Russia's men's ice hockey coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov has said that winning their playoff against Norway is "very important" for the team.
The host nation will take on the Norwegian side for a place in the quarter-finals of the 2014 Sochi Games later this afternoon.
Bilyaletdinov told BBC Sport: "This is very important for all of us. We've been waiting for it for many years. Everybody is expecting a big result from us."
Russia have not won gold in the ice hockey event since the Unified Team of six former Soviet republics achieved victory in 1992.
