"A strong squad should not notice the loss of a fighter"

In the Kontinental Hockey League, there are about three weeks left before the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs. Almost all the clubs have already passed the mark of 60 matches played out of 68 scheduled, and the intrigue is gradually shifting to the struggle for positions before the decisive stage of the season.

Magnitogorsk Metallurg is a confident leader. Andrey Razin's team only needs to win three times to guarantee themselves the trophy of the regular season winner — the Continental Cup. Magnitogorsk remains one of the main favorites for the Gagarin Cup. She has already won this title in 2024 under the guidance of the same mentor and with the backbone of the current squad. However, the leader is not approaching the crucial part of the season without alarming signals. For the first time in the championship, Metallurg suffered three defeats in a row — the team had never experienced such prolonged slumps before. The situation was complicated by a serious injury to one of the heroes of the triumph before last, striker Dmitry Silantyev, who plays in a key role along with Vladimir Tkachev and Roman Kanzerov. The loss of one of the elements of this bundle can significantly affect the attacking power of the team on the eve of the playoffs.

In an interview with Izvestia, Kantserov spoke about the consequences of losing a partner in the top three, assessed the causes of recent defeats and explained what the team needs to fix before the playoffs.

— Do the last three defeats of Magnitogorsk have fundamental gaming reasons? Or is it just a slump that your team should have ever experienced, having avoided long crises over the course of a season?

— These three defeats are not accidental. We need to think about why this is happening. We're still playing well with the puck. But you can't play all 60 minutes of a match with just the puck. So we really need to improve our defensive game and avoid making stupid mistakes. The playoffs are coming soon — we need to play as disciplined as possible, eliminate stupid deletions. It is necessary to work on this in the remaining weeks until the end of the regular season. I think we can do it. The whole team is in the same boat. Now we need to get ready for the next matches, forget about these three defeats. No one knows what else is coming. But we need to get ready for the best.

— Is it very important to keep the lead in the regular season?

— There are no unimportant matches anyway. You have to go to any match to win, and give your best 100%. But there are games when you have an advantage, and the main thing is not to get hurt. This is what we need to focus on in the last matches of the regular season — to go out with one hundred percent attitude, but also not to get injured before the playoffs.

— Does Dmitry Silantyev's injury have a strong effect on the team as a whole and your link with Vladimir Tkachev in particular?

— We hope that Volodya and I will find a new link partner. But I wouldn't say that Dimka was the only one in our group of three. Of course, he wants to wish you good health. But it so happened that we lost him. On the other hand, a strong squad should not notice the loss of a fighter. If we are a real team, then we must come out of this situation wisely. First, to support Dimka. Secondly, to find a replacement for him, at least temporarily. Dima will come back sooner or later. If he returns this season, it will be a miracle, so most likely next season. We'll be looking for a replacement for now. Anyway, our bond with Volodya is slowly working. It seems to me that you can put any player in our top three, anyway the game will depend more on us.

— So you're ready to go to the playoffs without Silantiev?

— Yes, in any case, each player should be an independent unit. A good hockey player should improve his teammate, on the link. And if they pump each other up, it's even better.

— Even before this three-match series, Andrei Razin repeated several times after single defeats that such failures could be beneficial, that everything was going too well for Magnitogorsk in this regular season, meaning that concentration was dulled. Can we say that a series of defeats can be useful now?

— I agree. And it's good that this happens before the playoffs. The most important thing is to learn the right lesson. So we'll work on the bugs. Everything is as it should be, just like in school. It is necessary to learn a lesson, but without negative emotions.

— Metallurg will almost certainly not fall below second place in the East, so the approximate options with rivals for the first round of the playoffs are clear - Salavat Yulaev, Traktor, Neftekhimik or Siberia. Do you have an understanding of what to expect from these teams?

— It will be clear closer to the playoffs. We still have games ahead of us in the regular season with Salavat Yulaev, Traktor and Siberia, our potential rivals in the first round. We need to show in these matches that we are stronger and it is no coincidence that we are in the lead. There will be an opportunity to prepare for the playoffs at these games, although it is obvious that it will not be easy with anyone in the first round. It's never easy in the playoffs with any opponent. I'm watching the NHL, where a few years ago, the eighth—place team that entered the playoffs beat the first-place opponent in the first round (in the 2022/23 season, Florida beat Boston 4-3 in the series. — Editor's note).

— Amur Khabarovsk still has a good chance to get into the playoff zone and squeeze Siberia out of there. The prospect of flying to Khabarovsk in the first round again, like two years ago, is annoying. Or is it useful to go through such a thing, considering that it ended with a victory in the Gagarin Cup?

— Yes, we've been through it. It was a useful experience. The first round was the most difficult for us then. If this happens again now, it will be a great test of our readiness for the playoffs and the fight for the trophy.