Could be another KHL first: visiting Slovan's fans taking over the arena in Prague. There are reportedly around 7 thousand Slovan fans in the sold-out 13,000 arena. The chants were consistently pro-Slovan in the first period, as clearly heard on TV.
Bad game for Chára so far and I can see why fans have been b|tch|ing so much about him lately. Interesting to compare him with Sekera -- both entered the KHL at around the same time and were struggling to adapt. But whereas Sekera seems to have recovered his true self in the last two games, Chára's struggles continue. In terms of defensive gaffes, both Chára and Sekera produced a couple of them in the first period of this game.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mirinho
Juraj Mikúš (Lev) vs. his younger brother Tomáš Mikúš (Slovan)
Only after Chára sent Šatan to the dressing room in mid-2nd period. I hope Šatan will be OK, returning in the final period. If not, the KHL break will come in handy. I think his head was mostly affected by the hit. There were in all 2 crashes between current/former Slovak national team captains.
A funny moment occurred when Slovan's Sekera jumped to Lev's bench mid-play, trying (unsuccessfully) to prevent a too-many-men-on-ice penalty for Slovan.
Only after Chára sent Šatan to the dressing room in mid-2nd period. I hope Šatan will be OK, returning in the final period. If not, the KHL break will come in handy. I think his head was mostly affected by the hit. There were in all 2 crashes between current/former Slovak national team captains.
A funny moment occurred when Slovan's Sekera jumped to Lev's bench mid-play, trying (unsuccessfully) to prevent a too-many-men-on-ice penalty for Slovan.
When Chara hits you it's always gonna hit your head lol...
and Sekera's moment was pretty funny
Only after Chára sent Šatan to the dressing room in mid-2nd period. I hope Šatan will be OK, returning in the final period. If not, the KHL break will come in handy. I think his head was mostly affected by the hit. There were in all 2 crashes between current/former Slovak national team captains.
A funny moment occurred when Slovan's Sekera jumped to Lev's bench mid-play, trying (unsuccessfully) to prevent a too-many-men-on-ice penalty for Slovan.
hope KHL IT guys saw that moment, it deserves highlight
I hope [Sekera's moment] will be at KHL youtube channel
It's not... Game statisticians also attested their usual blindness, missing Kukumberg's clear & superb assist on Slovan's 2nd goal (see @ 5:06). They should correct this, because the guy has been on a roll the last 3 games after struggling for much of the season. The controversial Chára hit on Šatan is @ 6:57.
I know ult dismissed it as a rumour, but the talk among Slovak/Czech hockey fans about imminent Lev/Sparta Prague fusion just won't go away... To be honest, it would be much better if Sparta Prague played in the KHL next year instead of Lev. There is no way Slovak fans would outnumber Czech fans in a Prague arena if this was a Sparta vs. Slovan game.
Sparta joining the KHL would also make sense because traditionally, only 1 Prague hockey team used to play in the top Czecho-Slovak league, and that was Sparta. Slavia Prague as a top-tier hockey team is a relatively new phenomenon from the last 2 decades. It would make sense for Sparta to join the KHL while Czech Extraliga would still be played in Prague thanks to Slavia. Right now, neither Sparta, nor Slavia games get much attendance -- and neither does Lev, truth be told. If there were only 2 hockey teams in Prague, each in a different prestigious league, this might substantially boost attendance for both teams.
And there wouldn't be this sense of estrangement many Czechs currently still feel towards Lev. Plus, the resentment coming from Lev Poprad's financial debacle in Slovakia would go away. There was an interview with Slovan's defender Sigalet the other day, where he says he still hasn't got paid for any of his last-season services for Lev Poprad since January 2012. Lev Prague can claim all they want that they aren't Lev Poprad -- it's the same KHL licence and KHL franchise, and the stigma will remain. Especially if there are still payments to be made for the previous season, to team members as well as (reportedly) local small businesses in the Poprad area.
