"You can't play kickback — you have to push anyway"

Dynamo Moscow is having a very rough season in the KHL. Back in November, they were in the Western Conference leadership group. The firing of the team's head coach, Alexei Kudashov, was all the more unexpected. His former assistant Vyacheslav Kozlov took over the vacant post. After two defeats in the first matches under his leadership, the team had a seven—match winning streak, but then the decline began - only three of the last ten meetings were won. Two home games this week turned out to be unsuccessful, among other things. In an interview with Izvestia, Dynamo defender Artyom Sergeev shared his opinion on the reasons for the failures, told what needs to be done to turn the situation around, and also spoke about the reasons for the success of Dynamo Minsk striker Vadim Shipachev, who this week became the first player in KHL history to score the 1,000th point in the goal+pass system.".

— What happened to the team in the match against Spartak after it won back from 0:2? Why didn't they consolidate this success?

— Yes, they haven't fixed it. It's hard to say why. If we take the whole game, then we got caught on two mistakes.

— Are there any common reasons for all of Dynamo's recent defeats?

— I don't think we can talk about any common reasons. But the trend is bad.

— But why did it arise?

— We're wrong, we're wrong.

— What should be done to overcome this trend?

— Remove errors.

— Is there any nervousness and panic now that Dynamo is gradually shifting from its leading position and dropped out of the top 4 in the West?

— There is no panic. But there is a nerve, of course. When you don't win, confidence goes away. We have to work to get her back.

— Do you have any understanding why since mid-December, after a pause in the KHL for the Channel One Cup, the team's results began to deteriorate so much?

— I have no understanding.

— From the outside, there is a temptation to link Dynamo's current problems with the November change of head coach. In your opinion, is there a connection with this?

- no.

— What does the coaching staff say after such failures?

— Today (January 14 in the match with Spartak. — Ed.) they were catching up. We caught up a lot.

— At the same time, in the previous match with Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, on the contrary, you were ahead, led 3-1 in the third period, but lost in overtime (3:4).

— Yes, it didn't work out. Because they rolled back. You can't play rollback. You need to push anyway.

"One should always strive for the ideal"

HC CSKA goalkeeper Alexander Samonov — about the goals for the season, the team's results in the KHL and the competition for the position of the main goalkeeper of the army

— Do we need any separate intra-team meetings with or without coaches in order to regain the necessary confidence?

— Analysis of the game. And that's it, that's enough.

— So there's no emotional debriefing, emotional pumping?

- yes. It's not necessary.

— Do you believe that you will not rise in the table until the end of the regular season?

— There are 23 more games in the regular season. Everything will be fine — we will be better.

— The question is not on your command. Vadim Shipachev made history by being the first in the KHL to score the 1,000th point. As someone who has played against him a lot, can you explain the secret of his success?

— Head, head, what can I say. He sees the clearing, distributes it well, and the quality of the broadcasts is excellent. He's a handsome man. A great achievement. I'm happy for Vadim.

— How long will his record for points in the KHL last?

— I don't know. Who goes second there and how many points does he have? It is necessary to look at who is the second, what is his age. Then it will be possible to say something. But I think that those who follow Vadim are also old guys (the youngest of Shipachev's closest pursuers among current hockey players, 33-year-old Nikita Gusev scored 729 points. — Ed.).