Author's column by Ruslan Vasilyev. Instead of the expected cheerful beginning e2 - e4 "Dynamo" walks barely

On Friday, September 18, after a short pause, Dynamo Minsk hockey team will resume its participation in the regular KHL championship with a home battle with Siberia. And this will be an excellent chance to finally win the first victory of the season, which has not happened so far with the “teeth” in this championship of the Kontinental Hockey League. Not at home, not away, not on neutral ice.

Needless to say, the start of the season turned out to be joyless for the wards of Sergey Brylin. Especially formally: four matches - four defeats, only three points scored. It won't be enough! Especially when you consider that the last battle with the eternal underdog of the KHL “Lada” was the worst practice of Dynamo under the new head coach. Any fan, even the most loyal to the current situation in the club, will tell you this.

But if not to cast a shadow on the wicket, it must be admitted: the schedule of the starting segment favored the interests of Dynamo Minsk. Torpedo is a daring team, but not a grand one. Moscow teammates were played in St. Petersburg, and the Shanghai Dragons and Lada are still perceived by outsiders of the Western Conference. Nevertheless, in the column “Victory” the “teeth” “empty-empty”, cabbage grew. The team is shaking like a fever. And whether in the first aid kit of Dr. Brylin healing china and healing pendel, still not clear.

Although, of course, the turbulence of the “dents” at the start of the regular season was easily read: there would only be a desire to act as a lawyer! First, the new helmsman, who has no experience not only in the KHL, but in general on the bridge. So, who knows, maybe Brylin is still pressed by the “cap with anchor”. Secondly, the team was noticeably weakened by numerous departures of the leading players: they wanted to dare across the ocean (the flag in their hands) or changed Minsk to Russian cities of the Continental League. Third, injuries knocked out several other leading performers, most notably the core leader of the attack Alex Limoges.

Finally, the most important thing: well, it is impossible to play a new lineup at the click of your fingers. So that he does not shake on the bumps of the tournament road, so that he on request demonstrated aggressive, balanced hockey in each match and achieved a positive result. And the first three defeats at the start, they... And not such defeats, if the point piggy bank of the "dents" was regularly replenished with tournament points! Just modern hockey does not allow draws, forcing to play overtime and other bullit series, which, in my opinion, is absolutely unnecessary borrowing from overseas realities.

However, after Togliatti, the prosecutor's tone is more appropriate. And at the start of the regular season, I would like to cheer up more sharply with optimistic anticipations, cherishing the hope of rapid progress even with failures. They say, even if the “dents” are not dense with Victoria, but their potential is obvious, and if not today, then tomorrow or the day after tomorrow it will open on the mountain to all opponents. But just this anticipation – “the prospects are bright, and the victories will be ours” – today and not. So hypochondriasis attacks are not surprising.

However, let us leave the “judicial allusions”, preferring both the lawyer’s and the prosecutor’s mantle as a sober analyst. And the first conclusion is as follows: the formation of a new team is noticeably stalling, the training of a new gaming system is creaking. In Togliatti, where the “teeth”, losing 0: 2, settled on the fiasco 2: 4, excellent and good-natured among the wards of Brylin was not found. And this is all the more surprising that on a date with Lada, the “teeth” came, encouraging their fans. Really! Having played back in St. Petersburg with 0-2 in the Dynamo derby, Minsk showed their best hockey in the regular championship.

However, in the home battles, despite the setbacks, something was encouraging. And when Brylin complained about accidents in Minsk, I wanted to agree with him. It seemed that a little – and things will go well. This week, and no later. But no, alas. “A little bit” as before, and now in hockey is not counted. In all four matches played by Dynamo, there was an acute lack of game discipline and concentration, which led to ridiculous removals, casual flaws and cheaply missed pucks. Unfortunately, this is not in vain – a medical fact. Indeed, there have often been illogical misunderstandings, whose nature traditionally lies in the fog head syndrome, which has not yet been implemented a strict algorithm of actions. True, the pace could keep good, but, firstly, the realization of scoring moments suffered at the same time, and secondly, in the hockey of the "dents" prevailed "running for the sake of running", finally, thirdly, in Togliatti and to disperse properly failed. To the sense of chaoticness and vaguely spelled code was added the chronic doom of a hardened loser.

And there is also a systemic cause for concern: the anthropometry of the “dents”. We have a natural "small" composition! The most massive defender is Lyle, who is only 191 cm tall and weighs less than 100 kg. Among the attackers, there are also no genuine two-meter “caskets”. And now look at at least the Moscow Dynamo Nikonov, who at the end of the pre-season match caused a severe injury to the defender of the “dents” Melosh. And there are such grenadiers in most KHL clubs. In some, they make up the backbone of the command! Meanwhile, in the match with Moscow teammates, which took place on neutral ice in St. Petersburg, Brylin released in the first shift “to fight for Melosh”. Usova, Kuznetsova and even Belkin! They're all combative and even brash guys. But the same Belkin - 180 cm and 85 kg. A kid by modern hockey standards. That’s why the action “revenge of the cat Leopold” came out, to put it mildly, tragicomic and all with the same refrain “it will be too small!”: and no one was beaten, and already in the first minute of the most important fight they were three against the full set of the opponent.

And in general, the first half of the Dynamo derby tried to plunge into a pool of disbelief, as it happened a day later in Togliatti. The same symptoms: constant play in the minority, lack of throws on the opponent's goal, but stupid missed goals after stupid tactical blunders. So now, with all due respect to Brylin’s playing regalia, you involuntarily begin to doubt the choice of a head coach by the club’s management. Maybe it's not for nothing that this specialist has not been promoted to chiefs overseas? Maybe the captain's cap with an anchor is not Brylin's style at all?

However, there was not a duty transformation of the “dents” in the third period of the Dynamo derby! When Minsk not only showed the will and surpassed the opponent in speed, but also remembered the beauty of hockey. Both of the "tooths" came out on sight. A brilliant prank by Smith, Enas and Obe-Kubel for the most part allowed the latter to open his sniper account in the KHL. No less aesthetic was drawn and the combination, in which the final point was set by the returnee Alistrov. By the way, to Vladimir, I think there are no grandiose claims after the match in Togliatti: Alistrov is fine! Post-traumatic syndrome must be overcome. Just let Alistrov play with Enas and Tierney, and in the future with Enas and Limoges. But just in matters of the formation of threes attack coaching intuition Brylin cause the greatest doubts.

The demand “it will be too small!” will immediately be removed from the agenda when Dynamo wins. We have to win the match against Siberia! At least in overtime, even in bullies - not important. The main thing is to win! Otherwise, the question “what is Andrei Skabelka doing there?” will hurt Sergei Brylin’s pride more and more.

In September, Dynamo Minsk will hold five more fights. The houses of the “teeth” will take “Siberia” and “Automobileist” (18 and 20 September), then there will be two away matches – against Moscow “Dynamo” and “Shanghai” (24 and 26 September), after which the team will return to “Minsk-Arena” and play on 28 September with “Lada”.