Reaction after beating the Czech Republic at the 2019 World Junior Championship

After defeating the Czech Republic at the 2019 World Junior Championship, Russian under 20 national team head coach Valery Bragin and forwards Nikolai Kovalenko and Artyom Galimov spoke to the media.

Russia U20 head coach Valery Bragin:

- The quality of our performance was a lot higher. Yes, there were mistakes and the powerplay needs to improve, but I'm happy that we managed to score twice even when shorthanded. I can feel the players' desire to win and that's the main thing. The goalkeeping coach told me that both Daniil Tarasov and Pyotr Kochetkov are 100% ready to play. In the third period, we started playing with more aggression, so maybe that's why we saw more of Vitaly Kravtsov. How is Nikolai Kovalenko? He returned to the ice and continued playing. We still have time to register another forward.

Russia U20 forward Nikolai Kovalenko:

- The main thing is that the team won, these three points are very important for us. We took advantage of our opportunities when shorthanded. Today, in comparison to the first game, we had higher concentration levels. Our opponents in this group are very strong, we have to continue tallying points.

Russia U20 forward Artyom Galimov:

- When shorthanded, I saw that there was only one opposing defenseman between me and the goalkeeper, and I managed to score. I'm trying to play in a disciplined manner. We're improving with every match, today we felt a lot calmer and more confident. My family are watching the games.