Jagr Returns to Avangard Omsk

BOULDER, Colorado -- Jaromir Jagr will be spending next season in the Russian city of Omsk, joining the same club he played with during the NHL lockout in 2004-05, Avangard.

The 36-year-old right winger could not reach a deal with the New York Rangers and decided to leave the NHL when he became an unrestricted free agent. Jagr spent the last four seasons with the Rangers and had just completed the final season of a seven-year, US$76 million contract.

This past season, Jagr had his lowest point total since the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season, netting only 25 goals and 71 points. While playing for Avangard Omsk, Jagr led the league in scoring and helped his club capture the European Champions Cup.

The terms of Jagr's new deal were not disclosed by Avangard.

Russia Launches Continental Hockey League

BOULDER, Colorado -- Every summer I feel the need to get in my truck and drive a few thousand miles around this country. A road trip is great way to run away from your problems, at least temporarily, and you get a chance to visit friends in places you would normally just fly over traveling from one coast to another.

I had hoped to make a pilgrimage to Toronto to visit the Hockey Hall of Fame, but with the American dollar so weak, no free lodging in Ontario, and a carload of contraband fireworks, I thought it best not to risk an international border crossing. Though the trip was light on hockey, I did get in quite a bit of baseball, visiting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City and catching minor league games on Coney Island and in flood-drenched Des Moines.

Some of the other highlights of the trip included a visit to Petersburg, KY's Creation Museum (you have no idea how crazy this place is until you have visited it - that's me to the right with a dinosaur with a saddle on it), Philadelphia's Eastern State Penitentiary (prison museums are a hobby of mine), and the architectural wonders of Columbus, IN.

But now, onto the news ...

There has been some action on the Russian hockey front this summer. It appears as if Salavat Yulayev Ufa will be the last ever Superleague champions, as the top Russian circuit was dissolved at the conclusion of the season, to be replaced by a new 24-team league that will include teams from other former Soviet republics.

In April, new league president Alexander Medvedev, who is also the deputy chairman of Russian state-owned natural gas giant Gazprom and a member of the IIHF council, announced the creation of the Continental Hockey League (KHL).

The KHL will consist of 24 teams - 20 Russian clubs drawn from the Superleague, as well as Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg and Kazakhstan's Barys Astana, who both formerly played in the Russian Elite League, and Belorusian club Dynamo Misk, from the Belorusian Open Championship. The final club - Latvia's Dynamo Riga (logo pictured left) - was founded in April and will begin operations in the new league. The league championship trophy has been named the Gagarin Cup, after the famed Soviet cosmonaut.

The new league was created to challenge to NHL for both fans and players. "Our goal is to eventually become the best hockey league in the world," Medvedev said in an interview with the Russian paper Sovetsky Sport April 10. The new league president hopes that eventually the KHL will be able to attract top teams from Western European leagues as well.

Medvedev promised that the KHL would have much stricter rules regulating team finances and player transactions in order to prevent the instability and infighting that has plagued earlier incarnations of the Russian professional leagues.

The NHL has already entered into negotiations on a temporary agreement with the new league to prevent either league from poaching players. The initial proposal from the NHL falls short of a transfer agreement, something it has been unable to secure with the Russian Hockey Federation (RHF).

Medvedev has stated that his teams are free to sign whomever they like, whether they are under contract with an NHL club or not. But NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly claimed that he had assurances from the new league that there would be no poaching of contract players. "Mr. Medvedev, on behalf of the KHL, has already agreed to respect the valid and binding contractual obligations of players to NHL clubs," Daly said, as reported by the AP June 25.

Earlier this month, some Russian clubs caused quite a stir when they reportedly offered Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin roughly US$12.5 million per season to return to Russia. Malkin has chosen to stay in Pittsburgh in 2008-09, when he is scheduled to earn $3.8 million.

