The KHL IS Good For Something...

((HT: Fanhouse/Botta))

One of the best hockey brawls in recent memory... Vityaz and Avangard...

Former Tampa Bay Lightning player Alexander Svitov starts it off at the :30 mark. And since everyone got involved- more than once- both teams didn't have enough players to finish...

And, yes, you see Jaromir Jagr getting involved...

Both teams had to forfeit and were fined by the league a grand total of $33,500. Vityaz, since they "started it," were fined an additional $100-grand.

Botta also says that, in response, Vityaz has signed both Josh Gratton and Chris Simon... wonder why they're there...???

Here's the highlights from the league show...
((HT: KHL))

Russian Investigators Reopen Cherepanov Probe

((HT: CP))

Prosecutors will reopen the investigation into the death of New York Rangers draft pick Alexei Cherepanov((pictured, thanks Gregory Shamus/Getty)), who collapsed during a Continental Hockey League game last year in Russia.

The federal prosecutor's Investigative Committee ruled last month that team doctors were not to blame for Cherepanov's death and would face no criminal charges. Investigators said doctors with Siberian team Avangard Omsk had no reason to suspect the 19-year-old suffered from a chronic heart problem and therefore did not prescribe the medicine he was taking.

But the committee on Monday reopened the case and ordered that new medical tests be carried out in a federal centre for forensic medicine.

Cherepanov, a first-round pick in 2007, died after collapsing on the bench during an Oct. 13 game in Chekhov, a town outside Moscow. Authorities say an autopsy showed he suffered from myocarditis, a condition that obstructs blood flow to the heart and other organs.

The investigators' initial conclusion seemed to lay more blame on Cherepanov than anyone else. They said Cherepanov most likely felt unwell but hid his condition from team doctors for fear of being pulled from games.

Cherepanov's mother, Margarita, rejected the conclusions, and insisted that her son was healthy.

In December, the Investigative Committee said medical experts had concluded from analysis of blood and urine samples that Cherepanov "engaged in doping" for several months before his death.

But in their July ruling investigators said he had been taking cordiaminum, which apparently stimulates circulation and breathing as well as the central nervous system, suggesting he may have been taking it to treat his condition.

Avangard's president, general manager and a team doctor were suspended indefinitely from positions in the league, and another Avangard doctor was suspended for two years.

The president of the host club, Vityaz, also was suspended indefinitely amid complaints about medical services at the arena.

Here's the incident in question...
Thanks to unrealhockey.ru and hockeywebcast

Suspensions Result From Cherepanov Death

((HT: Pierre LeBrun/ESPN))

Russia's Continental Hockey League has banned five team executives and doctors, four of them indefinitely, for their roles in connection with the death last October of New York Rangers prospect Alexei Cherepanov ((pictured, thanks Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)).

The men -- including the former team president and general manager of Avangard Omsk, the team Cherepanov was playing for, and two team doctors -- were banned following a KHL investigation, which concluded that the parties involved "exhibited criminal negligence" in their duties and knowingly tried to treat Cherepanov's life-threatening heart condition on their own.

The league also clarified earlier media reports that stated Cherepanov had been using performance-enhancing drugs, explaining that what had been reported as doping was in fact an attempt to treat Cherepanov's heart condition.

Cherepanov's agent Jay Grossman declined comment when contacted by ESPN.com.

Cherepanov, 19, collapsed October 13 while on the bench for Avangard Omsk and died a short time later. The league said Friday that Cherepanov had suffered from chronic myocarditis and that the cause of his death was acute heart failure.

"We are convinced that the following participants exhibited criminal negligence in the performance of their duties. Our sanctions are harsh, but we are confident that prosecutors in both the Omsk region and Chekhov district will also make their decision regarding this case," KHL vice president of hockey operations Vladimir Shalaev said Friday, according to a league news release.

"I believe that those responsible will receive not only sanctions regarding their future participation in sports, but that they will also be indicted on criminal charges."

Suspended and "indefinitely denied the right to occupy any position in any club of the KHL or in any structure of KHL" were former Avangard president Konstantin Potapov; general manager Anatoly Bardin; team doctor Sergei Belkin; and former Vityaz team director Mikhail Denisov, according to the KHL.

Another Avangard team doctor, Dmitry Batushenko, was suspended for two years. Avangard was playing Vityaz at the time of Cherepanov's death.

"One of the major issues confronting us was whether the team doctors knew about Cherepanov's disease," KHL medical chief Nikolai Durmanov said, according to the league news release. "The team doctors of Avangard say that they did not know that Cherepanov had a serious heart condition. According to these doctors it is normal for professional athletes to feel unhealthy. However, we have facts, which indicate that they knew about Alexei's disease. Most likely, they did not comprehend the full seriousness of his condition, as such conditions should only be treated by experienced cardiologists," he said.

Durmanov also addressed media reports last month alleging that Cherepanov had used performance-enhancing drugs.

"The team doctors of Avangard tried to treat Alexei on their own. What the press described as systematic doping, was an attempt to cure Alexei's heart condition," he said.

Following Cherepanov's death, prosecutors alleged the arena where Cherepanov was playing failed to coordinate proper emergency medical services before the game. Last month, Russia's federal Investigative Committee alleged a "row of gross violations was committed by the medical brigade" helping Cherepanov.

Report: Cherepanov Was Doping

((HT: CP))

Blood and urine samples show former hockey star Alexei Cherepanov ((pictured, thanks Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)) took performance-enhancing drugs, Russian investigators said in a statement Monday.

