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| Evgeni Malkin: Dynamo Were Up by Two and Still Afraid of Us |
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Evgeni Malkin
By Igor Kakurin (Ves Hokkei newspaper)
Translated by Sergei Balashov of RusHockey.com
'It's very pleasant and quite unexpected for me,' ' the league's top scorer was truly glad to be named the best player of October, - 'it's important for me what people think of me and people say about my game. When I get that kind of recognition from the Super League teams' coaches, who are clearly the most important people in hockey, it doubles my pleasure.
Q: Not all the coaches named you the best player, but the majority of them did with the overwhelming majority, almost all of them, listing you as one of their 3 nominees.
Malkin: Who did Dave King name the best player?
Q: He named you. He said he had to be objective and put you on the first place even though you're on for his team.
Malkin: What about Krikunov?
Q: He named Malkin the best player as well. He said it would be fair despite that fact that you gave lots of trouble to him and his team, which is Dynamo Moscow.
Malkin: Yeah we battled for 6, and not for 3 points in these two games. It's very pleasant for me to get that kind of recognition from the coach of our adversaries, especially since he's the coach of the national team. I'm doing my best.
Q: These two games between Magnitka and Dynamo became the most important event of October and of the whole first round. And you were clearly the hero of this event. All of the three goals that were scored in the heartbreaking game in Moscow were yours.
Malkin: Just two of them.
Q: The first goal was scored by Nurtdinov when he picked up your rebound.
Malkin: Okay, you're right. But I don't want to place my own effort above that of our other players. Remember the second goal against Dynamo in Moscow. We pulled our goalie with less than a minute remaining. Everyone was battling for the puck in front of Dynamo's goal. I think I was lucky when the puck somehow got to me and I put it in the net. I was in the right place at the right time; I was quicker than others I guess.
Q: Not just quicker. You were heading there on purpose, you were pushing to get there.
Malkin: Well yeah then I was slightly pushing to get there. I had to be there because we had to score. But you should thank me for that goal and for that win as much as any other player on the team, whether it's our goalie or a checking line defenseman. We are a team.
Q: However a strange thing happened there. Malkin was credited with the goal and he was called for roughing right off the bat. The time of the both events in the minutes is 59:30.
Malkin: I think the ref had to send us both to the box, me and Sushinski. But I don't deny my responsibility for leaving the team shorthanded for the rest of the third period and the start of the overtime. I couldn't contain myself and not answer Sushinski. I got what I deserved.
Q: What exactly happened there? Do you think that Sushinski wasn't right in that situation?
Malkin: You know we were just struggling. Sushinski battled to the very end. I scored, the puck was in the net and the red lights were turned on, then he hit me with his stick. He was hurt, maybe angry or mad at me. Maybe he was wrong but he was driven by his passion, just like me.
Q: What did you feel like when it happened? With just a few seconds left when your goalie is pulled and all you need is just a goal and you get this goal right there.
Malkin: I was happy, but this happiness wasn't complete until we scored in the overtime.
Q: You were trailing by two goals in the next game at home. In a game of such a high importance and mounting tensions such a start can discourage anyone, but'
Malkin: Why would we be discouraged? Yes, we were down 0-2. But we allowed both of the goals when we were shorthanded after our player got a double minor. We were evenly matched up to that point. Then they got a penalty and we cut their lead to one. Then we were scoring on even strength. I got the impressions that our opponents were somewhat intimidated. We were playing on our home ice after beating them at their home arena. I think they switched to defensive strategy too early. They did it after scoring their two goals. We didn't have anything else to go but to go ahead and try to get back in the game because we were not going to lose to Dynamo in Magnitogorsk after beating them in Moscow.
Q: Could you compare the Magnitka of today with Sykora's Magnitka of the previous season?
Malkin: What do you mean?
Q: To be honest, remembering last year's matchup between Dynamo and Magnitka it's hard to imagine that team getting back in the game against Dynamo after trailing with just 30 seconds left in the game or bouncing back from a two goal deficit in a one minute span. That 'Czech Metallurg' couldn't play to the end like the 'Canadian Metallurg' does.
Malkin: I think you're right. This is our spirit. King tells us to not give up. 'It doesn't matter how many goals we're down by, - he reiterates, - the game won't be over earlier than when the third period comes to an end. Let's go!' This is a huge advantage of him as a coach. And it's an advantage of Canadian hockey.
Q: King trusts you a lot. We can see you on the powerplay unit, you're out on the ice when your team is playing shorthanded and sometimes you spend two straight shifts on the ice especially during the crucial moments of the game.
Malkin: Yeah it does happen. Actually it happened in that game in Moscow. It was right in the end of the third period. I had been on the ice for 3 minutes, my throat went dry. I was thinking 'when will there be a break?'
Q: You wanted to finally change?
Malkin: Not really, I was hoping to drink some water at least. Yeah, King gives me more ice time than he gives to the other players on the team. Yeah, he does trust me. And it gives me more inspiration. I know he has faith in me, and let's not forget how young I am! I know that I just can't play bad. He trusts me but doesn't put any pressure on me, I'm not afraid to make a mistake I just don't think about it. I just play. Maybe that's how it's got to be.
Q: I get the impression that Dave King isn't quite fluent in Russian.
Malkin: Well I think it'd be fair to say he doesn't speak Russian at all. But it doesn't make a difference during the game because everything is said before the game or during practices. Igor Korolev translates King's instructions to me during the games. But usually just a gesture or a look at me is enough, I go out on the ice and play.
Q: You probably did or didn't have strong doubts back this summer when you were thinking whether you should go to Pittsburgh, now it doesn't seem that you doubt your decision now. The decision to stay with Magnitka was right, wasn't it?
Malkin: Yes. I don't regret staying at home at all. And I realize that I don't lose anything when I play. I feel that I'm growing, maturing, gaining experience. Now, when Dave King is our coach, we play more NHL-like hockey. It's faster and more like what they play in the NHL.
Q: Your game winning goal in the game against Novokuznetsk was your 10th of the season and Malkin'
Malkin: Yeah, I know what you're going to say. I won't say it doesn't matter to me how many goals I scored and how many assists I've got as long as my team wins. It is important to me. But my goals carry higher importance if they're game winners, like in the games against Dynamo and Novokuznetsk. This is another point I get in the rating of the best players. And for my team, it means another 3 points and the first place in the standings.
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