Vladimir Filatov: "The guys didn't lose out to the opponents"

Russia U17 head coach Vladimir Filatov:

- The Latvian Ice Hockey Federation suggested playing two matches against us. We agreed to their proposal, because we needed these games too. We haven't had that many matches this season and the guys want to show their ability. They received an opportunity and we got important information.

- There were players who made their national team debuts.

- At this age, players change rapidly. A lot of players deserve a chance. I regularly see them playing for their teams, but at this level, there is more responsibility. I want to see how they can perform here.

- What impressions did this game leave you with?

- Both matches were similar. We scored more in the first, but we failed to register a shutout in the second. Despite the opponents being older than us, we didn't perform any worse. They did a great job.

- The Five Nations tournament in Switzerland is approaching. How will you prepare for it?

- Now, we will return to Russia and continue training in Novogorsk. We're preparing to call up players who have already performed well with the national team. Our leading players Vasily Podkolzin, Artemiy Knyazev and Oleg Zaitsev are training with Russia U18 ahead of the upcoming World Championship. With the tournament in Switzerland being our final competition of the season, we will play with the optimal roster.

- Out of the new players, who can play in Switzerland?

- Some of them will. The coaches will look back at the matches on video and analyse how they played and their statistics. We will draw conclusions.

- This training camp is long with two away trips. Is this tough for the players psychologically?

- No, they are young and full of energy. Our task is not to make them tired, but to teach them how to recover correctly and prepare for matches in the right way. The players need to train in the right way and be ready for games.

Russian Ice Hockey Federation