Malkin was at the center of the transfer agreement conflict when he left his Russian club, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, to join the Penguins in August 2006. Pittsburgh had drafted Malkin second overall in 2004, and a legal battle ensued between the clubs over his rights. Ultimately, US courts ruled that Malkin did not have to honor the final year of his contract with Metallurg, and that Pittsburgh had acquired his services legally.

This is the third major shakeup of Russian professional hockey since 2000, when the Professional Hockey League (PHL) was created as an umbrella organization for the country's top two leagues. Then in June 2006, RHF president Vladislav Tretiak dissolved the PHL and placed its teams under the direction of the federation.

The first proposal to create a regional hockey league to compete with the NHL was floated by Russian minister of sport and Hockey Hall of Famer Vyacheslav Fetisov in 2005. Fetisov proposed forming the Eurasion Hockey League (EAHL), which would include clubs from Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Ukraine and Latvia. That proposal was never enacted but formed the basis for this new league.

[Right: does anything happen in Russia these days without this company's stamp of approval?]

The Hockey News Scoops The New York Times

BOULDER, Colorado -- In their infinite wisdom, The New York Times chose to not print my letter in the previous post. Last week in The Hockey News, however, Ken Campbell wrote a column titled "War for Russians Will Stay Cold" (March 25, 2008 issue) in which he basically makes all the same arguments that I did - small rinks, small revenues, and a lack of organization make the Russian league unable to compete for talent in the NHL.

I guess great minds think alike. I guess I should have sent that letter to a reputable sports publication.

The New York Times Could Learn a Few Things About Russian Hockey, and Reporting

BOULDER, Colorado -- I was somewhat upset, but mostly just disappointed when this article appeared in the New York Times last week. Titled "A New Miracle on Ice: Russia Is Luring Back N.H.L. Stars" and written by Michael Schwirtz, the article discusses generally the growing wealth of Russian Superleague clubs, and more specifically about the return of Islanders castoff Alexi Yashin to Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.

Rather than summarize what is wrong with this article again, below is the e-mail I wrote to the Times and to a number of reporters in the Moscow bureau, including Mr. Schwirtz:

I am writing in regards to the article that appeared in today's issue (February 29th, 2008) titled "Russia Is Luring Back N.H.L. Stars" by Michael Schwirtz. As a former reporter for Russia's RTR-Sport television station and a long-time follower of Russian hockey, I must say that the article overstates the case for the growth of the Russian Superleague, relying far too heavily on the opinions of Russian government officials and hockey boosters, and not looking at the story across the wider hockey landscape in Russia.

I have to object to the use of the word "star" to describe a player like Alexei Yashin. Schwirtz seems to suggest the fact that had a $87.5 million contract makes him a premier NHL player, when the fact that neither the Islanders nor any other club wanted him, even without his albatross contract, suggests that he had few options to continue his career other than to return home to Russia. While Oleg Tverdovsky and Darius Kasparaitus have had successful NHL careers, no NHL clubs are currently interested in their services. This is the typical player returning to the Superleague - older veterans who are on the NHL bubble - and they far outnumber the bona fide NHLers who have opted for Russia (like Alexei Morozov or Dmitry Bykov).

During the NHL lockout in 2004-05, more than 70 NHL players, both Russian and non-Russian, flooded into the Superleague, and it truly was the best league in the world, but it still had major shortcomings. NHL players routinely complained about poor officiating, and even Russian players grew tired of the authoritarian attitudes towards training, practice and equal ice time for all that many coaches maintain. Not to mention the fact that, Yaroslavl and other wealthy teams like Ak Bars Kazan aside, most teams' facilities remain sub-par by even North American minor league standards.

