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Former head coach of Team Russia Vyacheslav Bikov spoke highly on the new crowned Stanley cup champion - Evgeni Kuznetsov even before the cup was raised.
Here is a part of the interview with ''Sovetskiy Sport''
Are you surprised how good Kuznetsov played, already earning 31 points (at the time when the interview was conducted Kuznetsov hadn't recorded his 32nd yet) repeating what once Pavel Bure did?
You can only be happy with what Evgeni has done, especially because he has done what Pavel accomplished in 1994 it's unique.
Would you agree that Kuznetsov looks a lot like Sergei Fedorov? The skating, the work ethic and his ability to be a conductor on the ice?
I can absolutely agree! Our excellent skating school has done a great job. Because of his skating, it helps him make the decisions straight away on the spot which is very important for a playmaker. Fedorov and Kuznetsov both skate as smooth as fish swim in the water.
Before his NHL career Kuznetsov did a great job in KHL. He went over and had to build his career from scratch. Is something wrong here or it's just the fate of a very talented player?
Well, first of all, it's fate. Everyone evaluates when is the right time to make the jump to the NHL. The most important thing is to believe in yourself cut out all the ambitions and work towards results. I remember walking into the locker room in 2014 after we won the World Championships in Minsk and I went up to Evgeni and asked ''How are you?''. It was a time when he struggled in the NHL. He had a lot of pressure on him. You could see that he wasn't comfortable and steady over that side of the pond. He asked me if I would take him and allow him to come home play for SKA. I told him that I would obviously take him back but you have a bright future ahead of you in the NHL you just have to be patient. I'm very happy that he showed his character and now he has reached his goal. He is a master.