MINSK, 2 April (BelTA) – Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has offered advice to the HC Dinamo Minsk players ahead of the start of the KHL playoff second round, BelTA has learned.
Speaking about the team’s performance in the first playoff round, during which Dinamo Minsk defeated their Moscow counterparts, the president said: “Everything was beautiful and well done.”
But for the future, Aleksandr Lukashenko offered the following guidance: “You need to play pragmatically. Because I know that this [pragmatic approach] is not your natural style. You are attacking players: forward, forward, forward, and then you get caught out… Well, this is the playoffs. Sometimes you need to let the puck go, sometimes you need to focus on defense, and so on. Don’t lose faceoffs. It shouldn’t be 75%, it should be 100%. Because every element matters.”
“Guys, we support you very much. Whatever you want, we will do it. And not only during your games, but afterward as well. If you stay in Minsk, we will think about how to help you. I have prepared a field of grass for you to mow: the movements are the same. We will chop wood. I am ready to train with you in the off-season and do the same workload you will be doing. With a small adjustment. Thank you, guys,” the president said.
As for HC Dinamo Minsk’s previous KHL games, the head of state also commented on the performance of goaltender Zach Fucale: “Zach did well, he played very nicely. Of course, it is time for him to stop allowing the puck to go into the far right corner. However, it is also good that he is keeping anything from going down low.”
“Well done, the defensemen worked very well, and the forwards too. And the fact that Vitaly made such a pass to our ‘Ak Bars player’ [referring to Vitaly Pinchuk’s assist to Stanislav Galiev, formerly of Ak Bars, in the decisive game against Dynamo Moscow] is simply a miracle. Well done. That was exactly the right kind of assist,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
Team captain Andrei Stas, speaking on behalf of all the players, thanked Aleksandr Lukashenko for his support and invited him to the first game against Ak Bars in Minsk. “You need to come. Definitely,” he said.
“I am ready to spend the night here if it means you will win,” Aleksandr Lukashenko replied. “Play with dignity so that people don’t feel disappointed in you.”
On 24 March, Aleksandr Lukashenko attended the first HC Dinamo Minsk game in the current season’s KHL playoffs at Minsk Arena. From the stands, he watched the match between HC Dinamo Minsk and HC Dynamo Moscow. In the series against their Moscow counterparts, the Minsk Bisons delivered an excellent performance, sweeping four games in a row to book their spot in the next round of the playoffs.
In the quarterfinals, HC Dinamo Minsk will face HC Ak Bars Kazan. The best-of-seven series will begin at Minsk Arena on 9 April, with the second match taking place at the same venue on 11 April. The opponents will then move to Kazan, where they will play on 13 and 15 April. If necessary, games five through seven will be held on 17, 19 and 21 April. HC Dinamo Minsk and HC Ak Bars Kazan have never faced each other in the playoffs before.
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