A far more telling example of the state of Russian hockey is that of Pavel Datsyuk. A legitimate star for the Detroit Red Wings, he played for Dynamo Moscow during the 2004-05 season. More importantly, following the lockout, Datsyuk was ready to stay in Russia, signing a contract with Avangard Omsk. But a contract dispute erupted between his current and former teams, and with no reliable league regulation or arbitration system, Datsyuk was left in limbo, barred from playing for either side. Fed up with the infighting that plagues Superleague clubs, Datsyuk signed with Detroit and returned to the NHL. Russia's very best young players, like Evgeni Malkin, Alexander Semin and Alexander Ovechkin, continue to leave Russia at a regular clip for the NHL - and without a transfer agreement in place, Superleague clubs receive nothing in return for them. Russia is right to complain that too many players are brought to North America too soon, and they end up languishing in the minor leagues. As part of the new transfer agreement, the NHL should provide assurances that drafted players will be allowed to continue their development in Russia, just as other European players do.

The financial picture of Russian hockey is not so rosy, either. After years of work to establish the Professional Hockey League, a governing body for Russia's two top professional leagues, the PHL was dissolved in 2006 and taken over by the Russian Hockey Federation, and there remain major problems with the league's contract and financial regulations. While many of clubs have experienced a financial windfall in recent years, almost entirely due to the largess of their state corporation sponsors, other storied clubs like Spartak Moscow and Lada Toliyatti have been driven into financial crisis. Fan support is indeed strong, but attracting 10,000 spectators to a game is an outlier - even a rich club like Yaroslavl averages only 7,000 fans per game, while Spartak draws 4,800. With most tickets costing less than $20, these teams remain financially solvent due to the support of sponsors, not fans.

Many of the efforts of the Russian Hockey Federation to foster development of their players and leagues have been laudable, but they have mostly done this by keeping foreigners out, not by attracting Russians overseas back home. The league places limits on the number of foreign players teams can keep on their rosters, and they have to pay hefty fines for every foreign player they sign, especially for goaltenders. Players from Russia and other former Soviet republics (especially Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus) make up more than 90% of the players in the Superleague. By comparison, only 72% of NHL players are American- or Canadian-born.

I do not mean to suggest that the Russian Superleague is not one of the world's premier leagues - it probably ranks second or third in the world behind the NHL, and perhaps the AHL. However, the notion forwarded in this article that it will challenge the NHL is far-fetched, to say the least. The Eurasian Hockey League, which was proposed by Fetisov back in 2005, has not materialized in any form. While most players have been lured back from places like Switzerland and Sweden, where most fled in the early 1990's, the league has done little to attract top-flight talent from outside Russia. The Federation must decide whether it wants to turn the Superleague into an international competitor to the NHL or if it wants to use it to develop homegrown talent, because it can't do both.

And a final correction - Alexei Yashin and Carol Alt are not married, but they have been in a long-term relationship.

Like so much reporting about Russia these days, this article fails to venture outside of the glitz and glamor of the moneyed ring around Moscow. A trip just across town from your office to the dilapidated home of Spartak would tell you a somewhat different story of Russian hockey.

Andrew Gustafson
Boulder, CO

I did receive a response from Mr. Schwirtz, though not from the Times, meaning my letter will not be appearing anywhere, well, other than here. This is what he said:

Dear Mr. Gustafson,

I appreciate your taking the time to write such a detailed and obviously informed response to my article. I disagree with some of the points you have raised, if not with the general thrust of your argument.

I believe that we are in general agreement about the relative strengths of the Superliga vis-à-vis the NHL. I did not set out to make the case that the Superliga can, at this moment, compete with the NHL, only to discuss recent trends in its development. I stated clearly that the best young players continue to opt for the NHL, where the financial incentives surpass what the Superliga can now offer. And, yes, many teams do continue to play in run-down, Soviet-era stadiums. That some can now afford modern facilities, however, is a concrete example of the point I am making about the league's increasing wealth.

I chose to profile Mr. Yashin in the piece because, with his long career in the NHL and successes in the Superliga, he was able to bridge the two worlds. I would argue that Mr. Yashin's NHL record and notoriety in the Superliga certainly qualify him as a "star."

