Czech Republic hosting NHL games next month, but Russian players not welcome

The Predators and Sharks will play two preseason games in Prague next month, but the Czech Foreign Ministry has told the teams their Russian players "are not welcome” due to the country’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Karel Janicek of the AP. The rosters for both clubs have not been set, but the edict would impact at least Predators C Yakov Trenin and Sharks LW Evgeny Svechnikov. Hockey HOFer and Czech Republic-native Dominik Hasek has “led the opposition to Russian players coming to Prague since the games were announced in April,” having approached Parliament, the Senate, the government and the Foreign Ministry about the issue. The NHL is heading to Europe for the first time since the pandemic -- in addition to the two Prague games, the Avalanche and Blue Jackets are playing two games in Finland in November. Finland’s stance on Russian players is not clear (AP, 9/22).