Johans Matsons | Photo: Raimonds Volonts / Riga “Dinamo”
Johann Matson, the goalkeeper of the Riga “Dinamo” club of the Continental Hockey League (KHL), told about the debut season of KHL and the differences between this league and the Swedish championship in a conversation with the league’s press service.
In 13 games, “Dinamo” has won only ten points, which gives the penultimate, 11th place in the Western Conference. “The start of the season was not stable, some matches were better, some – worse. I think I played well in this section, ”says the goalkeeper. “The puck may bounce well and may not be so good, but I think I got off to a good start.”
Matson’s trophy shelf features U20 World Cup gold, two IIHF Champions League trophies, as well as the Swedish League title. “If we talked about the most important thing, then I would say that it is the title of Swedish champion, because U20 WC gold, although it was only the second for our country, I did not play there. As a member of “Frolund”, I played a lot in the championship season, both in the main tournament and in the “play-off”. To win the title and celebrate it in front of 30 thousand fans – I will never forget that, ”said the goalkeeper.
Just before the “play-off” in Sweden, I got a call from Riga and asked if I was interested [pievienoties komandai]? I said I am because last season in Gothenburg was not the best. It was interesting to play KHL. I had some offers a couple of years ago, but due to family circumstances I decided to stay in Sweden, ”said the goalkeeper, who revealed that before joining Dinamo, he was collecting information from Mikael Telqvist and Joakim Erikson.
Before becoming a Dinamo player, I heard that KHL is a defense league with many experienced hockey players. I can agree that there are a lot of players with a lot of experience here, but they pay more attention to the attack here than I thought. Of course, there are teams that play from the defense, but many stop the puck and many play in the attack, ”Matsons emphasizes.
Asked about the main difference between SHL and KHL, the goalkeeper replies that it is a free space on the court. “Sweden has a lot of skating and there is always pressure. KHL experienced hockey players have more space and time to make a decision. The field is also smaller, which makes the game more fun, ”said the Swede.
This season, Matsons has played in 11 games, in which he repelled 93% of the shots and conceded 1.97 discs on average. With Matson at the goal, “Dinamo” has achieved three successes.
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