Reaction after beating Switzerland at the 2021 World Championship

Following the 4:1 victory against Switzerland in the fifth match of the 2021 IIHF World Championship in Latvia, Russian national team head coach Valeri Bragin and forwards Sergei Tolchinsky and Pavel Karnaukhov all shared their emotions:

Head coach Valeri Bragin:

- After resting for two days, it was tough to initially get into the match, but the main thing is that we blocked 30 shots, a statistic which shows just how much determination and commitment our players competed with. Sergei Tolchinsky? We counted on him for the national team, and he is performing excellently. His assist for our winner and his first goal displayed his skill, they were brilliant moves. He created the goals which turned the game in our favour. Our goalkeeping situation? We will analyse the issue when Sergei Bobrovsky completes his quarantine period, he has travelled here with plenty of motivation. Dmitry Orlov, Vladimir Tarasenko and Mikhail Grigorenko will all play against Sweden, and we hope Artyom Zub will too.

Forward Sergei Tolchinsky:

- I think that we have started playing better, we're working hard in every training session. I believe we have enough strength and quality to fight for the gold medal. My pass to Pavel Karnaukhov when I was off balance? I knew where to put the puck for Pavel, he's an excellent player when it comes to stick-handling, so I was sure that he would be able to connect with my pass. Whenever you score to go ahead with only 10 minutes remaining on the clock, it's always a big blow for the opponents to handle. Hopefully, I will continue to improve as the tournament continues.

Forward Pavel Karnaukhov:

- Switzerland have lots of fast, high-quality players, so it was a difficult game for us. In the end, the match depended on one mistake, and thankfully the opponents committed it. It's always easier for us skaters when our goaltender is in solid form, a goalkeeper consists of half of a team. Moreover, all defensemen and forwards are trying their best to help our goalkeeper. My winning goal? I was waiting for a pass on the doorstep, and I managed to connect with Sergei's feed. We are improving with every passing match, we're competing with more discipline and less mistakes across the ice.