As for the relationship between Mr. Yashin and Ms. Alt, please note the clarification in today's Times.

I can only respond to your last remark concerning "reporting about Russia these days" by pointing out that I wrote the article from Yaroslavl, not within "the glitz and glamour of the moneyed ring around Moscow."

Again, I thank you for your comments.

Sincerely,

Michael Schwirtz

Let me address some of these points.

First, he says that while Lokomotiv's wealth may not be representative of the whole Superleague, it is important to note that some teams are getting richer. While true, the point I was making is that the source of their wealth is important as well. These teams have not grown organically, but instead have simply found wealthy benefactors in the form of state corporations. Just as the collapse of AvtoVAZ nearly put Lada Toliyatti out of business, a change in commodities prices - or perhaps some more sensible management that actually invests in the core business - might force the likes of Gazprom to pull out of the hockey racket.

Second, I will concede that Alexei Yashin is very famous, and he is extremely popular in Russia, but the fact remains that no NHL team had any interest in his services, and even without his absurd Islanders contract that made him untradeable, it is unlikely that he will ever skate in the NHL again.

His final point about the current state of reporting in Russia deserves some consideration. I had wanted to draw more attention to this in my original letter but decided to focus on the hockey issues instead. Firstly, Yaroslavl is an easily-accessible, major city that is just a four-hour train ride from the capital, and I was including it within the "moneyed ring around Moscow." But my larger point is that even a cursory review of the major American and British papers reporting in Russia will show that far too many stories are features about the same thing: Russia's newfound wealth.

There are a number of problems with these types of stories, and Mr. Schwirtz' is by no means the most egregious example, but it is part of a pattern. This view through the eyes of Moscow's (or Yaroslavl's) elite is a total perversion of Russian society. Who cares about a Lamborghini dealership in Moscow when the majority of people live in desperate poverty? This gaze also perpetuates a myth about the accomplishments of Vladimir Putin - the myth that he has provided the "stability" that enabled the growth of the Russian economy over the past eight years. The world needs fewer stories about the habits of Russia's ultra-rich and more about what is going on it the country's more remote and impoverished corners. Or perhaps a mere acknowledgment of the fact that the country's current crop of oligarchs are no less thuggish and criminal than the robber barons of the 1990's that Putin supposedly brought to heel.

This story is also not really news. Many of the developments in the Superleague described in the piece have been going on since 2004. Alexei Yashin signed with Yaroslavl back in July. But this is not unique to this article. The Times recently published a piece by Clifford Levy about the Russian parliamentary elections in Nizhny Novgorod - an event that had taken place two and half months earlier. And much of the voting irregularities he described had been widely reported elsewhere, both in English and Russian. As if to add to the absurdity, the next day Mr. Levy wrote another non-article about reactions to his original piece.

I understand that this hockey piece is a feature, but with so much time to write this article, the reporting still seems slipshod. This is mostly due to the fact that the statements of various Russian hockey officials are left unqualified, leaving the reader with the impression that the Superleague is closing the gap with the NHL.

While I am sure that many readers who were unfamiliar with the Russian Superleague found this article informative and interesting, I see it as another example of the uninspired reporting that is rampant in Moscow. Russia is a massive and massively misunderstood part of the world, and American newspapers have a responsibility to ensure that the public is well-informed about the country. The Russian government is currently waging a propaganda war, clamping down on dissent in the media at home and using its wealth and reach to shape its image abroad. If our reporters are not diligent about getting the real stories in Russia, we are damned to be subjected to state-owned tripe like Russia Today, where the streets of Grozny are safer than New York, every Russian drives a BMW, and Alexi Yashin is a superstar.

Solution for Tampa's Goaltending Woes?

BOULDER, Colorado -- The Tampa Bay Lightning currently sit in last place in the Eastern Conference, and though they have suffered some devastating injuries (most importantly to power play quarterback Dan Boyle, who recently returned after a three month absence), their atrocious goaltending can be blamed for much of their struggles.

