also be a tough opponent ahead (in the next match Torpedo plays at home with the leader of the West Yaroslavl Lokomotiv. — Ed.) — defends well, it's not so easy to score a lot of goals with him. So we need to postpone all our successful actions to this meeting.

— About such matches as 6-7 against Severstal and Spartak, and even 4-3 against Dynamo, most coaches say that it is interesting for the fans, but not for the coaches themselves. How do you react to such an abundance of heads?

— I like when there are a lot of goals. But only when we win these matches, not when we lose.

— What do you associate with the series of defeats of Torpedo, which took place at the junction of December and January?

— Well, it didn't work out. I think there is a time like this for many teams when it doesn't work out and that's it. We clenched our teeth and continued to work. We need to get out of this situation somehow - to work, work and work.

— How important is it for the team to finish the regular season in the top 4?

— I personally don't look at the chart. I have an upcoming game, and I'm getting ready for it. Then there will be another game in two days, and I will prepare for it. For me, every next match is a new challenge. I just want to go out, play and win.

"We forgot about ourselves — everyone thinks more about the team"

CSKA hockey player Maxim Sorkin — about improving the club's results in the KHL and goals for the regular season

— What do you associate your high performance with the advent of the New Year — eight (2+6) points in four January matches according to the goal+pass system?

"I don't know. Through work and training, probably. I get chances, I manage to score from them. And the guys, the link partners, are helping me a lot.

— While you were finishing the match with Dynamo Moscow, a historic event happened in the KHL — Vadim Shipachev scored an assist in the match between Dinamo Minsk and Admiral (2:1), and this point became his 1000th in the league. What emotions do you feel from this?

— I'm very happy for him. He's a great craftsman — his head works very well. He understands many things on the ice — he finds passes and opportunities to score.

— Is there anyone in the KHL who is comparable to him in terms of game intelligence?

— If we take the central strikers, like Shipachev himself, then I will name my partner in the "Torpedo" Volodya Tkachev. We have a great understanding with him. Only in the first two games after he joined the team there were difficulties, and then we played well. It's a pleasure to be on the ice with him. He makes good, smart decisions. And most importantly — reliable. Both defensively and offensively. He and Vasya Atanasov and I have a very good chemistry in the team. I hope it will continue like this.