Pyotr Kochetkov burst into the NHL with full force, and fans instantly fell in love with him—he made his debut just a few weeks after arriving in North America, immediately broke rookie records for the Carolina Hurricanes, and a couple years ago was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team. After that explosive start to his North American career—where he also won the Calder Cup and even scored a goal in an American Hockey League (AHL) game—came the routine. He’s no longer the guy with bold, rock-n-roll antics, but a fully developed goalie who now sees many things with a more mature perspective.
That transformation is exactly what was discussed in this translated interview, originally appearing on sports.ru—how and why he became less emotional on the ice, what Carolina lacked in the series against the Florida Panthers, what last season was like overall, and why he dipped in certain statistical categories. Kochetkov reflected thoughtfully on the past season and some career and life moments.
**You can read the interview in Kochetkov’s native Russian by Dmitri Shevchenko on sports.ru here**
Last season, the Hurricanes reached the Eastern Conference Final. That can be seen as the glass half empty or half full. “Depends on how you look at it,” Kochetkov says. “If you didn’t win the Cup, it’s a failure—because there’s only one winner. But I don’t want to diminish the work of myself, my teammates, the staff, and the whole organization. Overall, we’ve been showing fairly consistent results in terms of making the playoffs, performing in the regular season, and playing solid hockey in postseason games. Yes, we haven’t managed to win yet, but I definitely wouldn’t say the glass is half empty. We’re on the right path, but only one team wins. The NHL wouldn’t be such an exciting league if everything were clear and predictable. We’ll keep working and try to break through that conference final barrier.”
Now the next step is to somehow get past the Panthers. “Yeah, before it was Tampa, now it’s Florida,” the goalie confirms. “Honestly, there are a lot of good teams—if it had been Toronto, that wouldn’t have been any easier. There are three opponents you have to beat to get to the Final, and they’re all really strong. But Florida, with three straight Finals, really stands out.”
Improving as a Team
In the end-of-season…
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