Cha-ching! Yashin Back in Moscow

After a brief fall flirtation with the New York Islanders, Alexei Yashin has joined CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League. The former NHLer spent a few weeks working out with his former club, prompting speculation he might rejoin the team. The magical reunion did not happen and he signed with the venerable Russian squad known as the Red Army team. Yashin is cashing in though, as remains on the Islanders payroll through the 2014-15 season.

Kozlov Reclaims Lucky Number

When Slava Kozlov signed up to play in the KHL, he seemed to have resigned his signature No. 13, opting instead for No. 72 — a number he donned in the days of the Soviet Union and during his first go-round with CSKA Moscow. He took this number again, wearing it once more for CSKA Moscow, whom he signed with at the end of the 2009-10 NHL season. What’s old is new again this season as Kozlov is once again donning No. 13, the number he made lucky during his 18 seasons in the NHL.

Photographs: Alexei Yashin from cska-hockey.ru; Vyacheslav Kozlov from dynamo.ru.

Former NHL star and current KHL player, Slava Kozlov, has changed his club right before the playoffs. His former team — CSKA Moscow — is having a poor season and the move enables him to continue his career on a more successful team. Kozlov has joined Salavat Yulaev — one of the strongest clubs in the KHL. The team’s coach, Slava Bykov, is a former player and a current manager of Russia’s national team.

On Salavat Yulaev Ufa, Slava joins several other former NHLers including Viktor Kozlov, Dmitri Kalinin and Alexander Radulov. According to the official Salavat site, Slava will wear No. 32.

The player himself commented his transfer, saying that his new colleagues were masters and it was pleasant to be with them on one team. Let’s see now how far Salavat will go through the playoffs.

Photo: Vyacheslav Kozlov from Salavat Yulaev’s official website.

Former NHLer and newly acquired CSKA Moscow forward Slava Kozlov says he hasn’t had any problems adapting to his Russian club.

- I had been preparing to my comeback to Russia.  When I played for Atlanta I already planned to try myself in the KHL. It turned out that in the end I got back to CSKA — to the club which I had left 18 years ago. So I don’t have any troubles with adaptation in Russia.

-I’m surprised by the new league. The KHL has a very high level of hockey. Organizational issues in the CSKA are OK, too. We have all the conditions to show our best game.

Photos and interview (c) official CSKA website.

One of the most prominent Russians in the National Hockey League, Vyacheslav Kozlov, will play in the Kontinental Hockey League this year. The Russian press reports Slava has signed a one-year contract with CSKA Moscow.

Kozlov will swap his trademark No. 13 jersey for No. 72. He joins former NHLers Stephen Valiquette and Yan Stastny, and former Ottawa Senators prospect Ilya Zubov on the Red Army team.

A two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Detroit Red Wings, Kozlov was the last member of the vaunted “Russian Five” to play in the NHL. His signing with CSKA, however, reunites him with fellow Russian Fiver Viacheslav Fetisov, who is the club’s president.

Photo: Vyacheslav Kozlov by Goddess Kaatiya. Copyright 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Russian hockey stars Ilya Kovalchuk and Alexander Ovechkin organized a charity game “With all the heart” in Moscow’s Sokolniki Arena. All the money will be sent to people who suffered from the recent forest and other fires in Russia. The original idea belonged to Ilya.

Many famous current and former players took part in the Ovie vs Kovy game including: Evgeni Malkin, Nikolai Zherdev, Slava Kozlov, Alexei Kasatonov, Slava Fetisov, Alexander Kharlamov, and Dominik Hasek. Many top Kremlin officials, KHL President Alexander Medvedev and various celebrities were in attendance.

Kovalchuk and Ovechkin invited their first coaches to participate in the game as managers.

After the game Kovalchuk admitted that it had been a pleasure for him to play at Sokolniki — at his home arena (where HC Spartak Moscow plays). He also said he and his family had suffered from the Moscow smog. For those who haven’t heard, the city of Moscow and its surrounding areas were recently blanketed in smoke from fires burning near the city, as the Russian capital endured extraordinarily high summer temperatures.

