[savemedrzaius]

I stole this off of Toronto HFForums, but it is kind of interesting. It's an interview Zaitsev just did in Russia after signing the new contract. The interesting parts to me are when he talks about Babcock. Kind of shows how Babcock isn't just an X's and O's guy but really gets involved with the players lives.

NSFW!

Did Mike Babcock ever scold you? He once jokingly responded to a question about your +/-.
There is a funny story in there. He asked me and Morgan Rielly: "Do you need green jackets? I'll sew one up for you."

We met in January. You were happy with everything but now with the last part of the season passed, it is possible to draw conclusions. What was the most difficult thing you had to get used to?
It turned out that I really didn't know much, and for next season, I will approach it correctly, eliminating my previous mistakes. I will completely change my preparations, substantially reduce the aerobic work, which if not useless, then I do not need to the extent that I was preparing for earlier. Off-season sessions will begin in two weeks, that is... mid-May. I will more individual work on the ice and some games, in which I skated with friends, I will no longer participate in.

In the NHL there were union holidays. Did that make it easier?
One more thing I will correct. The last break I flew to the Bahamas, visited Miami, but then I realized how hard it is to recover from the flights. Next time I'll stay at home with my family.

Does a Russian hockey player need to change himself, change his character before moving to North America?
Yes. It is about the mentality. In Russia you have to be as focused as possible before the match, smiles are left at the door. This is not the case in the NHL. No one there represents a job, if you understand what I mean (my note: I think he means that nobody is playing for their livelihood). In Moscow, we turned off the music ten minutes before the game and in Toronto, the guys in the locker room are dancing before going on the ice.

Did you dance?
Not me, but they were skillful guys and no one sees anything wrong in this. It is clear that you should lay out everything on the ice but not show outside of it as far as you are supposedly set up (my note: Zaitsev is saying that they are expected to leave it at the rink, something Frederick Andersen has also touched on in interviews). In the locker room of our team, it was forbidden to frown.

Like this?
There were rumours that a player was almost sent to the AHL due to the fact that was he was constantly in a mad mood. You could be approached, asked what happened. If it continues, you could be sent to the farm club. The main principle of leadership of the club, of the coaching staff, is that the team is a family. You should be happy to come to work, you should get a buzz from what you do.

Roman Lyubimov says that even he got bored with a coach's lectures. But Mike probably did not hold back.
I'll tell you a story. For the whole season, he broke once, but for example, I did not hear him reprimand the player for the mistake. And they say it was a mistake.

Nikita, but you rarely smile. I know you. You can joke, have fun, but do not smile.
Well, yes, that is the case. But in Toronto, I had to change a little. In part, again, because I've been in Russia all my life and it was hard for me to used to the fact that gloomy faces are not an indicator of hard work. But now, of course, it is no longer so.

How does Mike Babcock differ from other coaches?
He has a wealth of experience and it seems that he knows everything about you in general... (my note: I've skipped a question but all three are along the same thread, about Babs) He's always up to date on your business, constantly showing that we are just not hockey players for him, but people who are close to him. I could advise him to go to a particular restaurant and he was keenly interested in the places you visited. He asked whether everything was in order in everyday life, whether there were any everyday problems. But at the same time, I tried not to overload him.

In what sense?
At first I really wanted to learn everything about the game in the NHL and asked the coaches to tell me about the slightest nuances of tactics. Mike forbade me to do this. He once said: "I know perfectly well how you see the game, what's in your head. If I need you to correct something, I will tell you, but do not worry about the rest."

You signed a seven-year contract but you did not really like the city of Toronto, in the sense that you understood there are better places in North America.
But after a year of life, I understood how good a place it is, how cozy it is with my family, with my children. No... no... I'm very happy to be in Canada for many years.