After the defeat in the finals from CSKA, the chairman of the board of directors of Avangard, Alexander Krylov, did not hide from journalists the news that the club's best player intends to try his hand at the NHL next season.
- We support Ilya Mikheev in his desire to go to North America. We have no right to stop him. He did a lot for Omsk hockey. And, of course, in case something goes wrong - we are waiting for him back. I told him that I would help with the language. Because even moving to Moscow was hard for him, not to mention North America. Of course, if Mikheev leaves, we will need reinforcements. We're working on it - said Krylov that late evening.
Of course, there have been rumors about the transfer of the 24-year-old striker before. But there was no clarity, and then the successful playoffs of Avangard could stop Mikheev from leaving. Omsk in the coming years will really qualify for the Gagarin Cup, this is a good reason to stay. Yes, and Ilya would have received a solid contract in Russia. Several times more than what will be offered to him in the first years in America. However, despite all this, the hockey player still leaves. From a good organization, from cool coach, regardless of the chance to win a trophy and earn a lot of money. This is a real defeat for the KHL and Avangard. There is nothing they can do in this situation.
When Krylov said that he would support any decision of the hockey player, he probably wanted to convey to him through the press the idea to think and stay. They say that the boss of the Omsk club got angry when he found out that Ilya was leaving after all. Everything was decided just the other day, after the end of the Avangard season. The main contender for the Russian striker, according to Russian and North American sources, is Toronto. There are options with Chicago and Vegas, but the Maple Leafs are a priority. The contract may be announced in a week, on May 1, as soon as Mikheev's current agreement with Omsk ends. And no, Ilya cannot conclude a contract before this time, as Gavrikov and Gusev did, as he is a free agent who has not been drafted by any NHL club. Although in replays to yesterday's news about Mikheev, Toronto fans asked if Ilya could play in the seventh match with Boston instead of Patrick Marlo.
Toronto is a good option for Mikheev. Much better than Vegas Main coach directly states that he does not know what to do with a newcomer - best player outside of the NHL. It's about Nikita Gusev. But the last choice was not where to go. Ilya is in a more enviable position in this regard, and therefore he must choose an organization in which he will be trusted and allowed to play. We see that the careers of Yegor Yakovlev and Bogdan Kiselevich did not work out in the NHL for anything other than playing reasons. The example of Igor Ozhiganov, who spent the entire playoffs in a deaf reserve, seems to indicate that Hockey Mecca is also not the best option. But only Igor failed last season in CSKA, and in the autumn there were a lot of defenders in Toronto. Ozhiganov simply did not have enough space. There are also a lot of attackers in the Maple Leafs now, but in the summer Marner will ask the club for a salary of 10 million a year, and in order to agree to his terms (in fact, there is no way out), it will be necessary to exchange players with large agreements. To replace one of the extreme forwards is Mikheev, who, under the newcomer's contract, will receive only 925 thousand dollars. There will definitely be a place for Ilya in the third or fourth link. Yes, and Babcock loves players like him.
Another Russian player left our league. The fact that Ilya Mikheev would leave became clear in the middle of the season, but the striker himself diligently denied such a possibility, saying that he “hadn’t decided anything yet” and only somehow admitted that he was driving such thoughts away from himself, since it interferes focus on hockey. "Last year I thought a lot about leaving and failed the playoffs," he said. Even now in Brno, Ilya denied everything and was waiting for a decision on the national team, although I assured him that everything was decided. As a result, yesterday afternoon Mikheev entered into an annual agreement with. Pretty good for a hockey player. Forgoing all additional bonuses in exchange for returning to the KHL if he is sent to the farm club. Maybe this is a frequent occurrence, but the last one to do this was. No AHL, just to play in the big leagues, and money is not the most important thing. It's hard to talk about the forward's prospects in the Canadian team. Not because I don't believe in Ilya.