The presumptive starter at the beginning of the season, Marc Denis was assigned to the AHL back on December 29th and has not had a whiff of the NHL since. Johan Homqvist has managed 20 wins, but he is terrible in every other statistical category, and his inconsistency has allowed rookie Karri Ramo to challenge him for starts.

This season may be a lost cause for the Lightning, but far-off Russian club Ak Bars Kazan may have provided them with an opportunity to sign their goaltender of the future.

In 2002, Tampa drafted Russian goalie Vasily Koshechkin in the eighth round, 233rd overall. Koshechkin was trained by the legendary Lada Toliyatti hockey school, and he has developed into one of Russia's few blue-chip goalie prospects. He starred for the big club for two years, posting an overall record of 34-22-12 with goals against averages of 1.56 and 2.08 in 2005-06 and 06-07, respectively.

Though Lada was an excellent defensive club during those seasons, Koshechkin performed spectacularly behind the solid defensive corps and took his team farther than expected in the Superleague playoffs. Koshechkin is also a big goalie, standing at 6'6", with remarkable quickness for his size. You can read the whole scouting report on him here, from russianprospects.com.

Before this season, Koshechkin nearly signed with the Lightning, but instead he signed a two-year deal with perennial powerhouse Ak Bars. He has struggled so far this season, posting a 5-9 record, and conflicts with domineering coach Zenitula Bilyaletdinov caused him to leave the team several weeks ago. On Monday, Ak Bars announced that Koshechkin had been given his release.

Though Koshechkin certainly will not be available for Tampa this season, his lack of a contract in Russia may make him available to challenge for a spot on their roster next season, as the Lightning can avoid paying a transfer fee to a Russian club.

It certainly is not a solution for this season, but Koshechkin's upside is tremendous, and the 24 year old deserves a chance to shine on an NHL rink.

Above: Koshechkin in goal for Lada in a game against Spartak Moscow in 2005 - notice that Russia continues to employ goal judges, who have been an unfortunate casualty of the "new" NHL (Andrew Gustafson).

Bruins Pay Tribute to O'Ree

TD BankNorth Garden, BOSTON -- During their game against the New York Rangers this afternoon, the Boston Bruins paid tribute to Willie O'Ree, who became the first black player to play in the NHL 50 years ago Friday.

There is an article about O'Ree on the NHL website here.

In the United States, hockey is often thought of as a game for rich, white suburban kids. While this characterization is probably true for the majority of players, thinking of hockey and hockey players in this way also belittles those players who don't fit that stereotype. The black player is still seen by many as some sort of sideshow. But black players have reached and continue to reach the highest achievements in hockey, players like Hall of Fame goaltender Grant Fuhr and former league scoring champ Jarome Iginla.

O'Ree's accomplishment was not heralded at the time as a great step forward for civil rights - he was just a young kid from New Brunswick who's dream came true when he got the call up to put on the black and gold and skate for the Bruins in the Montreal Forum. Just like every other kid, black or white, from Canada, the US, Sweden, wherever (Johnny Oduya has player on the Swedish national team).

I can say with complete confidence that no black player has ever played in the Russian Bandy League, but I wonder who the first black player was in the Russian Superleague? Perhaps Fred Brathwaite, who joined Ak Bars Kazan in 2004?

Metallurg Magnitogorsk Defeats Sparta Prague for European Champions Cup

From the IIHF:

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia - The fourth European Champions Cup in St. Petersburg ended with the fourth triumph of a Russian team. Metallurg Magnitogorsk beat Sparta Prague 5-2 and will play the Victoria Cup against an NHL team. more ...

378 PIMs for Ak Bars and Traktor in Superleague

Tatneft Arena, KAZAN, Russia -- This story has been all over the Internet, and was even featured on Sportscenter last night, but I thought I'd include it here. In case you missed it, in their matchup Tuesday night, Russian Superleague teams Ak Bars Kazan and Traktor Chelyabinsk managed to rack up 378 penalty minutes in a bench-clearing brawl at the end of the game.

