The Russian team did not solve the inequality

Hockey

"Swedish Games" - the third stage of the Eurotour

Final table of the Swedish Games

Eurotour table

Having suffered two defeats at the Swedish Games, she lost the lead in the overall Eurotour standings

The Russian national team yesterday completed the third stage of the Eurotour hockey tour with a defeat from the Czechs - 0:4. It turned out to be not the only one for the Russians at the Swedish Games: on Saturday they lost 1:4 to the hosts. The opening match of the tournament against the Finnish team was successful for Zinetula Bilyaletdinov’s team - 2:0. However, this victory was not enough to maintain leadership in the overall Eurotour standings.

Formally, the Swedish stage can be considered a failure for the Russian team. In the first two - Finnish and Russian - her game looked much more complete, which allowed the team to lead the overall standings of the Eurotour. In six matches, the Swedes, Finns and Czechs were able to take a total of six points from the Russians. The Russian team managed to lose the same amount in three meetings at the Swedish Games.

However, their outcome is unlikely to be a cause for serious concern. Indeed, at the third stage, the Russian national team, which its head coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov initially recruited for the purpose of testing the nearest reserve, acted as an experimental squad. At least about a third of the hockey players were not included in the team this season, and some had appeared on it extremely rarely before. The team's coach gave a rest to its leaders - Alexander Radulov, Konstantin Barulin, Alexey Morozov, Danis Zaripov, for whom the break in the KHL championship for the Swedish Games, apparently, became the last chance to rest before the tense end of the season, which will include games off Gagarin Cup and World Championship.

The key match of the third stage of the Eurotour was the Saturday meeting of the Russian national team with the hosts. The rivals approached her in different moods. The Russians unexpectedly easily beat the Finns in a match played in Helsinki on an open court in 12-degree frost - 2:0. The key to the victory was the individual skill of the Chelyabinsk “Traktor” player Evgeny Kuznetsov, who organized the first goal and became the author of the second goal, as well as the confident play of Mikhail Biryukov at the last line. And the Swedes in Stockholm, leading after two periods in the meeting with the Czechs with a score of 1:0, were unable to maintain their minimal advantage and ultimately lost in shootouts (1:2).

Photo: REUTERS/Bertil Ericson/Scanpix Sweden, Reuters

Alas, the match with the Swedes did not work out. There was, however, a moment in the final third when the Russians reduced the score gap to a minimum - 1:2. In the 46th minute, Alexander Ryazantsev - the author of the most powerful shot in the world (during the competitions in the January KHL All-Star Game, the defenseman sent the puck at a speed of 183.67 km/h) - discharged his cannon from the blue line, converting the majority. But the Swedes, who seemed to have relaxed, immediately stepped it up and, with an interval of two minutes, converted their solid game advantage into a couple more goals.

Bilyaletdinov explained Zinetul's defeat by unsuccessful play in unequal lineups. “The Swedes acted faster, ours couldn’t keep up with the opponents, in some places they caught on, in others they failed in defense. The guys received too many penalties. I counted about 20 minutes (18.— “Kommersant” ). Hence the three goals conceded in the minority along with the final result,” he noted.

The above problems of the Russian team appeared again a day later in the match with the Czechs. Yesterday, as in the match with the Swedes, Zinetula Bilyaletdinov’s team spent a lot of time on the penalty box, which the opponent took advantage of with great pleasure. The Czechs realized their numerical advantage three times. The difference was that the Czech team did not allow itself to relax during the match, leaving the Russian attack on a starvation diet - 0:4.

Thanks to yesterday's victory of the Swedes over the Finns with a score of 3:1, the Russian team lost its leadership in the overall Eurotour standings. Zinetula Bilyaletdinov will have a chance to return it (the second Russians are one point behind the Swedes) and at the same time establish game discipline in the team in April at the final stage in the Czech Republic.

Yuri Ugrinov

Second round. Finland-Czech Republic 7:0. Sweden-- Russia 4:1.

Third round. Russia -- Czech Republic 0:4. Sweden-Finland 3:1.

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2. Czech Republic