Damir Zhafyarov: «We had a lot of chances to score»
08.01.2026
Neftekhimik forward Damir Zhafyarov speaks with the media after a following 3–2 shootout win over Admiral.
– Congratulations to everyone on the win! It was such a hard–batlled and difficult game. We had a lot of chances to score, unfortunately, we didn't capitalize on it, but the most important thing is we brought the game to a win. I think the playoffs have already begun for many teams. Every point is worth its weight in gold, so every game will be so tense and crucial. Today's game, in which we earned two important points in this very series.– Today is your 700th Khl game. Were you watching this milestone at all? Did you expect it?
– Well, I wouldn't say I was, but information started to surface in the last few days, so I was aware. It's such a milestone... I hope there are many more games ahead. I'm happy to be here and share this milestone with my teammates, the fans, the staff, the coaching staff, and the whole city. And I want to thank my family, of course, for all this time, for all these games. A huge thank you to my family and all my teammates, those I played with, worked with, and had a connection to hockey in all the cities and teams I played with. Thank you all!
– Today there were a lot of scoring opportunities, good speed, but not many goals scored. How difficult is it to play this kind of hockey?
– Unfortunately, the last few games haven't been known for scoring goals, but we are trying to create goal–scoring chances and not giving up. Sometimes things don't work out, but again, I repeat, the main thing is the team result, and we won today. I hope we'll break through soon and score more!
