The rise of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) had some people wondering whether more and more NHLers would bolt for Russia.
Indeed money is a major factor into deciding if a player goes over but on the heels of the tragic death of Alexei Cherepanov there is another issue to consider. Namely, the role of health.
Specifically, if adequate facilities, doctors and medical measures are in place at arenas in Russia and how far are hospitals from the arenas. Let’s look at it another way, if Clint Malarchuk, Jiri Fischer, Richard Zednik and Trent McCleary had all been injured in Russia would they be alive today?
Watching Cherepanov be amateurishly whisked away as he did was surreal and sad. True, given his condition, maybe nothing could have been done. However, an ambulance should always be present at a sporting event. Always.
Sometimes in life it’s more than just about money. Maybe the Russian Superleague can splash money to attract some players but it has a long way to go to be considered world class on the scale of the NHL.
An inquiry into Cherepanov’s death has been announced.
Cherepanov played for the Avangard Omsk and was a first round draft pick for the New York Rangers. He was 19 years old.