Ovechkin said that such charity activities should be developed in Russia. He added that he had been in the Moscow smog, too.

Former Atlanta Thrasher Slava Kozlov admitted he hadn’t defined his future career yet. He asked not to link his visit to Russia with contract talks — his purpose there was to visit his parents. Kozlov also said that the New Jersey Devils didn’t call him — only Kovalchuk asked him to join.

Here’s a video from the show which ended 13:13.

And here are photos from the Russian media and various open sources

Semin's car accident - lifesports.ru

Washington Capitals star Alexander Semin got in a very small car accident last week in Krasnoyarsk — reportedly, his car was slightly hit by another. Semin said he even hadn’t realized what had happened. No one was hurt.

Here’s a small video in which a person tries to learn what has happened and is told not to take the video – Semin car accident

More Hockey News — Straight Outta Russia …

Former Thrasher Maxim Afinogenov scored for SKA Saint Petersburg at a summer tournament in Switzerland. As for his return to Russia, Afinogenov said: “I realized – it’s time to go back home.” He promised not to change his style of play and to stay himself. Max also said he’s living in the same hotel as former San Jose Sharks netminder Evgeny Nabokov, noting that they often go out together. And, finally, Max insists he’s forgotten about the NHL already.

One of Russia’s most talented young players, Nikita Filatov, is going back to Columbus. Again. Filatov promised to work hard and to play his brand of hockey.

Little Viktor Tikhonov is going to move his way into Phoenix and the NHL. His agent admitted — it’s the main goal for Viktor.

Slava Kozlov will be waiting for offers from the NHL til the end, but if he doesn’t get them, “we’ll start talks with him,” said CSKA president Slava Fetisov.

Finally, the ‘unfriendly ghost’ and current SKA coach Darius Kasparaitis has got a son! His girlfriend gave birth to their son in Saint Petersburg. Kasparaitis already has three daughters.

via Russian press

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Here’s a brief summary of some of the hot hockey stories making the rounds in the Russian press this week.

- SKA Saint Petersburg signed ex-San Jose Sharks goalie Evgeni Nabokov to a 4-year, $24 million (USD) contract.

- Reportedly, former Atlanta Thrashers player Slava Kozlov wants to play in Russia. He is in talks with several clubs.

- Kontinental Hockey League studies details on 23-year-old SKA player Igor Misko’s sudden death.

-  The Washington Capitals took four Russians to their summer camp.

-  Detroit Red Wings and team Russia forward Pavel Datsyuk has entered the university in his native city of Ekaterinburg.  He will study sports management.

Photo: Vyacheslav Kozlov by Goddess Kaatiya. Copyright 2009-2010. All Rights Reserved.

It’s not even July 1 yet the frenzy has already started.  June 15 marked the first day teams could begin to buyout contracts, and indeed no time was wasted with Montreal buying out Georges Laraque.  And that’s not the only frenzy.  Teams are either signing or releasing prospects left and right, trying to make some financial decisions before free agency begins.

One thing none of the goddesses banked on was the potential for some big trades prior to free agency.  Yet that’s exactly what has happened.  I mean, who would have thought Jaroslav Halak of all players would be traded?  Being a restricted free agent, Halak was going to get a raise and playing in the salary cap era I guess Montreal figured he wasn’t worth it with Carey Price waiting in the wings.  In their defense, they got a highly touted Swedish prospect in Lars Eller, so perhaps it will prove to be a shrewd move.

As usual, the Avalanche have continued to offer one-year deals to no-names and mediocre prospects, so I’ll have to continue to live vicariously through other teams that are making real moves.  I can still pretend they’re going to go after Ilya Kovalchuk on July 1.

Speaking of Russians, there has been little news on other UFAs such as Slava Kozlov and Maxim Afinogenov.  Kozlov is rumored to have a KHL deal in the works, while Afinogenov has been mysteriously quiet, apparently refusing the one-year deal the Atlanta Thrashers offered him.  Of course, we have to remember they’re all still under contract and won’t be available until free agency officially starts.

