Press Conference «Neftekhimik – Admiral» 9/13/2026
13.09.2026
Neftekhimik Head Coach Igor Grishin speaks with the media after a following 2–1 win over Admiral.
– It was an interesting game – quite an open game with plenty of scoring chances. It seemed to me that we settled into the game well in the first period; we controlled the flow and created a lot of opportunities. In the second period, things evened out a bit, and the opposition started getting chances too. We made a couple of defensive errors, but fortunately, Yaroslav played confidently and bailed the team out when needed. Before the third period, I spoke to the guys about focusing on the game itself rather than on peripheral matters. They took it well and played a strong third period. Thank God we scored and won in regulation.– Compared to the Neftekhimik roster, the opposing players are quite big. In your view, is that an advantage or a disadvantage?
– In hockey, it’s not so much about size; it’s about character, skill, and physical attributes like speed and strength.
– Overall, what can you say about this home stand – considering the opponents and how the matches played out? Did it serve as the right kind of start to the season?
– It was actually a very successful home stand – almost 100 percent perfect. Hopefully, we can keep this momentum going. You can see the team is in a good state of mind; there’s a positive atmosphere and good rapport within the group. Everyone supports one another, and that shows in both practice and games. Of course, things won’t always go smoothly, but the main thing is that we overcome challenges together, and everything will be fine.
– I spoke with Damir Zhafyarov today, and he mentioned it was a tough day. He attributed the team’s start to that – feeling a bit out of sorts. You surely discussed this in the locker room, too. Did you ask them to take their minds off it? To just focus on their own routines?
– We didn’t get into that level of detail. Everyone here is an adult. Everyone understands the situation perfectly well. Naturally, our main goal was to give the fans something positive to feel. I think the players themselves realized they needed to take the ice with the right mindset – to help the people in the stands take their minds off recent events.
Admiral Head Coach Oleg Bratash:
– The opponent was faster than us today. Nevertheless, our guys gave it their all and worked hard; we had chances that, unfortunately, we failed to convert.
– Looking at the missed opportunities on both sides – ours and Neftekhimik’s, the scoreline could have been much higher. What prevented that?
– We certainly lacked that finishing touch. There were moments when the goaltender was already beaten, yet we failed to hit the open net.
As for the opponent, that’s for them to say; I don’t know what they were missing. But our goaltender kept us in the game and gave us a chance. I’ll say it again: we had opportunities, but we didn’t capitalize on them.