It's not... Game statisticians also attested their usual blindness, missing Kukumberg's clear & superb assist on Slovan's 2nd goal (see @ 5:06). They should correct this, because the guy has been on a roll the last 3 games after struggling for much of the season.
I know ult dismissed it as a rumour, but the talk among Slovak/Czech hockey fans about imminent Lev/Sparta Prague fusion just won't go away... To be honest, it would be much better if Sparta Prague played in the KHL next year instead of Lev. There is no way Slovak fans would outnumber Czech fans in a Prague arena if this was a Sparta vs. Slovan game.
Sparta joining the KHL would also make sense because traditionally, only 1 Prague hockey team used to play in the top Czecho-Slovak league, and that was Sparta. Slavia Prague as a top-tier hockey team is a relatively new phenomenon from the last 2 decades. It would make sense for Sparta to join the KHL while Czech Extraliga would still be played in Prague thanks to Slavia. Right now, neither Sparta, nor Slavia games get much attendance -- and neither does Lev, truth be told. If there were only 2 hockey teams in Prague, each in a different prestigious league, this might substantially boost attendance for both teams.
And there wouldn't be this sense of estrangement many Czechs currently still feel towards Lev. Plus, the resentment coming from Lev Poprad's financial debacle in Slovakia would go away. There was an interview with Slovan's defender Sigalet the other day, where he says he still hasn't got paid for any of his last-season services for Lev Poprad since January 2012. Lev Prague can claim all they want that they aren't Lev Poprad -- it's the same KHL licence and KHL franchise, and the stigma will remain. Especially if there are still payments to be made for the previous season, to team members as well as (reportedly) local small businesses in the Poprad area.
I bet 1 euro that Sparta will play KHL sooner than later
Lev Poprad - no, it is not the same licence, no it is not the same legal entity. Blame Slavčev not Musil for it. Sigalet got his money or he will get soon.
sorry, I forgot how to make YT video visible here :/
You put the video's numeric code (not the address) inbetween the [YT] and [/YT] tags. In this case, it's KJzBtt7En-0. Here goes (Sekera's situation is between 0:15 and 0:53, followed by Chára hit on Šatan):
It seems, that Satan was really angry after Charas hit. In the interview after the game he said, that Chara wanted to hurt him....
"If it was a clean hit, why do I have stitches on my face? Maybe if I had detached collarbone, i would say that it was clean. After 30 years in hockey maybe I can discern when a player plays clean game and when he wants to hurt his opponent. It was an attack on the head. I cant say more to this."
It seems, that Satan was really angry after Charas hit. In the interview after the game he said, that Chara wanted to hurt him....
"If it was a clean hit, why do I have stitches on my face? Maybe if I had detached collarbone, i would say that it was clean. After 30 years in hockey maybe I can discern when a player plays clean game and when he wants to hurt his opponent. It was an attack on the head. I cant say more to this."
I think some players, especially Satan, took this game "too seriously" and were overmotivated, overreacting ... I have an evidence that it was clean hit. I read KHL rules on head attack, watched highlights etc. Definitelly clean hit, 1st one and the 2nd as well. I think you know how Satan play in slovak extraleague - there was unwritten rule "no touching Satan". He should realise that is not playing slovak league anymore. I like him but this reaction is not correct. And yes, slovak ... media are repeating his words all the time. Shame If there is a reason why KHL WILL NEVER get NHL level so it is "UNprofessionalism of media" in countries like Slovakia, Czech rep or Russia. Btw I consider russian media more professional than slovak one, a bit. They at least have ability to read KHL rules.
It is "great" to judge if you (mean slovak media) dont know KHL rules. Read one slovak hockey website about KHL and youth hockey, there is article about this situation and evidence.
