Making your debut with a new team against the old one, where you spent more than two years and whom you loved very much? This is how Nikita Zadorov played his first game with Vancouver. His fate, as told by expert Elliott Friedman, was decided by disagreements over compensation between Calgary and Toronto. The Maple Leafs also wanted to land the big defenseman, but couldn’t agree to retain part of the salary and ultimately traded him to the Canucks.
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He didn’t even have to immediately leave the city where he had spent the last two and a half years, as immediately after closing the deal, Vancouver went on a trip to Calgary. In the first training session with the new team, Nikita was assigned to collaborate with Tyler Myers, so the height of the third pair of defenders was an impressive four meters.
“A pairing like that is a headache for their opponents, and that’s what we want these guys to be. A headache,” coach Rick Tocquette explained his decision.
After training, Zadorov himself explained why he wanted to leave the Flames, where until recently he liked everything: “I didn’t receive any contract offers.”
The debut of the rival in its native walls, and even in Canada; Of course, Calgary fans greeted Zadorov with an entourage. It is true that it is not that he is very active, but rather out of formality. Nikita, who has yet to understand the Orcas’ game system, played the match quite calmly and did not perform any of his characteristic power moves.
But everything changed in the last minutes. Vancouver led 3-1 in the third period thanks to goals from Hughes, Lafferty and Mikheyev, but Calgary, one of the best comeback teams this season, almost pulled off that trick again today. Elias Lindholm reduced the gap to a minimum, the hosts eliminated the goalie and Zadorov, who was tasked with playing in the five-on-six format, launched the puck out of his zone and it flew across the entire ice into the void. net.
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This could be the plot of a Hollywood movie, because this puck became, among other things, the winning goal, because Lindholm managed to score another one in the last minute and the match ended with a score of 4:3.
But Zadorov immediately after the goal began to actively gesture, showing that the goal was not his, but Elias Pettersson’s. At first the album was credited to him, but later it was transferred to the Swede. However, everything turned out beautifully: in the first game, the first point, he scored the winning goal and greeted his ex-boyfriend.
Video rights belong to NHL Enterprises, LP. You can see it on the NHL website.
Nikita was not at all upset that he had been deprived of the goal. “Petey played the record. They signed me up, but I need to rewrite it. He obviously touched it. Everything is fine, we completed the task, we achieved victory, the rest does not matter.
Strange, funny – many different emotions. It was strange going out on the ice to practice before the game, but when the game started, he was focused on the game. My exes made fun of me, it was funny. I won’t tell you what they said exactly, it’s between us. I love them, they love me, it’s mutual. I had fun playing against them today.
Grateful to have had the opportunity to play in this great city, in front of a great fan. I just want to say thanks. I hope there aren’t too many people mad at me. I heard people whistle at me, but I still love the Calgary Flames, they’re good,” Zadorov said after the game. He also joked when asked if he would bet on such a match: “You can ask Naz (Nazem Kadri-Championship Note) how much money I bet, he knows.”
The Russian’s debut was also appreciated by his teammates and his coach. “It is not easy to play against the old team immediately after the transfer. It’s fantastic that he scored in the end. Did he score the winning goal? Hey, Petey? Well, that means an assist for the winning goal. I’m sure he’s still happy,” Tocquette said.
“We are happy that he is with us, he is a rare player, we didn’t have such a thing, but now we do. He was here for three years, I’m surprised they booed him, but he said it was possible. I think he played very well and it is not easy to play the first game here. I’m sure he had a lot of emotions,” Hughes said.
Zadorov was adored in Calgary and now they probably will be in Vancouver as well. A start!
THE NAIS IS OFFICIAL EDITOR ON NAIS NEWS