The fight started after Traktor forward Alexei Zavarukhin thought he scored with 34 seconds left in the third period, but the puck crossed the line after the referee had whistled the play dead. Ak Bars took exception to the extra effort, and Zavarukhin was leveled in the corner by two Kazan players, sparking the melee.

The referees made a feeble effort to keep the players from leaving the bench, but within seconds it was 22-on-22 in a bruising brawl that lasted more than five minutes. As the fight started to wind down, the Ak Bars fans can be heard chanting "Молодцы!" which translates roughly to, "Good job, guys!"

Ak Bars won the game 7-5 and currently sits in sixth place in the Superleague, while Traktor remains mired in 14th.

Here's a video of the whole affair, courtesy of my old employer, RTR-Sport.



On Thursday, the Russian Hockey Federation announced suspensions for 12 players. The longest went to Kazan forward Alexander Stepanov, who received three games for leaving the penalty box. He could receive another six games unless he pays a fine of 30,000 rubles (approximately US$1,200). Traktor forward and former Hartford Whaler Andrei Nikolishin received a one game suspension plus three games should he not pay the fine.

Speaking of the Whalers, this brawl brings back memories of the legendary tilt between the New England Whalers and the Minnesota Fighting Saints on April 11, 1975 in the old World Hockey Association. That fight set a WHA record for penalty minutes in a game at 217, a paltry total when compared to this Superleague fight.

You can watch a short piece about that night at the Hartford Civic Center below, or you can listen to the call from Bob Neumier here.




I must say that in all my years of watching Russian hockey, I have seen very few fights in the Superleague, and none at a live game. I'm not saying fighting doesn't happen over there, but don't think that this incident means the rough and tumble hockey of the NHL in the 1970's can now be found in Russia. Fighting remains much rarer than it is in North America, but probably more common than in other European leagues.

UPDATE: This was one of my favorite stories from the Superleague last year. Good job, Traktor fans.

Salavat Yulayev Bans Traktor Fans, Receives Fine

December 12, 2006 -- Salavat Yulayev Ufa has decided that fans of Traktor Chelyabinsk are no longer welcome at their stadium. The announcement came after a December 6th incident in Ufa when a person, identified as a Traktor fan by Salavat Yulayev officials, tossed a smoke grenade onto the Ufa bench during a game. The fan was immediately arrested and charged. Salavat Yulayev has also begun comprehensive searches of all persons and their belongings entering the stadium, and fans expressing support for Traktor will not be allowed to attend any games. Salavat Yulayev officials stated that they held Traktor entirely responsible for the incident, but the Russian Hockey Federation still fined the home side 300,000 rubles (US$11,500), because according to federation rules, the home team is responsible for the behavior of all fans in their arena, regardless of their leanings.

Hockey: Russian Superleague Roundup 12/12

BOULDER, Colorado --

Tretiak Announces Ban on Foreign Goalies for 08-09 Season

December 12 -- Russian Hockey Federation President Vladislav Tretiak announced that foreign-born goaltenders will be banned from playing in any of Russia's professional leagues in two years, RIA-Novosti reported. Currently teams can pay a tax of 4.5 million rubles (US$170,000) to keep a foreign goaltender on their roster, but Tretiak believes the tax is not working to foster development of homegrown talent. "It's not about the money. We'd be prepared to eliminate the tax entirely if clubs would stop signing foreign goalies," he said. "We're not thinking about the money that's coming in. We're thinking about Russian hockey. We haven't won a world championship since 1993, and the goaltender position - one of the most important - has been a real vulnerability for us."

