Two tough matches against Latvia in April have not knocked Russia's confidence for its world championships opener against the same country, Russia captain Ilya Nikulin told RIA Novosti on Friday.
Russia slogged to a hard-fought 2-1 win in Riga on April 20 before losing the second 1-0 a day later as part of a Euro Hockey Challenge warm-up event.
Some of the Latvian players told local media that their performances made them feel more comfortable about facing Russia in the teams' first match on Saturday.
"By all means, let them feel whatever they want," Nikulin said. "We will play our hockey and only for the win. The Riga matches are already in the past."
Nikulin said Russia's foundering attack would be boosted by NHL stars Pavel Datsyuk and Evgeni Malkin, who joined the Russian squad after their teams, the Detroit Red wings and Pittsburgh Penguins, crushed out of the playoffs.
Nikulin, 30, is a two-time Gagarin Cup winner in the KHL with AK Bars Kazan, won two consecutive world championships in 2008 and 2009 and also the silver medal in 2010.
In last year's tournament in Slovakia, Russia failed to reach the pedestal, losing the semifinal 3-0 against Finland and suffering a painful 7-4 defeat against the Czech Republic in the third-place playoff.
This year's event runs May 5 through 20 in Finland and Sweden.
As top seed, Russia has avoided reigning champions Finland, as well as the United States and Canada in the group stage, but will revive long-standing rivalries with Sweden and the Czech Republic.
