Torpedo warning
The KHL Competitions Department has announced that disciplinary measures are to be taken against Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod.
On Thursday, 15th of March, when Nizhny Novgorod hosted Game 2 of the Western Conference semi-final series between Torpedo and Dynamo Moscow, the Torpedo club violated a number of provisions in the League’s regulations, and these transgressions were included in the match Commissar’s official report.
The specific design of the arena, the Nizhny Novgorod Trade Unions’ Palace of Sport, means both teams must enter the playing area via a single corridor. In the staging of play-off games, due to the heightened psychological pressure on the participants, it is deemed undesirable for both teams to enter the rink simultaneously. The appropriate solution is stipulated in the corresponding articles in the regulations, detailing the timing and the order in which the opposing teams go out onto the ice. Despite repeated warnings from the game Commissar and Inspector, the Torpedo players went onto the playing surface for the pre-game warm-up and again after the intervals earlier than the allotted time – an act which could have lead to conflict with players and staff of Dynamo, either out on the ice or in the passageway under the stands.
Furthermore, the attire worn by the Torpedo head coach Kari Jalonen at the after-game press conference fell short of the standards of dress demanded by the KHL Sporting Regulations.
In addition to imposing the sanctions demanded by the Disciplinary Regulations, the KHL Competitions Department has issued a stern warning to the leadership of HC Torpedo about the club’s obligations to demonstrate strict observance of the KHL rules and regulations.
