Zubov sees preparation as key for Russia at World Junior Championship

Sergei Zubov said he believes mental preparation is key for Russia to have success at the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship.

"It's a short tournament and you finish your group and all of a sudden you're playing sudden-death games," Zubov said. "I believe that mentally preparing the team at the right moments will be the key."
The 51-year-old will coach Russia at the 2022 WJC for the first time, replacing Igor Larionov, who coached Russia to a fourth-place finish in the 2021 WJC. Russia has finished in the top three in nine of the past 11 tournaments but hasn't won the event since 2011.
"We have some good speed through the lineup and some size," Zubov said. "We have some guys who can put some pressure, but some puck-moving defensemen as well. We're probably going to try to take advantage of that by playing a speedy, aggressive game."
Canada is the host country for the 2022 WJC, scheduled for Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta.
Russia is scheduled to play preliminary-round games at WP Centrium in Red Deer in Group B with Sweden, Slovakia, Switzerland and the defending champion United States. Canada's preliminary-round schedule in Group A at Rogers Place in Edmonton features Finland, Czechia, Germany and Austria.
As a player Zubov helped the Soviet Union win the World Junior Championship in 1989 and finish second in 1990, and in 16 NHL seasons he scored 771 points (152 goals, 619 assists) in 1,068 regular-season games with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Dallas Stars. He won the Stanley Cup with the Rangers in 1994 and the Stars in 1999 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2019.
Zubov discussed his most influential coaches in the NHL, his memories of the World Juniors and 17-year-old phenom forward Matvei Michkov with NHL.com.
Who were some of the most influential coaches you had in the NHL?
"I had Mike Keenan with the Rangers, Ken Hitchcock in Dallas and Viktor Tikhonov back in CSKA Moscow in the Soviet Union and had great experiences with each of them. I'd probably say 'Hitch' and assistant Rick Wilson in Dallas; I enjoyed my time there and I hope they did too. Hitch was a great motivator. He knew exactly what buttons to push and when. One of the first interactions we had was my first season there in 1996. We were walking off the ice to locker room after a game and he was standing in the hallway to our locker room and told me that I played like crap. I was very ticked] and didn't talk to him for a couple of days. But he gave me a little extra kick. All of a sudden I found myself playing better."
**What memories do you have as a player at the World Juniors in 1989 and 1990?**
"In 1989 we had an unbelievable line. It was the first time
[Alexander Mogilny
,
Sergei Fedorov
and
Pavel Bure
played together and it was just amazing; they dominated. We beat Canada 7-2 in the final when Mogilny scored three goals. It was a great group of players (Mogilny, Fedorov and Bure combined for 19 goals and 38 points in the tournament). In 1990 we played our last game against Sweden, we were up 5-3, but with like five minutes to go there was an innocent slap shot on the entry and our goalie misplayed it and he fell on his back and the puck went in. They then tied it at the buzzer (with one second remaining). Even though we tied 5-5, I remember that if Czech Republic defeated Canada we were still going to win the gold medal. There were no TVs in the locker room, but we stayed there for the next hour, listened to the radio broadcast. I remember
Jaromir Jagr
having three breakaways but he didn't score on any of them. Canada beat Czech Republic 2-1 that night and got the gold. It was a crazy day. We won silver."
Goalie Iaroslav Askarov (Nashville Predators) will play in his third WJC. How's his confidence entering this year?
"He's pretty strong. He didn't have much playing time back in St. Petersburg but played quite a few games right before he arrived in training camp. The third time could be the charm so we hope with the experiences over the past couple of years, he can bounce back. He knows it and we're just hoping that it's going to work out for us."
What can you tell me about your group of defensemen this year?
"We have some size and we do have some younger guys that can move the puck and can skate with the puck. Like Vladimir Grudinin (C-rated skater on NHL Central Scouting's players to watch list) ... he's a fast-moving defenseman, and we just want him to play his game."
How special a player is 17-year-old forward Matvei Michkov, who's not eligible until the 2023 NHL Draft?
"He's going to play on one of our special teams squads. We hope that he's going to bring his ability to shoot the puck. He's a special guy. He hides the shot very well and a lot of times he catches the opponents off guard. He's got this ability and is definitely a special talent."
Why was the decision made not to include forward Ivan Miroshnichenko, an A-rated skater on Central Scouting's players to watch list, on the roster?
"We talked with the management before World Juniors, and the tournament that he'll play in will be the IIHF World Under-18 Championship in the spring. He's going to be the key guy for that team and our managers hope that he's going to catch up to play at the 2023 WJC]. He had a tough start this season. He went through COVID-19 protocol and it seems like he didn't get back to his best condition in time, but he definitely has all the tools to be a good player."
**What impresses you about forward Danila Yurov, an A-rated skater on Central Scouting's PTW list?**
"He played pretty good hockey for us during the exhibition games in Russia. We're probably going to use him on one of those special teams. He's got speed, great vision for his offensive partners. He plays big minutes with Magnitogorsk in the Kontinental Hockey League."
---
**Listen: [New episode of NHL Draft Class**