Except that for Říha, it's no joke, but reality. Apparently, in post-Soviet Russia, they fire you on the very evening your club climbs to the top of the KHL standings. I can't imagine any coach in the NHL being treated this way. That's 2 seasons in a row now that a top Russian hockey club fired a Czech coach with a winning record. (It also happened to Čada last year at Avangard.)
I hope Košice will join the KHL next season and Říha will be their coach. Both Čada and Říha have been highly successful coaches in Slovakia in the past, winning multiple Slovak Championships. (Except that it was in "reverse mode": Říha as Slovan coach, and Čada as Košice coach.)
Except that for Říha, it's no joke, but reality. Apparently, in post-Soviet Russia, they fire you on the very evening your club climbs to the top of the KHL standings. I can't imagine any coach in the NHL being treated this way. That's 2 seasons in a row now that a top Russian hockey club fired a Czech coach with a winning record. (It also happened to Čada last year at Avangard.)
I hope Košice will join the KHL next season and Říha will be their coach. Both Čada and Říha have been highly successful coaches in Slovakia in the past, winning multiple Slovak Championships. (Except that it was in "reverse mode": Říha as Slovan coach, and Čada as Košice coach.)
1. The firing is very logical if you take in consideration the recent history of playoff failures by SKA. They don't care about 1st places in the regualr season. They will get into the playoffs with the lineup they have. They want some playoff success badly. Stats aren't everything. The style SKA played is just not the one to win in the playoffs. Too sloppy a defence. Too many mistakes. Too often they had to overcome deficits they created by their own lack of discipline. Just like in their last geme under Riha. Of course they have an offence every team would be happy about. It's just not enough in the playoffs.
2. As for Cada's case. You do know how it ended? Avangard went on to the finals.
1. The firing is very logical if you take in consideration the recent history of playoff failures by SKA. They don't care about 1st places in the regualr season. They will get into the playoffs with the lineup they have. They want some playoff success badly. Stats aren't everything. The style SKA played is just not the one to win in the playoffs. Too sloppy a defence. Too many mistakes. Too often they had to overcome deficits they created by their own lack of discipline. Just like in their last geme under Riha. Of course they have an offence every team would be happy about. It's just not enough in the playoffs.
And they have discovered all these things right now, on the evening the club rose to the top of KHL overall standings? Like Říha said in his interview, why not at least wait until the team loses a few games? Or why not fire him after last year's play-offs? But to fire him on an evening like this... only "in Soviet Russia".
There are a number of highly critical analyses of the firing at championat.com and allhockey.ru, although there are also a few voices supporting it (particularly by Alexander Yudin who goes overboard in his criticism of Říha). One allhockey.ru blogger, even before last night's events, compared SKA St. Petersburg to the New York Rangers. And we know how many Stanley Cups the Rangers won in recent years after outlandish moves by club management... the number resembles the letter O.
there's a Russian saying:"из грязи в князи" which loosely translates into from dirt into a king. That's exactly what happened to St. Petersburg, a forgotten during soviet and early russian times city all of a sudden gets bombarded by money and success, sees it's prominent figures in the government, first comes appreciation, than comes insanity. Look at Zenit and what's going there, look at Zenit's and Ska's fans, look at SKA....no surprise here, just a pattern.
And they have discovered all these things right now, on the evening the club rose to the top of KHL overall standings? Like Říha said in his interview, why not at least wait until the team loses a few games? Or why not fire him after last year's play-offs? But to fire him on an evening like this... only "in Soviet Russia".
There are a number of highly critical analyses of the firing at championat.com and allhockey.ru, although there are also a few voices supporting it (particularly by Alexander Yudin who goes overboard in his criticism of Říha). One allhockey.ru blogger, even before last night's events, compared SKA St. Petersburg to the New York Rangers. And we know how many Stanley Cups the Rangers won in recent years after outlandish moves by club management... the number resembles the letter O.
Why they are the NYR of the KHL by all means. The concept of an overspending team isn't new. But anyway there are not only few voices supporting the release of Riha expecially if you don't count the fans. Every analyst would tell you SKA was heading right into another early playoff exit. Why they waited until now you'd have to ask the SKA management, but obviously there was something stirring for some time. Plain and simple: they want it to be a Dynamo Moscow and not what SKA is right now.
... he's too good coach 
Both Čada and Říha have been highly successful coaches in Slovakia in the past, winning multiple Slovak Championships. (Except that it was in "reverse mode": Říha as Slovan coach, and Čada as Košice coach.)