Salavat Yulayev Bans Traktor Fans, Receives Fine

December 12 -- Salavat Yulayev Ufa has decided that fans of Traktor Chelyabinsk are no longer welcome at their stadium. The announcement came after a December 6th incident in Ufa when a person, identified as a Traktor fan by Salavat Yulayev officials, tossed a smoke grenade onto the Ufa bench during a game. The fan was immediately arrested and charged. Salavat Yulayev has also begun comprehensive searches of all persons and their belongings entering the stadium, and fans expressing support for Traktor will not be allowed to attend any games. Salavat Yulayev officials stated that they held Traktor entirely responsible for the incident, but the Russian Hockey Federation still fined the home side 300,000 rubles (US$11,500), because according the federation rules, the home team is responsible for the behavior of all fans in their arena, regardless of their leanings.

Russia Celebrates 60 Years of Hockey with Game on Red Sqaure

December 9 -- Some of the biggest names in the history of hockey took the ice Saturday at one of the world's most famous landmarks, Moscow's Red Square. The veteran All-Star game pitted stars of the NHL against some of the greatest Soviet players. In addition to the legendary unit of Sergei Makarov, Igor Larionov, Vladimir Krutov, Andrei Kasatonov and Vyacheslav Fetisov, goalie Vladimir Myshkin and the nephew of Vladislav Tretiak, Maxim, took to the ice. For the NHLers, Paul Coffey, Jari Kurri, Tomas Sandstrom and the Stastny brothers, Peter and Anton, were among the star-studded lineup. The game was organized to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Soviet national team, the 50th anniversary of that team's victory at the Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, and the 25th anniversary of their Canada Cup win. But no old bets were settled in this matchup, as it ended in a tie, 10-10.

Khimik Continues Climb Up Standings

December 9 -- Khimik Moscow Region continued to climb up the Superleague standings, moving into third place with a win over Severstal Cherepovets. Khimik sniper Sergei Mozyakin scored his 14th goal of the season in the 4-2 victory. Khimik, with 63 points, now trails only Avangard Omsk (67) and defending champs Ak Bars Kazan (70).

Scores

December 6

Lada Toliyatti 1:3 Metallurg Magnitogorsk
Amur Khabarovsk 4:3 CSKA Moscow
Avangard Omsk 3:2 Severstal Cherepovets
Khimik Moscow Region 4:2 SKA St. Petersburg
Krylya Sovetov Moscow 1:4 Vityaz Chekhov
Salavat Yulayev Ufa 5:1 Traktor Chelyabinsk
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 4:3 Sibir Novosibirsk
Ak Bars Kazan 7:4 Dynamo Moscow
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 3:0 MVD Tver

December 8

Ak Bars Kazan 6:5 MVD Tver (OT)
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 3:1 Metallurg Novokuznetsk
Krylya Sovetov Moscow 3:1 CSKA Moscow
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 4:2 Dynamo Moscow
Lada Toliyatti 2:1 Traktor Chelyabinsk
Amur Khabarovsk 3:2 Vityaz Chekhov (OT)
Avangard Omsk 6:2 SKA St. Petersburg
Salavat Yulayev Ufa 1:1 Metallurg Magnitogorsk

Decmeber 9

Khimik Moscow Region 4:2 Severstal Cherepovets

Hockey: Russian Superleague Roundup

BOULDER, Colorado -- From now on, I will try every Tuesday to include a roundup of news from the Russian Superleague. This roundup will include scores, standings, and the biggest news stories from the week.

But first, a request.

I have no idea how many people actually read this blog. I'm guessing that it is very, very few, so the chances that someone who speaks Finnish or Swedish reads this are quite slim, but if anyone would like to submit news from those respective bandy leagues, I'd be happy to accept it and post it on this site. Otherwise, I'll continue my sporadic and slanted coverage of Baikal-Energia Irkutsk.

Now, onto the Superleague.

