"Hockey is completely different here": Gordeev on returning to Russia, his career in North America and working with Nemirovsky

- Can you remember the last time you took part in a match that ended without goals scored, as with Barys? In American leagues, this probably doesn't happen often.

- To be honest, it's really hard to answer this question. Of course, all sorts of things have happened, but specific examples do not come to mind. On the one hand, it's hard to feel satisfaction when you don't score in 65 minutes. Of course, the fans in the debut meeting at the new stadium wanted to see more goals. On the other hand, they won the most important victory, showing character.

- Did the hockey players of "Siberia" put pressure on responsibility? Still, no one would understand the defeat.

- Of course. But, again, the main thing was to win, and we did it. Of course, it is necessary to praise Anton Krasotkin, who made 34 saves.

- You periodically do not have a feeling of unreality of what is happening: until recently you played for the Main Mariners in the ECHL, and now you defend the colors of the strong Siberia in the KHL. Moreover, they did not have time to sign the contract, as the team moved to a new arena.

- When you find yourself in such an atmosphere as in the confrontation with Barys, you feel satisfaction. There are no words to describe what was happening in the stands. There is only one thing to say here: "Super". This arena is definitely one of the top three I've ever played.

- You were born in Omsk and began to study there, at the Avangard school. Could you imagine that you would play for Sibir?

- What can I say about my current team, if until recently I had no thoughts of returning to Russia. He quietly built a career in North America. Everything happened largely spontaneously. To be honest, I still can't believe that I moved back. Moreover, the debut meeting in the KHL fell on the native "Avangard". I can't say that years after leaving the club and leaving overseas, I haven't experienced anything. On the contrary. In addition, I came to my city of Omsk. When I went out on the ice, my heart beat often, often. But after so many years of absence, everything around seems different: communication, culture.

- What is it like to play in the KHL after the toughest North American leagues, which are even called fighting leagues?

- The difference is huge. Hockey here is completely different. Everything here is sharpened for speed. People think much faster on the site and, most importantly, they can do more. They are able to both give a tricky pass and come up with any non-standard continuation of the attack. You can see how people's heads work. In the ECHL, no one will allow you to think, they will immediately imprint hard. There is a lot of uncompromising fight from body to body. No one feels sorry for anyone. Of course, the transition is not easy, because the game is different in many aspects, for example, in defense.

- Can you remember an example of particularly violent clashes in your memory in North America?

- The problem is that there are hockey players, and there are fighters. Roughly speaking, some initially go on the ice to break the rules, to fight. It feels like the guys came from MMA. Take even my last season in the ECHL. In almost every match there was some kind of fight, or even two. It's commonplace there. And nothing can be done. They come purely to engage in boxing.

- There were hardly many people who wanted to fight with you - a man with a height of 197 cm.

"You're in vain. Vice versa. Just the same, many wanted to try. Rivals saw the most powerful tall guy and wanted to test their strength at his level. You'll probably be surprised, but with my size, I didn't fight much. There were a couple of hacks, but not particularly hard. Still, I set myself slightly different goals - to progress and grow as a hockey player. Negativity because of my nationality? I definitely haven't come across this. Everyone was friendly.

- Your new teammate Pavel Gogolev, who also previously performed in the United States, told how in Norfolk he played in an arena where prisoners are cleaned at night, and bars are located behind the sector with fans so that no one escapes. And what unusual conditions have you encountered?

- Most of all I did not like to come to the southern states. After all, the country is big. Somewhere there is snow, and somewhere the sun is baking. Let's say you go to Florida, where it is +40 ° C. In such weather, it is difficult to set yourself up even to go out on the ice. It is very unusual to actually get from winter to summer. You walk around the city in shorts and a T-shirt, then you go to the playground in slippers. Well, the ice is of the appropriate quality.

- When I had to confront teams of not the highest level, not in the best conditions, there was no thought: "What have I forgotten here?"

- No, I was calm and sympathetic to what was happening. If you agree to play in such leagues, you must be ready to accept all their disadvantages. It is what it is. I always and everywhere tried to grow and develop and took examples from older comrades, did not hesitate to ask for advice. It was important for me to go to the court as often as possible, and that's it.

- How do you like Novosibirsk after the United States?

- To be honest, super. After all, this is the motherland. Now I'm very close to home, and I like everything. Although, of course, it is not so easy to return. It turns out that I played in North America for many years, lived there, and rarely came to Russia.

- How did Sibir make you an offer?

- From the moment of the first negotiations to the signing of the contract, only two weeks passed. I am very fortunate that David Nemirovsky also lives in Toronto. We met him, after which we had a substantive conversation. Then everything developed rapidly. I decided that at the moment this is the best option for me. I was surprised by the interest from the coach, but he said that he had already heard about me. Moreover, he fully outlined the plan for the coming season.

- Can Nemirovsky be called the strongest mentor in your career in terms of professional qualities?

— It's a difficult question, because I've worked with a lot of specialists. I can say that David is a very decent and calm person. I like how he works with hockey players, how he builds the training process. I am grateful to him for the chance.

— How difficult is it to adapt to his attacking hockey?

- Defensively, under his leadership, we act quite unusually. There are other points as well. For example, the first days played a lot in the format of three by three, four by four. It helps to get in shape. I have never encountered anything like this before. You have to adapt to such requirements and learn. At the same time, we usually communicate in English, although he speaks Russian normally. But during my life in North America, I also learned foreign languages perfectly. I certainly know English better than he knows Russian.

- Some, after a long absence, begin to speak their native language worse. Do you have such a problem?

- Of course, I have not forgotten it, but in simple situations you catch yourself thinking that you do not remember individual words. You stand and try to figure it out in your head.

— Together with you, Canadian Andy Andreoff came to the team. Do you help him adapt?

- By the way, I was very surprised at how savvy Trevor Murphy and Taylor Beck are in this regard. The guys are great at understanding and actively learning Russian. They already know quite a lot of words. Still, it's not the first year here. Andreoff has everything ahead for now. Don't worry, he hasn't learned swear words yet.

- What is your motivation now, after moving to Sibir, for the coming years?

— I want to help the team win victories and gain a foothold in the KHL. Thoughts on the NHL? It would be strange if I gave a negative answer. There is a great desire to try yourself there, but you should not look too far ahead. Now we need to focus on the matches for Sibir.