HELSINKI, May 12 (R-Sport) - Looking to kickstart their world championship campaign, the Russians are restoring Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov to the starting roster for Sunday's test against Slovakia.
Of the three goaltenders deployed in the six preliminary games so far by Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, only Bryzgalov has left the ice unbeaten - featuring in the 6-0 shutout of Latvia and the 5-3 victory over the United States.
The other candidates, Semen Varlamov and Vasily Koshechkin, participated in Russia's surprise defeats to Finland and France, respectively.
"Bryzgalov will play against the Slovaks, Varlamov will suit up second," the team's goaltender coach Vladimir Myshkin said.
Defending champion Russia lies third in the Helsinki group, with two defeats and three wins.
Finland leads on 14 points, with the U.S. second on 12 and Russia on nine. Slovakia is just two points behind Russia in the fourth and final playoff qualification spot.
