At Gagarin Cup holder Dynamo Moscow, all the team’s reminders of last season’s success have been removed to force players to focus on the new season, coach Oleg Znarok said.
Znarok led Dynamo to the KHL title last season in a thrilling 4-3 final series win over Avangard Omsk, the first time a Moscow team had lifted the Gagarin Cup.
But with the new season looming and Dynamo’s season-opener against Avangard just six days away, reminders of last season’s glory are being purged.
“I forbade it, that’s completely true,” Znarok said, when asked if players were banned from thinking about their achievement.
“Even all the championship signs have been taken down at the base, both in the changing room and on the ice.”
In the case of the KHL title, ignorance is bliss, he added.
“The main thing is that we forget it. It actually puts you off,” Znarok said. “And it puts me off most of all. I always get nervous before the season anyway.”
Diminutive forward Mikhail Anisin was the star of last year’s playoffs for Dynamo, but only joined up with the team this season after a protracted dispute over his contract that saw him skip training.
The delay means he is now unfit, Znarok said.
“He’s still in a rut,” Znarok said. “I have a poor opinion of his physical condition. He missed a lot and I don’t know when he’ll get into condition now.”
As for Leo Komarov, who left Dynamo during the summer to join the Toronto Maple Leafs, the team is looking for a replacement, Znarok said.
He declined to say whom Dynamo was scouting.