On the contrary, he is very diligent, accurate, correct. But this is Toronto and soon you will see an interview with, where you will understand exactly what I am talking about. Plus, the Maple Leafs have a rather difficult morale right now, as the team is eliminated in the first round of the playoffs and have already begun to be fired. Mikheev had never faced such pressure in his life. But he is a good hockey player and personally I am surprised why he is not in the national team. Not sure if he's inferior. But most importantly, another interesting hockey player is leaving Russia.
The headquarters of the national team thanks defender Ilya Lyubushkin, forwards Ilya Mikheev and Alexander Kadeikin for their work with the national team this season, wishes to prepare well for the next one and counts on them in the future. #snamirussia
Hockey of Russia (@russiahockey) May 6, 2019
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On Monday, the coaching staff of the Russian national team said goodbye to several players. Ilya Mikheev will not help at the World Championships, and. And early in the morning on Tuesday it was predictably called. But what about those who were expelled? We have already talked about Mikheev. I did not understand at all why they took Ilya Lyubushkin and Alexander Kadeikin to the stage of the Eurotour, if they were not even given a chance. And I very much doubt that Lyubushkin is weaker not only and, but also.
On the contrary, the homebody Lyubushkin, who knows how to play tough, could be an excellent partner for. I'm sorry for Kadeikin. He could definitely replace, whose invitation was not planned. Yes, Anisimov has experience playing in the NHL, but he had a bad season, and Kadeikin is charged, and he doesn’t care who is in front of him on the ice. By the way, he would have acted much better in defense than Artem, unloading and (we take as a basis exactly last match commands). But the most surprising thing is that only three people were expelled, and we still have extra ones. Will everyone be taken to Bratislava?
Coach at Vanguard
The finalist of the Gagarin Cup changes the composition carefully, but the news from Balashikha is constantly coming. First, they refused services. The club released a touching video, it's right when a team sees off its players like that. Yes, Medvedev scored 30 points this season, but these are not the numbers you should pay attention to. Firstly, he spoiled the team with his grumbling, especially in hard times in the middle of the season. Secondly, he made mistakes rather grossly much more often than he was useful. Thirdly, at some point he lost confidence, but the coach had no other options and he still released Evgeny, although he understood that he was taking a big risk.
“Vanguard” with the departure of the defender intensified. It is also wonderful that negotiations are underway for an invitation to the club instead of Mike Pelino. Now Kozlov is the head coach "Chemist", he had a great championship. Kozlov solved his main problem - communication and began to turn into a potentially cool coach with his own system. Plus he knows English language, which will greatly facilitate the work of Hartley. I hope that he will agree with the specialist and refuse Pelino. He was responsible for the majority and we saw in the regular season what a nightmare it was in this direction. Plus, Pelino was never Hartley's soul mate. This is too sensitive a topic, just believe that he did not really help him.
A guest of the site was a 22-year-old pupil of Omsk hockey, the forward of Avangard and the Russian Olympic team, with whom the Hawks extended the contract for two years in April
WE PLAYED WITH KAZAN TOO MUCH CONSERVATIVELY, ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN
Ilya, did you expect that you, in fact, would become the first player of Avangard, with whom the club decided this offseason?
Of course, it was nice to go on vacation like that. On the other hand, the mood is still not the best – “Vanguard” had every opportunity to defeat the “Ak Bars” and reach the finals of the Eastern Conference. I still can't understand why we overslept the start of this series a bit and gave our opponent a two-game handicap.
Are you satisfied with your personal performance: 5 points (2+3) in 12 cup matches, and 21 (12+9) in 56 league games? At the same time, both in the Cup and in the regular season, you have a stable utility indicator - "plus 3".
If hockey were an individual sport, then, probably, these statistics could be discussed. In the team plan, all the tasks set by the leadership of the tasks were not solved. Although they won their division in the regular season, they made it to the playoffs with the second seed.
- Why didn't we pass Kazan?
