On May 9, Russian hockey players have always had the sole responsibility. Our athletes have never experienced a lack of motivation at the World Championships, but on Victory Day, in any case, they took to the ice with a special attitude. And the audience, in turn, followed the team with great passion, because on the great holiday the feeling of national unity intensifies, and with it the susceptibility to the successes and failures of the country in the international arena.

However, this time our hockey players failed to please the fans. The national team suffered a historic defeat, although it was considered the absolute favorite of the match. There was no explanation for the failure after the game either from the coach or from the players.

But fans and experts did not choose words. One of the most shameful matches in the history of Russian hockey happened on Victory Day.

Looking forward to an easy win

The match against the French team in the group stage of the 2013 World Cup did not promise the Russians any particular difficulties. Our team came to Finland in the status of the defending champion, and therefore was considered the favorite of the entire tournament, not to mention a single game against outright outsiders. Moreover, before that, Bilyaletdinov’s wards had already dealt with three other opponents: Latvia (6:0), Germany (4:1) and the USA (5:3).

By that time, the French had not had a single victory over Russia in history, and this is not surprising. Their team gained a foothold in the elite international division only at the end of the 2000s, and the playoffs remained the limit of its dreams. The team did not pretend to great achievements even then. The French had only one NHL player, and even then – the second order. But we have: Kovalchuk, Radulov, Mozyakin … It seemed that the Russians would win.

Photo: © Martin Rose / Staff / Bongarts / Gettyimages.ru

sensational fiasco

However, the expectations of the fans were deceived. Striking for many was already the result of the first period, which ended in a goalless draw. The Russian attackers could not manage to crack the enemy’s defense, into whose gate the Slovaks a few days ago threw six goals.

But the rivals acted confidently not only in defense, but also in attack: Koshechkin had to enter the game in the very first minutes, and it was the French who were closer to the goal scored in the first 20 minutes. At some point, they surpassed the Russians in throws six times!

However, then it seemed that the failure in the first period was just a temporary clouding in the game of the Russian team. Under Bilyaletdinov, the beginning of matches for our team often took place in the rolling mode, and the real struggle began already in the second act … These predictions were immediately reinforced by Perezhogin’s goal in the 27th minute, but the Russians failed to maintain the advantage. The French instantly leveled the score, and by the end of the period they took the lead at all: 2:1.

Photo: © Martin Rose / Staff / Bongarts / Gettyimages.ru

Having felt the taste of victory, the “tricolors” did not loosen their grip. But neither Russian nor even foreign experts began to sing hymns to French heroism after the match. The Europeans played in an organized manner, but not at all perfect, allowing a lot of dangerous attacks. But the Russians clearly played below their level, as if not fully believing in the reality of the threat of defeat looming over them. In the end, this strange feeling turned into nervousness: our attackers made mistakes in elementary situations, although they had several chances to even the score.

“We are in shock”

At the end of the match, there was a feeling that the national holiday that day was celebrated not in our country, but in France. European hockey players rejoiced at their success as if they had won the gold of the World Championship, and this can be understood. Their team coach Dave Henderson called this result “the greatest victory in the history of French hockey”:

– Today we beat the best team on the planet, and I’m happy. A dream come true. I am immensely proud of my guys. The importance of this victory cannot be overestimated. This match was watched by thousands of boys who will be inspired by the feat of my players. After such matches fall in love with the game. When the hockey development program was adopted in 2007, such results were not even dreamed of. But today we can say that we have taken a big step forward.

Photo: © Martin Rose / Staff / Bongarts / Gettyimages.ru

But the Russian coach after this defeat turned out to be laconic. Bilyaletdinov answered journalists’ questions briefly and reluctantly, refusing to explain the failure of his team. So did the players. Team captain Ilya Nikulin asked interviewers not to focus on the negative, and his colleague Loktionov said that the Russians simply did not have enough implementation.

– The mood for today’s match was normal. We tune in to everyone the same: at least for Canadians, at least for the French. But the result … Alas. We had to take our chances. We created a lot of chances, we played productively in attack. We ourselves are in shock.

“Not a system, but a drama circle”

It was also difficult for experts to find an explanation for the unexpected fiasco of the Russians. The honored coach of Russia Sergey Gimaev also threw up his hands after the match:

– There is no direct explanation. Offhand – subconsciously it was all the same that these were the French, that after some time we would score our goals. On the other hand, they ran too hard to score. They began to act not in an organized manner, but with the idea that it was necessary to score faster. And this is not from the coaches, but from the players, from the fact that not everyone was satisfied with their game and thought to improve their statistics with the French. Not that there was no mood, but there was no concentration on the right work, ”Gimaev told Sports.ru.

Two-time Olympic champion Evgeny Zimin agrees with Gimaev’s point of view – the team lacked motivation:

– Our team was completely unprepared for the game with France. Neither physically nor mentally. Everyone thought that it would be an easy walk, but the French, on the contrary, gave their all. The game of ours reminded me of a two-sided game at a training camp, ”Sports.ru reports Zimin’s words.

Photo: © Martin Rose / Staff / Bongarts / Gettyimages.ru

The former coach of the Russian national team, Vladimir Plushev, on the contrary, saw a problem in the work of the team’s mentor:

– When they say that there is Bilyaletdinov’s system, then it should “eat” such teams as France and without outstanding players. But if we lose 1:2, then this is not a system, but a drama club. One Ilya Kovalchuk was supposed to beat the French team! You can lose to the Swedes, Finns, but if you lose to the French on Victory Day, then this is nonsense! This is not our level, our level will start from the playoffs, this is at the level of national humiliation, – Plyushchev quotes BO Sport.

However, then the Russian team at least had the opportunity to show themselves in the international arena on an important day for the country. This time the World Hockey Festival takes place without us, and this is perhaps more humiliating than any defeat.