Nasonov Leaves Baikal-Energia, May Sign with Dynamo Moscow

BOULDER, Colorado -- Baikal-Energia Irkutsk's leading scorer Alexander Nasonov will not be re-signing with the club, the team's managing director Pavel Levitin said Thursday, as reported by the website Bandynet.ru.

Nasonov has reportedly been in negotiations with league champions Dynamo Moscow. This would be the second major star Dynamo has snatched away from Baikal since rejoining the top league in 2005 - Yevgeny Ivanushkin has scored 206 goals since leaving Irkutsk, including a league-leading 66 this past season.

As for replacing Nasonov and his 49 goals, Levitin said the team was in negotiations to acquire a few midfielders, one forward, and a defender. But he added that he could not divulge their names as they were under contract until the end of the month with their current clubs.

"We don't have the same resources that the soccer club 'Zvezda' has," Levitin said, referring to the fact that there is no planned increase in the club's budget. Over the past year, the team has slashed its payroll, which led to the major exodus of players last fall. And the current administration of the Irkutsk Region, especially governor Alexander Tishanin, has been much more interested in improving Zvevda Irkutsk, perennially mired in Russia's third-tier soccer league, than in supporting Baikal-Energia.

Baikal dropped from second to fifth in the east division standings this season, and they have the potential now to drop further, perhaps even out of playoff contention, if critical holes are not filled. And with the arrival of former Russian national team coach Vladimir Yanko in Kemerovo, Kuzbass looks to continue its domination of the division. The best that we can hope for is perhaps that Baikal won't slip behind regional rivals Lesokhimik and Metallurg.

Baikal Finishes Season with Strong Hold on 2nd Place

Trud Stadium, IRKUTSK, Russia -- Baikal-Energia Irkutsk finished the regular season with a decisive win over SKA-Sverdlovsk Yekaterinburg, 7-1, giving them a second place finish in the East Division behind Kuzbass Kemerovo.

Alexander Nasonov made his return known, scoring two goals, his first since his 10-game suspension after an altercation during a match in Kemerovo in December.

Maxim Gavrilenko, Sergei Yusupov, Danil Savchenko, Sergei Rogulyov and Nikolai Kadakin scored the remaining goals for Baikal, while Vladimir Dobrynin notched Yekaterinburg's sole tally.

Baikal finished the season with a 16-3-1 record, good for 49 points, just five behind the division leader.

I will have a preview for the upcoming playoffs on this site soon - hopefully, Baikal's season will last quite a bit longer, and we are in good shape to make a date to face Dynamo Moscow in the finals!

Baikal Continues Skid, Falls to Kuzbass 8-3

Khimik Stadium, KEMEROVO, Russia -- Baikal-Energia's losing streak reached three games on Saturday as they fell to divisional rival Kuzbass Kemerovo 8-3 on the road.

This game ended in an ugly fashion, as Baikal skated off the ice in the 85th minute, refusing the finish the contest.

Sergei Rogulev started things off well for Irkutsk, scoring in just the 2nd minute. Vadim Stasenko evened the score, but in the 15th minute Alexander Nasonov gave Irkutsk the one-goal edge once again. But once Vyacheslav Morzovik tied it at 2, Kuzbass started to roll.

After a stellar first 20 minutes, Baikal started to get sloppy. They spent the final 20 minutes of the half down at least one man, and Kuzbass capitalized. Goals from Alexander Kim, Sergei Tarasov and Pavel Teterin gave the home side a 5-2 advantage at the half.

Though Maxim Blem managed another goal for the visitors, Baikal continued their undisciplined play in the second half. Stasenko and Tarasov each added another goal to widen the margin to 7-3.

Then, in the 85th minute Alexander Sapega converted a breakaway chance into a corner. Pavel Ryazantsev made the pass off the corner, and Baikal goalie Alexei Negrun made a spectacular save on Sapega, who managed to corral his own rebound and fire it home.

Immediately Baikal players reacted to the goal, claiming goaltender interference. Alexander Nasonov was then cited for unsportsmanlike conduct, which only infuriated the Irkutsk players and coaches more. The usually excitable Negrun stayed out of the altercations, attempting instead to calm his incensed teammates.

Head coach Alexander Shishkin then called his team over to the bench, and they refused to continue playing in protest of head referee Yury Nizinkin and his crew. Baikal's problems appeared to be with the officiating, as they stayed on the sidelines long enough to shake their opponents' hands once the referee was forced to call the game early.

Baikal-Energia will undoubtedly receive a fine from the league for its conduct, though no details were immediately available.

This will likely be the second game in a row in which Baikal has received a fine from the league. Following their December 13th game against Sibselmash Novosibirsk - another match marred by questionable officiating - team administrator Sergei Kalinkin entered the officials' dressing room and allegedly threatened the referees. On Friday, the league handed down a fine of 20,000 rubles (US$750) and suspended him for 10 games.