To be honest, the current “Ak Bars” was probably inferior in strength to “Ak Bars” of previous years, at least it was felt on the ice. But, of course, the head start in two home meetings is too much.
And it also seems to me that in tactical terms we played too conservatively - according to one template, somewhere a little bit stopped in our development.
FROM THE FIRST OF MAY, EVERY AVANGARD PLAYER STARTS WORK
- From this point of view, changes in coaching staff didn't surprise you?
Discussing coaches, and even at 22, is completely wrong. But the last thing is always remembered - namely, the April two-week gathering of our team. The headquarters of Andriy Skabelka immediately made it clear that we would play total, mobile hockey - five behind and five in front. I think this is the current system.
- Two weeks of the April training camp went unnoticed?
Yes, we trained hard. As a result of the training camp, each Avangard player received an individual vacation assignment. Everything is scheduled by day - starting from the first of May. Gym, jogging, gym...
- Didn't it happen before?
No, why, such plans in the “Vanguard” have always been!
- Back to your contract. Why choose a period of two years?
I decided this issue not so much with the agent as with the family. Two seasons at my age is the right distance. There is time to show yourself and, I hope, to prove that you deserve more.
- Have you seen the atmospheric press release of Avangard dedicated to your signing? The general manager of the club, Viktor Shalaev, emphasized: "Mikheev is incredibly hardworking and focused only on hockey. That is why we did not want him to enter the market, and immediately offered a new contract. Mikheev's example is indicative for our pupils - if you work hard, you can achieve any goal. In the new season, we are waiting for a breakthrough from our youth!
- (laughs) Many thanks to Viktor Vladimirovich for such kind words. As soon as they appeared on our website, my father immediately called me and said: "Quickly go to the Internet, read!" I think such advances will make me work even harder - to please our fans more often.
THERE ARE A LOT OF OMSK RESIDENTS IN AVANGARD, WE HAVE SPECIAL SUPPORT
- Do you, as a native Omsk citizen, feel the special attitude of the Siberian torsida towards you?
In principle, we have a lot of Omsk players in our team - for example, Kostin, Lauta, Dervuk, Shilin. All local guys understand that they are in special demand. Moreover, they, that is, we, have really special support. Thanks to the fans for this attention!
In general, I would like to Omsk in the “Vanguard” would be even more. In our city, the construction of the Avangard Hockey Academy is underway, which, I am sure, will give the first graduates to the main team in a few years. But already now there are such talented juniors as Manukyan, Kovalev, and other guys on the way. I wish them to take a big step towards the "Vanguard".
- This is the hardest one to young player step?
Exactly. It is not easy to go from Omsk Hawks to Avangard and game plan, and psychologically. The competition in the KHL is very high, there are both legionnaires and veterans. Yes, they will always support, but at the same time, all professionals will not give their place to anyone just like that. That is, at first, a beginner needs to cling to every shift, for every minute of playing time - and prove it.
By the way, the support of journalists is also important. Our media is not always focused on the positive, they often find a reason for criticism. In this regard, it helped me that your resource did not forget about me throughout the season.
I HOPE THAT RUSSIA WILL BEAT FINLAND IN THE WCH FINALS
- Did the winter challenge to the Russian Olympic team help you?
Yes, in Slovakia we played three matches in four days, we got a taste of European hockey. For me it was a useful and interesting experience. I was immediately convinced that international level somewhere slightly different from Kakhaelovsky. In national team games, the speed is a little higher, and hockey is even more intense.
- Did you follow the decisive matches of the Gagarin Cup?
To be honest, I didn't follow. I was very upset after the defeat in the semi-finals of the conference, there were simply no emotions left for hockey.
- But are you going to watch the World Cup?
Necessarily. I will worry about our team, maybe one of our players Olympic team will break into it. I also like some forwards of the Finnish national team in terms of style, they have something to take on board. I hope for the Russia-Finland final and for a beautiful victory for our team.