And let’s not forget the NHL draft is now just a week away.  Not only are we looking forward to our teams drafting some hot prospects, but many a big trade has been made on draft day and we are hopeful that there will be some additional excitement.

So maybe it’s not July 1, but we goddesses are enjoying the little bit of foreplay before the main event.

Photo: Jaroslav Halak by Goddess Kaatiya. Copyright 2010. All Rights Reserverd.

The Sporting News wrote a quick and dirty piece with this juicy nugget: Ilya Kovalchuk is close to signing with SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League.

The article also mentions Alexander Frolov will follow as well. My favorite player, Slava Kozlov, too, is reportedly going to be headed to the K (as Goddess Sasha and I took to calling it when we were in Moscow). Frankly, I think it’s sad to see this exodus — and I’m only exaggerating a little when I use that term — of Russian players back to their native land.

Sergei Zubov, Sergei Brylin, Sergei Fedorov (any other Sergeis I am missing?), Viktor Kozlov, Dmitry Kalinin, Nikolai Zherdev, Anton Babchuk, Oleg Saprykin, Oleg Kvasha, Alexander Radulov, Alexei Morozov, Alexei Yashin, Alexei Zhitnik (could Alexei Kovalev be far behind?!) not to mention non-Russian Richard Zednik, a Slovak, who broke my heart when he left last year. Add Kovy and Frolov and Slava Kozlov and you’ve got a pretty impressive list there.

I am sure people will say “good riddance.” That it will give good, old-fashioned North Americans more jobs. Maybe that’s true, but I think the league, in many ways, will be less interesting without them. What do you think?

Image: Ilya Kovalchuk by Goddess Kaatiya. Copyright 2008-2010. All Rights Reserved.

For Thrasher fans it’s the thing to do nowadays to pretend they never loved you. That they don’t have your jersey hanging in the back of their closet. That they didn’t pay to see YOU. That they didn’t want you anyway. That we’re better off without you.

I confess it is with a tiny bit of satisfaction that, despite your trade to what you called a “class organization,” you, my dear Kovalchuk, went out much like you would have with the Thrashers — except that with the Thrashers you probably wouldn’t have won that one playoff game.

That being said, I loved you Kovy. Part of me always will. Just like all the others who have come and gone: Hossa (a personal favorite of mine and the only Thrasher jersey this non-jersey wearing Goddess has ever donned), Marc Savard, Peter Bondra, Slava Kozlov (I could post forever about how much I love him and how he, along with the Red Wings’ Russian Five, are the ones who really solidified my love of hockey), and now you, Kovy.

With a bit of shame and a dash of schadenfreude, I can honestly admit that your tasting defeat in another uniform made me smile a little — but sadly. Sadly because I did love you. And despite what Thrasher fans say, they loved you too. I wish you well, wherever you land. I do believe you did a lot for the city of Atlanta. You provided hockey’s version of the Human Highlight Film on many occasions. You were always accommodating and polite to fans (this year’s Casino Night notwithstanding, in which you were a bit “off”). So adieu Ilya Kovalchuk and best wishes.

And, please forgive my little grin. You don’t really deserve it, but I can’t help it.

Note: This post was written by a completely biased Thrasher fan who, deep in her heart, really wishes him back. No objectivity implied, striven for, or accomplished.

Photos: Ilya Kovalchuk; and Ilya Kovalchuk and Vyacheslav Kozlov by Goddess Kaatiya. Copyright 2009-2010. All Rights Reserved.

Yes you, JIM SLATER! You took a penalty in the last two minutes of today’s crucial game against the Penguins — and they scored to tie the game. Then, they went on to win the game. This is the second time in three games that you, Jim, have taken a penalty in the last two minutes of the third period of a game. You should be in the press box while Slava Kozlov — world-class player — gets a chance. I hope that’s where you end up. I have no sympathy.

Thank you for your very untimely “contributions.” Now get the hell off Thrasher Island. You are the Mike Dunham of this year. And you’re as unwelcome in Atlanta now as he is. See ya and please … feel free to let the door hit your ass on the way out!

