Gordon - about the victory over "Ak Bars" and why the mustaches will not play in one three

The coach liked the beginning of the meeting: the team spent the first ten minutes as planned. Then, he said, Tractor began to force events and play in the wrong way.

“They started digging themselves a hole. But in the second period they played much better. It was a good moment, but the goalkeeper helped the team. In the third stint brought the game to the desired result, said Gordon.

Asked what "magic words" he said to the team after the second period, the coach admitted he was unsure of their magic. In the first period he was unhappy, and in the second the team played correctly, but did not score.

"Told the guys it was important to keep playing the same way - and they listened to me," he said.

Gordon explained the choice of Nikolaev in goal by a combination of factors: the goalkeeper had a good match on Wednesday, and the decision is influenced by intuition, the goalkeeper plan and the schedule. When asked about the only power reception in the first period, the coach noted: when the team has a lot of possession of the puck, the power techniques are more often conducted by the opponent.

Fans like power tricks, but it’s also very important how a hockey player works with a stick. If he does it correctly, he will force the opponent to make mistakes and lose the puck. That’s what our guys were focused on, Gordon explained.

Separately, he analyzed how to act against the barrier “bus” of the opponent. According to the coach, the defenders should not force events on the blue and red lines: if the opponent gives to play with the puck, it is important to be patient and enter the zone with possession - this is how Tractor scored a beautiful goal of Mikhail Grigorenko. The shot-and-fork variant gives only a 20-30% chance of returning the puck and creating a moment, so the team chose a different solution and achieved the result.

Gordon also told about the recovery of the injured: before the rest are waiting for Vladimir Zharkov, then Gorbunov and Rykov. Vitaly Kravtsov is already on the ice, but has not trained with the team yet - he needs to join the general group first.

The coach spoke with restraint about Andrei Matyushin’s game: he liked his first two matches more than this one.

“Andrey is a speed player. Given the pace of our league, he needs some time to adjust, Gordon said.

The conversation ended with a question about the November tradition: three Tractor players grew mustaches. Journalists joked that maybe they should be put in one.

“No, these are our three gangsters. It so happened that they have a mustache, the coach smiled.

Tractor beat Ak Bars for the third time in the season