Until yesterday, there were two teams in the league that had not yet scored any points: Lada and Siberia. But yesterday, the Togliatti team showed exemplary energy and speed, crushing Dynamo in the first half, thereby determining the outcome of the match. In the second match of the day between CSKA and Siberia, this did not happen: the Novosibirsk team, in a splendid isolation, was at the bottom of the table and even conceded eight goals.
Let’s recall the three matches of the Novosibirsk team and also try to find out where the problems are. The opening match against Avangard turned out to be a battle comparable to a derby: Sibir played on equal terms with a better opponent, often outplaying it and making good positional attacks, but the expulsion at the end of the match put an end to the prospect of taking points from Omsk.
Sergei Dubakin in the match with Avangard
Photo: Dmitry Loshkarev, photo.khl.ru
That match, despite the result, caused more positive emotions, because defeat in itself is not scary at first and we saw something like a pattern. Nothing, everything will come with games.
The second match in Yekaterinburg was expected to be more difficult, and, strictly speaking, it turned out that way, but here the words about bewilderment and nightmare are more appropriate. The puck in the first shift, when Anatoly Golyshev “fooled” the Sibir defenders who stood up, another goal before the break, zero valuable chances, and Sergei Shirokov’s performance during the break became the quintessence of what was happening on the ice.
“We need to change everything radically, because we play something like that, you can’t even call it summer hockey. If we keep playing like this, we’ll be 10th.” [шайб] “They will abandon it,” the Novosibirsk captain said during the break.
Related materials
Siberian striker Shirokov: The captain should not keep quiet and speak general words
In the second half, Sibir ran, but the chances created were worth a few cents in terms of xG. But the leader of Novosibirsk, Taylor Beck, decided to “show off”. The Canadian, at the moment of transition from defense to attack, for some reason began to invent a “cunning” pass behind his back at the moment of the change of command, which was read by the automobilist, and after a few seconds Nick Ebert easily beat Krasotkin.
The video rights belong to KHL LLC. You can watch the video on the league’s official website.
Before the match against CSKA, “Sibir” had four days and there was hope that the team would come out differently than in Yekaterinburg. Despite missing the goal at the beginning, Epantsintsev’s team looked good, but the same execution let them down again.
After Shirokov’s puck in the second half, Sibir got going, winning four minutes of power play, but decisive chances from Gogolev and Belousov came to nothing.
But in the third period, the tragicomedy began: “Sibir” fell apart before our eyes and eventually conceded as many as six goals. Even Anton Krasotkin, who started the match as a substitute, managed to do so. And the camera, which captured Anton’s eyes, who did not understand reality, showed the look on the faces of the Novosibirsk fans at this “performance”.
Denis Kostin and Maxim Sorkin
Photo: Yuri Kuzmin, foto.khl.ru
Let’s move on to the reasons.
Implementation
Yes, journalists and fans asked a lot about this during the tournament in Omsk, but the coach, management and players were calm, convinced that it would come in time. Novosibirsk general manager Viktor Merkulov said in an interview before the start of the season: “I would be nervous if we didn’t have chances: everything is slipping through our fingers, it’s not clear what we’re playing for. But it’s clear that we keep the puck and create chances. Yes, there are problems with the implementation, but there is time to fix them.”
The same interview:
Exclusive
“Siberia is not the kind of club where you need to bring someone you don’t know.” Great conversation with Merkulov.
In fact, this seems to be the most solvable problem, paradoxical as it may seem. “Siberia” has its moments, there were quite a few yesterday, but its ending, to put it mildly (very mildly), leaves much to be desired.
defensive game
It’s worth starting with the fact that Sibir’s defense has hardly changed in recent years – it remains the same on the sand. Under Martemyanov, his playing system was clear: we minimize risk, we don’t shy away from throwing shots at the glass, we connect deep into the attacking zone only if we are interchangeable with the attacker. After Nemirovsky’s arrival, this changed dramatically, because David welcomed connections with the attack, as well as passing under any circumstances. Nemirovsky was fired, Sergei Krivokrasov came (he was moved to another position), who in that situation had no time for beauty – we played extremely reliably. Now Epanchintsev has arrived and demands a pass again.
Why is all this being said? Perhaps the Siberian defenders have such a mess in their heads that they don’t know what to do anymore? In itself, getting out of defence with a pass is good, welcome, and fans and ordinary people will be happy to see it.
But how much did Siberia concede yesterday for incorrectly leaving the zone? Two goals, the first when Yakovlev was sent off for this, and Abramov immediately scored, the second when Denis Guryanov made his debut for CSKA. An example of recklessness in attack was demonstrated yesterday by Ilya Morozov, who had previously missed two matches because his performance at the tournament in Omsk caused him to break out in cold sweat on his forehead. For what purpose does Ilya enter the zone in the third minute to hit his opponent? The question will probably remain unanswered.
Ilya Morozov
Photo: Yuri Kuzmin, foto.khl.ru
Let’s recall again Guryanov’s puck, where he lost his position, as well as the moment in the second half, when Morozov, in a simple situation, did not hold the puck and then lost speed to the army attacker. Apparently, we will not see one of the most expensive defenders in the lineup soon.
legionnaires game
In a club like Sibir, foreign players should decide the outcome of the matches and be leaders. Well, they decide the outcome, but there is one caveat.
Andy Andreoff had a tough time last season, he went through a period of adaptation, but closer to November he began to find his game. Now Andy’s game is absolutely identical to that of September-October last year. True, this can no longer be attributed to adaptation. The words of the commentator of yesterday’s match are indicative: “Where is Andy Andreoff?” The percentage of faceoffs won by the Canadian has dropped below 50% (47% to be precise), that famous game under the goal simply does not work: no traffic, no finishing.
The hockey community has long been aware of Taylor Beck’s difficult character, but he is getting results in Siberia, so patience is needed. It would be logical to start asking these questions at a time when there is no result. The incident in Yekaterinburg has already been mentioned above, but let’s talk about the effectiveness of the attack now. Of Beck’s three games, one can single out exactly one segment: yesterday’s four-minute power play against CSKA, where he made several cross passes, frightening with his shot.
Trevor Murphy is not an easy character either, but he made up for his defensive issues with an elite offensive game. The puck from Prokhor Poltapov, when a few seconds earlier Murphy recklessly slammed him onto the pads and “cut” the five, is attached below. For what? For what purpose? Maybe anger, or maybe indifference.
The video rights belong to KHL LLC. You can watch the video on the league’s official website.
“Sibir” started the season worse than ever before. Suffice it to recall the season under the leadership of Yurzinov and Andrievsky, when the team lost 12 matches at the start, then recovered and had a chance to make it to the playoffs, but at the end of the season it collapsed, just as it did at the beginning of the season.
Three games have passed, 65 remain, nothing has been lost yet, not even close, but when things are going badly, it has to be said. If the implementation problems seem solvable, then the big holes in the defence will somehow evaporate. And the issue of irresponsibility and recklessness of some characters needs to be addressed head on.
