"The Cold War was the state of conflict, tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies. Throughout this period, rivalry between the two superpowers was expressed through military coalitions, propaganda, espionage, and weapons development..."While I'm not a huge fan of the overuse of military comparisons in today's sports world, I can't help but notice similarities between the Cold War and today's escalating conflict between the NHL and the newly-formed Russian KHL.
In August 2006, the stakes were raised when Evgeni Malkin defected from Russia merely days after signing a multi-year contract with Metallurg Magnitogorsk. Officials from Metallurg were furious and fed up with being bullied by the NHL which they accused of poaching top Russian talent like Malkin and superstar Alexander Ovechkin.Following the 2007-2008 season, the Russian Super League was disbanded and in it's place rose the new and improved Continental Hockey League (KHL). In an attempt to lure talent from the most dominant hockey league in the world, league officials promised huge paydays and highlighted the country's 13% flat tax on income.
Major investors in the new league include Russian state-owned entities such as Gazprom (natural gas) and Transneft (oil); companies which made millions on top of millions in the run-up of commodity prices in 2007 and the first half of 2008. In fact, coinciding with the price of oil reaching record of $147/barrel in July 2008, NHL star Jaromir Jagr signed a huge deal with the KHL's Avangard Omsk. Terms of the deal included two years with an option of a third at $7 million tax-free, which would equate to roughly $11 million a year in the NHL (higher than any current player is making).
The ability to lure one of the NHL's premier talents away from the States was merely Act 1 in an unfolding summer drama between the NHL and K HL, two leagues with no existing transfer agreement in place. A week after Jagr's signing, Salavat Ulaef of the KHL signed Alexander Radulov, a talented prospect still under contract with the Nashville Predators. Tensions mounted and days later the NHL and KHL agreed to politely honor each other's contracts going forward, hardly signaling an end to the struggle between leagues (and of little solace to the NHL a day after losing Radulov).
Unable to come to any sort of agreement in the coming months, both leagues decided to coexist for the time being as their seasons got underway. Talk of a hockey "arms race" died down, until last week when Jagr expressed a surprising (desperate?) interest in returning to the NHL and specifically the Pittsburgh Penguins:
“I was thinking about it and if [owner] Mario [Lemieux] would call me and say, ‘I’d like you to play for our team,’ I would think about it a lot,” Jagr said in a telephone interview. “I would play for the minimum salary. I would play for $350,000 just for him because I owe him my hockey life. I want to pay him back because he has made me what I am…besides my parents.”I find it hard to believe that a player known for his selfishness and moody behavior throughout his 20-year career could possibly wake up one day and all of a sudden want to play for Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins out of the good of his heart. It was only eight years ago that Jagr essentially complained his way out of Pittsburgh by exclaiming he felt like he was "dying alive." Now that he's the face of the KHL and the highest paid player in the world, he'd give serious thought to coming back to the States and playing for pennies? Doesn't add up.
Trying to figure out what's going on in Jaromir Jagr's head is no easy task, but my gut feeling tells me he's beginning to have second thoughts on Russia as the league begins to collapse around him. In October, Jagr was sitting next to 19-year-old Alexei Cherapanov, a first round pick of the New York Rangers, when Cherapanov collapsed and died during a KHL game. The ambulance stationed at KHL games had already left the arena and had to be called back, while attempts to bring Cherapanov back to life were hindered when it was found the batteries on the defibrillator were drained. Investigators also revealed that Cherapanov not only suffered from a heart condition that didn't allow enough blood to reach the heart, but he had also been doping for several months prior to his death.In an odd incident last Thursday, Wayne Fleming (who Jagr convinced to leave Canada to coach Avangard Omsk) was reportedly fired after failing to return to the bench prior to the third period of a game against Vityaz Chekhov. However, on Saturday Fleming said he actually wasn't sure if he was fired or not. If you're wondering if Avangard is just the Dallas Cowboys of the KHL, that's not exactly the case. There have actually been reports that it's not uncommon to see guns, drugs, and major mafia figures in the locker rooms of other teams after KHL games.
It's obvious the KHL isn't the same well-oiled machine that the NHL is, and it's definitely possible the moody Jagr is having second thoughts on his decision to leave the Big Apple this summer. Don't expect to see him in a Penguins uniform anytime soon though. Pittsburgh is a team that is looking for unity and leadership right now and the goal-scoring ability Jagr can bring to the table wouldn't be worth putting up with his baggage and distractions. Jagr also still has a year and a half remaining in his two-year contract with the KHL and I can't imagine they would allow their star player to walk away. The biggest reason Jagr won't end up on Sidney Crosby's wing this season is that he would have to clear waivers before signing with any team. It's hard to believe Jagr could make it through waivers and land on the roster of a contender without someone snagging him, especially for the league minimum Jagr mentioned. This weekends situation with Wade Dubielewicz (hardly the caliber of Jagr) is a perfect example of how hard it is to get through waivers following a return from the KHL.
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