Goodbye playoffs and adios Jim!

Photo: Jim Slater by Goddess Kaat. Copyright 2009-2010. All Rights Reserved.

Wow.

I never imagined the Atlanta Thrashers wouldn’t be able to offload Slava Kozlov. I am amazed to be sitting here writing that he’s still a Thrasher after all that. Will he play? Will he be waived? That’s what I imagine is going to happen: It’s waiver watch from now on. They can still waive after the deadline, no? (Apologies, I am no expert in this area.)

I am hopeful, ever so hopeful that Slava can get back in the good graces of John Anderson (loathsome man!) and be back on the ice playing like we know he can. I’d hate to see him buried in the AHL.

And could they lose him on re-entry after the trade deadline?  (Or in essence — in a roundabout way — grant his request out of Atlanta by waiving him and, if nobody claims him, subject him to re-entry waivers and pay half the freight of his salary.)   I don’t know the rules on this, unfortunately.  Feel free to comment and set me straight.

The unselfish part of me is sad for Kozlov. I know he wanted out and hoped to be traded.  And a teeny-tiny part of me wishes he’d gotten his wish.

The selfish part of me really wants him to get that one chance and totally play himself back onto the team and prove J.A. wrong because you know what?  J.A. is wrong unless Slava has suddenly become a head case or belligerent. (Maybe he has? Kozlov’s Fall Out With the Thrash. In which case, maybe they are both wrong?)

Nevertheless…

Anything to do with Kozlov is written from my heart, not my head. I love him as a player.  I’ve loved him since NHL hockey appeared on my radar screen back when he was first starting out with the Red Wings;  and I will love him no matter where he goes. Maybe it’s a Goddess kind of thing to say, but I just want this particular person to be happy. I think he’s, as the colloquial saying goes, “good people.”  But you know, I know a man who once told me he cried his eyes out when Wendel Clark was traded from the Maple Leafs, so it’s a God AND Goddess way to feel.  That is, everyone — man, woman or child — has one or two special players that they live and die with.  Slava is mine.

¡Bienvenidos (otra vez)! del Thrashers, Slava? ¡Te amo, mi amor (del hockey)!

Photo: Vyacheslav Kozlov by Goddess Kaat. Copyright 2009-2010. All Rights Reserved.

The hockey world doesn’t anxiously await his fate.  Probably about  21 other people are as desperate to know where he’ll land.  But my favorite player, one Slava Kozlov, is on the block (by his own request).  I am sad he’s going, but D-Wad actually acknowledged yesterday in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he was trying his best to honor his request to be traded to a contender out of respect for what Kozlov has done for the franchise.  

“The asset value back is minimal vs. how much he’s done for this franchise. If I can find him a home, I’m happy to do it.”

– Don Waddell, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 03/01/2010

Hell, it could all be lip service, but I want to drink this Kool-Aid for once and believe the Thrashers value everything he’s brought to the table — and it’s been significant over the years.

Slava:  I loved you before you joined the Thrashers and, as REO Speedwagon well put it in the 1980s, “I’m gonna keep on lovin’ you.”  

Bonne chance mon amour (d’hockey)!

Photo: Vyacheslav Kozlov by Goddess Kaat. Copyright 2009-2010. All Rights Reserved.

… A headline which begs the question: Was there ever a good time?

In light of the news that my (unabashedly) favorite Thrasher (and hockey player in general) wants out of Atlanta has me on the brink of begging to be run over by a Zamboni. Slava Kozlov has been a cornerstone of the franchise. Not in the way that Ilya was. Or Hossa was. Or Heater was. He’s just been a quiet force. A rock-solid, good leader. He’s been in a bit of a funk lately, but I can’t for the life of me figure out how he is benched in favor of some other guys who have been just as dismal and bring less to the table. Now, word is, he wants to leave Atlanta too. Aside from the personal heartbreak this brings, I think it speaks volumes about what is going on in Atlanta — none of it good. I am, frankly, rather terrified at the downward spiral the team seems to be in.

