Russia took part in the IIHF's 2017 World Championship photoshoot

On May 14th, the senior Russian national team took part in the IIHF's official 2017 World Championship photoshoot. The team's management, coaches, players and staff were all present.

Afterwards, the goalkeepers and four skates trained on the ice. The majority of the squad were given the day off.

Russian national team coach Harijs Vitolins:

- If Latvia had taken their chances against Sweden and the USA, their results could have been different. They have a fast team which is playing really well at this competition. Latvia play a Canadian style of ice hockey. Evgeny Kuznetsov will be a centre forward to begin with, but we will see how things work out. The players have said that the ice at the main arena is poor. It's good that we were 3:0 up against Slovakia after the first period, because the ice was bad in the second and third frames. Given that we are playing in the evening tomorrow, we can expect more ice problems.

The match against the Slovaks proved that we have things to improve on. Compared to other games, Slovakia created more chances. Tomorrow, Ilya Sorokin will start in net.

Russian national team defenseman Dmitry Orlov:

- Despite not skating for two days, I feel good. Hopefully, everything will go smoothly tomorrow. Last year, I adapted very quickly to the bigger ice. Right now, I'm trying not to think about the defeat with the Washington Capitals, I need to be positive with the national team. It doesn't matter that I don't have a contract at the moment, it was the same situation last year and at the World Cup.

Russian national team forward Evgeny Kuznetsov:

- It's clear that the guys are in a good mood, there is a positive atmosphere here. I don't mind who I play with in one line, all of us are ice hockey players. Coming to the national team will help me not focus on what went wrong in Washington, I will think about the NHL season after the World Championship.

Before travelling here, Alexander Ovechkin wished me luck. I don't have any problems playing on the big ice, I'm comfortable. Despite the players stating that the ice on the large arena is bad, the training rink is in good condition. I immediately agreed to play for Russia at this tournament, I didn't think about the fact that I don't have a contract.

Russian Ice Hockey Federation