Cherepanov, 19, collapsed October 13 while on the bench for Omsk club Avangard in Russia's Continental Hockey League, or the KHL as it is known. The player, a top prospect of the NHL's New York Rangers, died a short time later.

Russia's federal Investigative Committee said a chemical analysis of the samples allowed experts to conclude "that for several months Alexei Cherepanov engaged in doping." A spokeswoman at the committee refused to specify the drugs that Cherepanov allegedly took.

The statement also said Cherepanov suffered from myocarditis, a condition where not enough blood gets to the heart, and the Russian should not have been playing pro hockey.

The club's medical team might carry legal liability in the episode, the statement added.

"A row of gross violations was committed by the medical brigade helping A. Cherepanov," the statement said. Among them, doctors arrived on the scene a full 12 minutes after Cherepanov collapsed, and the battery on the defibrillator used to attempt shock Cherepanov's heart back to life was drained, the statement said.

Prosecutors earlier this month accused the club's director of negligence. Mikhail Denisov has since been fired, and Monday's statement did not mention him.

KHL To Investigate Cherepanov Death

((HT: CP))

Russia's Continental Hockey League is saying they will conduct their own investigation into the death of 19-year-old Avangard Omsk player and New York Rangers Number One Draft Pick Alexei Cherepanov.

KHL Managing Director Vladimor Shalaev will lead a special commission to "conduct an exhaustive investigation into all aspects of the situation." The group expects to cooperate with state and local authorities.

Federal investigators say that the cause of death is currently unclear.

"The KHL is committed to the safety of our players and will ensure that all member teams provide the highest level of medical care for our players," league president Alexander Medvedev said.

Cherepanov was diagnosed, initally for a cause of death, with "chronic ischemia." Regional investigators are currently asking why this condition went undetected for as long as it reportedly did.

Lawmaker Pavel Krasheninnikov, who sits on the Russian Hockey Federation's supervisory council, has been vocal in his personal displeasure as to why local medical personnel took too long to respond to the call at the game and arena. He also has complained that there was no ambulance on stand-by and no defibrillator present at the arena.

Thousands Pay Respects To Cherepanov

((HT: CP))

Family, friends, teammates and thousands of fans paid their last respects Wednesday to Alexei Cherepanov, the 19-year-old rising hockey star who died after suffering heart problems during a game outside Moscow.

The cause of his death was still under investigation, federal investigators said Wednesday. A first-round draft pick for the New York Rangers, Cherepanov collapsed on the bench during a game Monday outside Moscow.

State television showed mourners in his Siberian hometown lining up on a red carpet placed on the ice in the arena of Cherepanov's team, Avangard Omsk, to lay flowers at his coffin.

Crowds of mourners followed as pallbearers carried the coffin, draped with white cloth, from the arena to Omsk's Staro-Severnoye Cemetery, where Cherepanov was buried.

Some onlookers were so overcome with grief they had to be restrained.

"It is hard to evaluate today the depth of the loss felt by the family of Alexei, Russian sport, and the Avangard team," said Leonid Polezhayev, the governor of the Omsk region, in comments to Russian agency Regnum.

"Alexei Cherepanov wasn't only a talented athlete and a reliable comrade, he was an idol of modern youth."

TSN's Bob McKenzie is still of the thought that there are more questions than answers when it comes to the rink-side death of Cherepanov. He interviewed Dr. Anthony Colucci, who was in charge when the Detroit Red Wings Jiri Fischer collapsed in 2005. Colucci doubts the inital diagnosis of "chronic ischemia."

"Ischemia is a coronary vessel disease," Dr. Colucci added, "and you can see it on an EKG (electrocardiogram). It's not that hard to detect. And to say a 19 year old has 'chronic' ischemia, I mean he's only 19, how chronic can it be? I am not saying ischemia can't kill a person but if that was the cause of death I can't tell you how unusual or rare that would be in this instance."

According to McKenzie and his investigation, Russian authorities also alluded to Cherepanov having a "hypertrophic" heart, which is a thickening of the heart wall and that, Dr. Colucci, said is more likely what caused Cherepanov to collapse on the bench and ultimately die.

The rest of McKenzie's interview with Colucci can be found in black...

Cherepanov Dies At 19

According to TSN in Canada, 19-year-old New York Rangers draft pick Alexei Cherepanov ((pictured, thanks Getty Images/Bruce Bennett)) died earlier Monday while playing in a Continental Hockey League game in Russia. He was 19.

Cherepanov collapsed on the bench during the third period of an Avangard Omsk game, and medical technicians attempted to revive him for 15 to 20 minutes after his heart stopped. Omsk Head Coach Wayne Fleming did not notice any activity on the ice that could have contributed to the collapse.

"They tried to get his heart started again but they couldn't," he explained.

Sources in Russia tell TSN that the ambulance that is normally at all games had already departed and had to be called back.

It is not clear exactly how long it took for Cherepanov to be transported from the rink to the hospital but one source in the arena told TSN it was, "probably 15 or 20 minutes."

There are also questions as to whether defibrillators at the arena were in good working order, though no further details are available.

Here is video of Cherepanov getting treatment on the bench...
Not for the weak of heart...

It makes you wonder where in the hell the ambulance and the EMT's were the entire time you watch...

((HT: Kukla's Corner/Alexovetjkin.blogspot.com/Puck Daddy))

Further coverage from TSN is in black...
TSN's Bob McKenzie comments on Cherepanov and the other losses the sport of hockey has experienced this year here...
Here's the drafting of Cherepanov from the 2007 NHL Draft in Columbus
((HT: TSN and the youtube))