Finland is a frightening opponent for the Russians.
The Russians are celebrating the finals. USA TODAY Sport / AOP
The Russians still remember all too well how the Lions destroyed Russia’s dream of winning the 2014 Olympics at the Sochi Olympics. Finland knocked out Russia’s medal games by knocking out the hosts in the quarterfinals.
In Beijing, the team of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) has the opportunity to renew their 2018 Olympic victory at Pyeongchan, but it will require the Lions to be knocked out in the Sunday morning final.
– Finns play defensively and seek counterattacks. Our coach should build clear tactics. The Finns only play counterattacks, so you have to be very careful. They attract opponents to their area, they are very good at defense and they have a great goalkeeper. How many matches have we lost to them like this! We have to be very careful, the president of the Russian Hockey Association and the legendary goalie Vladislav Tretiak stated to R-Sport.
Even before the start of the tournament, it was said in Russia that Finland would be the biggest winner of the Beijing Games.
Finland is the only losing team in the tournament and has not scored a single goal in the last four games.
“Games difficult”
Tretjak praised the Swedish victory as a battle victory.
– I liked the way the team fought! They showed character, fought until the last second. The game with the Swedes was smooth, Sweden was a tough opponent. Our goalkeeper, of course, gave us a chance. The most important thing in such matches is to fight. The games are very difficult, Tretjak said.
Vladislav Tretjak remembers Russia’s bitter losses to Finland well. AOP