Russia - Germany. Press-conference

Russian head coach Oleg Znarok:

- Congratulations to everyone on the win. It was a tough match for us, and we got the win.

- In attack, Vadim Shipachyov’s line are doing all the work. Does this worry you?

- No, actually I would like this line to play better in defence. Also, I am glad that Alexander Ovechkin scored his first goal today.

- The next match will take place against Finland. What do you think about their team?

- They have mobile players. They are the best opponents for us at this tournament, but we know how to play against them. We will look over their tactics.

- With September’s World Cup in mind, will you change the roster around?

- We aren’t thinking about the World Cup right now, all thoughts are connected to the World Championship.

German head coach Marco Sturm:

- I think that Russia were the better team. However, I am very proud of my team. They really deserved to be in the quarter-finals, and we had a great two weeks in Saint Petersburg. I wish Russia luck in the next stage.

- Did you analyse Vadim Shipachyov’s line before this game?

- They have four really good lines, not just one. As soon as they have the puck, they move up quickly. Two or three of their lines can play the puck brilliantly, and we did not focus on just one.

- In the first period, you played aggressive hockey. Did Russia’s first goal crush you?

- Yes, we didn’t start the second stanza in the right way. That goal didn’t help us. We relied on Thomas Greiss too much, even in the first, and we knew that they were going to come hard in the second. We ran out of gas as the match went on, and overall, Russia were simply the better team.

Russian Ice Hockey Federation