Spartak Moscow Vets Make Plea to Tretiak

December 5 -- A group of retired players from legendary club Spartak Moscow sent a letter to Russian Hockey Federation president Vladislav Tretiak asking him to take steps to ensure that Spartak returns to the Superleague next season, the club reported. "For Spartak's 60th anniversary season, we are asking you to consider returning the club to the Superleague for the 2007-08 season," the letter said. Despite finishing in 10th place last season, financial problems forced the team's owners to relegate Spartak to the Elite League. The money troubles have still not been resolved, and the federation has been searching for a new owner to take over the team. Among the signatories to the letter were Vyachslav Starshinov, Boris Mayorov, and Alexander Yakushev.

Fetisov Says Malkin May Still Play for Russia, Maintains Opposition to NHL Deal

December 4 -- Director of the Russian Federal Sports Agency Vyacheslav Fetisov voiced his support for Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin in an interview with the Soviet Sport newspaper. "I'm on the player's side," Fetisov said. "Most importantly, Evgeni has never said that he will never play for the national team again." Malkin abruptly left Russia in August to sign with Pittsburgh even though he was still under contract with his Russian club, Metallurg Magnitogorsk. Because Russia has not signed a transfer agreement with the NHL, Metallurg is not entitled to any compensation, though they are fighting both the Penguins and the NHL in US courts over the player. "The deal the NHL has offered is, in my opinion, simply robbery," Fetisov said. "If clubs develop a player, invest money in him, the clubs should decide whether or not to release him to play overseas."

Bykov Announces Roster for Channel One Cup

November 30 -- Russian national team coach Vyacheslav Bykov announced the roster for the Russian leg of the Euro Hockey Tour, the Channel One Cup. Of the 29 players selected, three - Krylya Sovetov Moscow goalie Dmitry Yachanov, Avangard Omsk forward Artyom Chubarov and Vityaz Checkov forward Alexander Krolyuk - had not been selected for the previous two rounds of the tour. League leader Ak Bars Kazan led all teams with six selections, including its entire top line of Alexei Morozov, Sergei Zinoviev and Danis Zaripov. The Channel One Cup will be held in Moscow December 14-17 and will also include national squads from Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic.

Belarus Grants Citizenship to 14 Russian Players

November 29 -- 14 Russians and one Ukrainian currently playing in the Belorusian Open Championship were granted Belorusian citizenship by an order of President Alexander Lukashenka, the Soviet Sport newspaper reported. As a result of this order, these players will no longer count towards their teams' foreign player quotas, and they will be entitled to play for the Belorusian national team. Five of the players play for Khimvolokno Mogileva, while the remainder play for HK Gomel, Dynamo Minsk, Yunost Minsk, Keramin Minsk, Neman Grodna and Khimik-SKA Novopolotsk.

Scores

December 1

Metallurg Novokuznetsk 3:5 Khimik Moscow Region
Sibir Novosibirsk 1:3 Avangard Omsk
Traktor Chelyabinsk 5:2 Krylya Sovetov Moscow
Metallurg Magnitogorsk 5:1 Amur Khabarovsk
Severstal Cherepovetsk 1:5 Ak Bars Kazan
CSKA Moscow 0:3 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl
SKA St. Petersburg 2:1 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk

December 2

Salavat Yulayev Ufa 3:6 Lada Toliyatti
HK MVD Tver 4:3 Dynamo Moscow

December 3

Sibir Novosibirsk 6:3 Khimik Moscow Region
Metallurg Novokuznetsk 1:2 Avangard Omsk
Metallurg Magnitogorsk 6:2 Krylya Sovetov Moscow
Traktor Chelyabinsk 1:1 Amur Khabarovsk
SKA St. Petersburg 5:2 Ak Bars Kazan
Vityaz Chekhov 2:2 Lokotmotiv Yaroslavl
Severstal Cherepovets 2:4 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk*

*Note on scores: on this site, scores will be reported in the European style, with the home team listed first and a colon between the scores (this is because I don't feel like rewriting all these scores American-style). For your convenience, winners are written in bold.