Press Conference «Neftekhimik – Ak Bars» 12/7/2025
07.12.2025
Neftekhimik Head Coach Igor Grishin speaks with the media after a following 1–3 loss against Ak Bars.
– Today we saw an interesting, competitive and fast–paced game, with plenty of battles and emotion. Unfortunately, we cannot score enough goals against Ak Bars. We scored one goal, but that's not enough for a win. There was a lot of power play today. We were playing 5-on-3 at the start of the third period. We created a couple of chances, but unfortunately, we couldn't score.– We weren't able to go into the break in a good mood. In your opinion, despite the loss, is there anything positive to take away from it?
– Actually, it wasn't a bad game. I think the fans who filled the arena and cheered both teams on enjoyed it. Overall, we had good movement and created a lot of chances. We played a lot in the opponent's zone today. It was nice to see the guys interacting in the opposing zone. But still, we have to capitalize on our chances.
– Why weren't we able to score at the start of the third period at 5-on-3? Then we had another three minutes of power play.
– It's hard to answer that question. We practice power play. But for some reason, we don't always get the power play going in games. We had two good chances in the 5-on-3 hockey: once, when Artyom Serikov missed a shot slightly high, and the second time, Nikita Lyamkin blocked a shot.
– Considering the preseason, today's game against Ak Bars was our sixth against. Are we feeling a bit tired of the opponent?
– We haven't managed to lead the head-to-head against this opponent yet, which worries me a bit. We played them in the preseason, and it was a definite benefit. Games against Ak Bars are always exciting, both for us and for the fans. I don't think we're feeling any fatigue from this opponent. On the contrary, we'll try to beat them in our next game against Kazan.
Ak Bars Head Coach Anvar Gatiyatulin:
– After the last disappointing game, we asked the guys to improve their movement and focus on the game. Overall, there was a lot of fighting and battles. The guys handled the opponent's pressure and achieved a good team victory.
– In your opinion, what moment in the game was the turning point?
– After great games, we sometimes experience slumps. We've had this problem since last season. The last game was unsuccessful for us, so it was important to react to the loss correctly. I think we did that. Speaking about today's game, I think we won thanks to our character.