For those who don’t know, there are tons of hockey fans in Atlanta. Tons. There is also a great deal of corporate sponsorship, which other cities simply can’t offer. It’s important to have a team here, but the ownership and leadership is driving the franchise into the ground. Hockey fans in Atlanta deserve better than this.

I really feel Kozlov deserves better than this. I’d always hoped he’d retire a Thrasher and that his number would be the first retired at Philips. That he’d stay in the organization and make it better. Now he, too, wants to flee the scene.

It worries me.

Photo: Vyacheslav Kozlov by Goddess Kaat. Copyright 2009-2010. All Rights Reserved.

I know I promised some KHL hockey observations, and I have many, but in lieu of what has transpired over the last 24 hours I feel it necessary to give some thoughts on the Kovalchuk trade. Fellow Goddess Kaatiya is still in mourning and like most Atlanta fans may be so for quite some time.

Colorado is my team of course, but Atlanta is my second. I love the diversity of the players in Atlanta, the Russians and the Swedes. My pal Salmela is unfortunately gone along with Ilya, but I still love the team.

As hockey fans, we often get attached to individual players. I know I sure do. While some people don’t separate the individual from the team, it’s the whole persona that individual players often bring that endear us to a team or a sport. Ilya was one such person. He was a fantastic player, a kind soul to fans and a wonderful father and wife to his family. People watched him grow up in Atlanta. It’s hard to take that he just didn’t want to be there anymore.

Fans will blame the owners and GM, but really, if he had wanted to stay he would have for the deal he was offered. Yes, people will argue past problems with the team, but with the ownership issue resolved this year, the team went out and got Antropov and Afinogenov per Kovy’s request. And it hurts those of us who truly loved him and believed he wanted to stay in Atlanta for his entire career.

I know, I know. You’re going to tell me it’s just business. But we’re all human. We want to believe that people aren’t just motivated by dollars and really care about the fans and the organizations that have given so much to them.

Despite the heartbreak many of us are feeling, I am a perpetual optimist, and I see much in this trade to be optimistic. Hurt feelings aside, I believe this isn’t the end for the Thrashers, but a new beginning – and a legitmate one at that. One only need to look as far as my number one team, the Colorado Avalanche, to see what a plethora of youthful talent can do for you. A solid goalie (Kari is about ready) and hungry youngsters is how all great teams start. Detroit has proven this time and time again.

Atlanta has made some savvy moves in this deal. Take Niclas Bergfors. He’s one of the top scoring rookies this year in a defensive minded system. Put him with Afinogenov or a passer like Kozlov and watch this kid bloom. Oduya? He’s just the defenseman the Thrashers have needed this year. One can argue this had been the team’s biggest weakness this year. It also doesn’t hurt to have another player of African decent in a city with a large African-American population. The Thrashers need to grow their fan base, and this could help market the team. I don’t want to overplay the ethnic issue, but as a Native American, I can tell you that any team with Natives on it sure becomes more interesting to me and is the reason I came back to hockey in the early 90’s. Then there’s Cormier. Suspension aside, let’s not forget that he was the captain of Canada’s World Junior team this year and is a physical force and exciting to watch.

Finally, and what might get me into hot water, is my response to the fans that are crying foul on the management. Putting the past aside, I can’t fault the GM on this move, as much as I hated to see it happen. Hindsight is 20/20 but I think everyone believed that Ilya really wanted to stay in Atlanta. I’ve seen many fans on message boards saying they will no longer be Atlanta fans because of their disgust with the ownership and management. Yet based on the attendance at games, I wonder how many true fans there really are? Don’t get me wrong. I understand that there is enough corporate sponsorship for the survival of this team (something Winnipeg simply can’t rival – sorry folks,) and that poor attendance isn’t enough to move them, but if you love this team you need to come out and support them. If you claim to be a fan, why aren’t you at Philips Arena for games? If Ilya isn’t enough to bring people out to games, perhaps some exciting, passionate youth who might be willing to get out in the community and sell themselves will do the job.

Only time will tell, but I, for one, am not giving up on the team.