WORLD CUP OF HOCKEY

September 24, 2016

Oleg Znarok

Team Canada-5

Team Russia-3

Q. Alex Ovechkin has not had a lot of success in these big games against Canada in recent years. Is there anything that the coach can offer as an explanation as to why Ovechkin just can't seem to perform very well in these big games?

OLEG ZNAROK: Maybe he doesn't have enough of luck and we are very content with his game.

Q. What do you think was the difference in this game, what do you think was missing for your team?

OLEG ZNAROK: Not a very successful power play and we had a lot of opportunities but didn't score a lot.

Q. There's a lot of talk about Canada's offense, but their defense has been quite good also, what was the difference with them defensively, specifically the Weber/Vlasic defensive pair in shutting down Ovechkin?

OLEG ZNAROK: Yes, if we lost today it means that they did very well.

Q. Why did you think the Crosby line had so much success against your guys?

OLEG ZNAROK: Just because they're professionals at hockey.

Q. I know you came here to win the tournament, but how would you assess overall your team's performance in getting to the semi-finals?

OLEG ZNAROK: Definitely we're very, first of all, I'm very thankful to all my players and we definitely wanted more, but we have done everything that we could and it's a very good tournament and we did the best we could and we will keep training and preparing for the next.

Q. Is there a logical explanation why the second period is the most effective of your team, one of the short period of time in the second period when you can come back and score four goals, couple of months ago, and today you turn around the game, is there an explanation?

OLEG ZNAROK: We just concentrated on those close end zones and we just prepared for that.

Q. Do you believe that Canada is unbeatable right now and do you feel that either Sweden or Team Europe can beat them the way they played the game tonight?

OLEG ZNAROK: We do not think that the team is unbeatable, we think that the time will come for us to win. The average age on your team is one year younger, too, so we're waiting for our time.