According to ESPN, the Czech government will not allow ice hockey players from Russia to participate in the test matches of the National Hockey League (NHL) clubs Nashville “Predators” and San Jose “Sharks” on October 7 and 8 in Prague, in the “O2” arena.
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The Czech Republic took such a step because of war crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine. The Czech Republic has stopped issuing visas to Russian citizens and does not want to accept an exception due to NHL test matches. The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already sent a letter to the NHL management, and it states that neither the Czech Republic nor any other country in the Schengen zone should issue visas to Russian hockey players.
The “Sharks” system currently includes Alexander Barabanov, Yevgenii Svechnikov, Nikolai Knizhov, Artemy Kniazev, Timur Ibragimov and Daniil Gushchin. On the other hand, “Predators” have Jakov Trenin, Yaroslav Askarov and Yegor Afanasyev.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly told the AP agency on Thursday that there is no concern about the hockey players going to Prague and going on the field.
Sharks general manager Mike Greer said the team will go into this game as a team or not at all. “I believe we are one team. It’s not their fault, they didn’t do anything wrong. So I don’t think they should be punished. We support them and we’re united,” Greer said.