This has been a ridiculous controversy for 2 days now, with people arguing back and forth under article after article about who's to blame for the hit:
There's about an even split, with around 50% of people blaming Chára & 50% blaming Šatan, and the split is not along the Slovan/non-Slovan fan dividing line. Even hardcore Slovan fans can't agree on this one. Many people simply dislike the North-American "tough" brand of hockey as illustrated by Chára's hit here. Some people fear that the hit may even have negative repercussions for Slovakia's national team. Which would be too bad, considering Chára & Šatan have won so much together while playing on the same team (including the Boston Bruins), such as the silver medal at the most recent World Championships back in May, and both have served as Slovakia team captains in multiple events over many years across 2 decades.
Another interesting thing about that latest YouTube clip: bilingual hockey broadcast. I think that, until Slovan Bratislava & Lev Prague joined the KHL, there have been no multilingual hockey broadcasts for the participating teams. It's usually just 1 language: Russian OR Latvian. And in the NHL, Montreal gets both a French and an English language feed. But here for the Lev vs. Slovan game, you had a pair of announcers: 1 of them (play-by-play) speaking Czech and the other (color) speaking Slovak. Their cooperation was flawless, and they both managed to remain nicely impartial throughout. It was another nice throwback to the "old times" when games played by the national team of Czechoslovakia were always announced on TV and radio by a pair of announcers, 1 Czech & 1 Slovak.
Slovan will send complain to KHL regarding to Chara´s hit on Satan.
Fans are overreacting about Chara vs Satan IMO. Media the same. On the other hand it is an evidence that ppl/media are interested in KHL..follow it. Good to know
This has been a ridiculous controversy for 2 days now, with people arguing back and forth under article after article about who's to blame for the hit:
There's about an even split, with around 50% of people blaming Chára & 50% blaming Šatan, and the split is not along the Slovan/non-Slovan fan dividing line. Even hardcore Slovan fans can't agree on this one. Many people simply dislike the North-American "tough" brand of hockey as illustrated by Chára's hit here. Some people fear that the hit may even have negative repercussions for Slovakia's national team. Which would be too bad, considering Chára & Šatan have won so much together while playing on the same team (including the Boston Bruins), such as the silver medal at the most recent World Championships back in May, and both have served as Slovakia team captains in multiple events over many years across 2 decades.
Another interesting thing about that latest YouTube clip: bilingual hockey broadcast. I think that, until Slovan Bratislava & Lev Prague joined the KHL, there have been no multilingual hockey broadcasts for the participating teams. It's usually just 1 language: Russian OR Latvian. And in the NHL, Montreal gets both a French and an English language feed. But here for the Lev vs. Slovan game, you had a pair of announcers: 1 of them (play-by-play) speaking Czech and the other (color) speaking Slovak. Their cooperation was flawless, and they both managed to remain nicely impartial throughout. It was another nice throwback to the "old times" when games played by the national team of Czechoslovakia were always announced on TV and radio by a pair of announcers, 1 Czech & 1 Slovak.
Well, if you consider whatever language it is that Jindřich Novotný speaks to be Slovak
Well, if you consider whatever language it is that Jindřich Novotný speaks to be Slovak
It was definitely Slovak, albeit with a Czech accent, Novotný being Czech by birth and having lived and coached in Slovakia for decades. I believe his Slovak grammar and vocabulary are next to flawless (unlike Golonka's! ); certainly I'd be unable to speak Czech on the level that he speaks Slovak. I also generally like him as color analyst -- he immediately gave his judgment on the Chára hits, noticed Sekera jumping on Lev's bench, etc.
Meanwhile, the ridiculous Chára vs. Šatan controversy in all sorts of Slovak media just won't stop. It's been 4 days now; the topic seems more hotly debated than today's Obama vs. Romney duel! Sample: http://sport.sme.sk/diskusie/2069591...na-Satana.html
I hope Šatan will be OK, returning in the final period. If not, the KHL break will come in handy. I think his head was mostly affected by the hit. 
Especially if there are still payments to be made for the previous season, to team members as well as (reportedly) local small businesses in the Poprad area.
