Malkin staying in Russia

[Dwight Schrute]

poor kid
all he wants to do is play the game he loves, his coach and the russian league, are using him as a pawn. playing off his feelings for his country and such. now the next question is should he return to russia is he safe ?

[Toswammi]

the tale continues...

TSN.ca Staff

8/16/2006 11:44:52 AM

Evgeni Malkin has officially sent his resignation to Metallurg Magnitogorsk, TSN has confirmed.

Malkin has been at the center of a huge international storm since leaving his Russian team on the weekend.

Mettallurg Magnitogorsk coach Dave King told the FAN 590 in Toronto on Wednesday morning that a fax was received by the team that indicated Malkin was exercising his "two-week window rights" to re-sign. Russian law allows any employee to leave an employer, even while under contract, simply by giving two weeks notice.

King said he did not know where Malkin was, but speculated that he was staying with Washington Capitals star Alexander Ovechkin somewhere in the United States. Ovechkin, however, is in Toronto and told TSN he had not spoken to Malkin in a couple of weeks.

"Everyone wants to be in the best place, in the best league," Ovechkin told TSN. "It's his decision. I don't know if he's right or wrong, but it's his decision."





Malkin's agents have only said that their client is safe.

Sources told TSN that Malkin is not in Toronto, but is stationed at an undisclosed location in the United States.

TSN has confirmed that Malkin, through his representation, has indeed served notice that he will not be returning, and provided Metallurg Magnitogorsk the obligatory two week notification required in writing under Russian labour law. This process took place quickly following his departure from the team on Saturday.

Malkin is said to be rattled by this cloak and dagger saga and wants for nothing other than the opportunity to play in the National Hockey League and to put the nastiness of this battle behind him and his family.

"It's not his fault, he didn't ask for this", a source close to the situation told TSN. "He was ready to play (in the NHL) last year. This is what he wants."

The next chapter in this mystery is equally guarded, however the source adds that the next 24 hours may offer more insight into Malkin's next move.

What is clear is the enormous pressure the Russian Federation is feeling now that the leverage they had with Malkin in an ongoing tug-of-war with the IIHF and the NHL is quickly vanishing.

It is hoped Malkin's fight to join the NHL will encourage Russia to fall into line with the other international hockey federations currently guided by the existing transfer agreement, thus avoiding the inevitability of other young, talented Russian players from following a similar path.

The resignation strategy Malkin has employed is one that no Russian hockey player had used until Alexei Mikhnov, an Edmonton Oilers prospect, gave his written notice to Russian club Yaroslavl on June 30. That situation, however, also remains unresolved. Yaroslavl could still attempt to prevent Mikhnov from leaving Russia, or it could take legal action against the Oilers to block him from making the move.

"All we know is Mikhnov gave his notice to leave his club team and the two-week period expired," Oilers assistant GM Scott Howson told the Edmonton Journal last week. Howson also told the Journal that Mikhnov's agent was, in fact, negotiating a contract with the Oilers.

Malkin seems a long way from getting to that step.

Penguins star Sergei Gonchar told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that he spoke to Malkin a week ago, just before Malkin disappeared while Metallurg Magnitogorsk was training in Finland. Gonchar noted that Malkin sounded disappointed about having signed to stay with Metallurg Magnitogorsk.

"He was very upset," Gonchar told the Tribune-Review, noting that there must have been a lot of pressure on the youngster to re-sign with his Russian team - maybe too much pressure.

"It's a different country than it used to be," Gonchar told the Times-Review. "Hopefully, nobody is going to put pressure on his family or himself when he comes back. But at the same time, there's got to be some pressure because otherwise a guy wouldn't sign a deal at 3 a.m. then disappear in a couple days.

"I'm assuming he's in the United States or some other country where he can wait."

Russian national team coach Vyacheslav Bykov has already told the Russian newspaper Sport-Express that Malkin would still be welcome to play for his country.

[Carebear]

Poor Malkin.



Honestly, this all must be so tough on the kid.

[SeventhHeaven4U]

In another message i was talking about hockey globalization and it saddens me to hear about Russia being so pigheaded as to not cooperate with other leagues!! They don't care about their players, all they want to do is make a buck. Over and over again the Russians have tried to screw their own players out of seeking their life-long dreams! They are only hurting their own hockey future, dictatorship ended decades ago!

[Kristi]

Ok ok I will admit he is staying with me in Everett! It was supposed to be a secret but ya know!

Ok seriously I hope everything does work out for him......it really isn't a great position for him to be in under any circumstances.

[Carebear]

Ok ok I will admit he is staying with me in Everett! It was supposed to be a secret but ya know!

Ok seriously I hope everything does work out for him......it really isn't a great position for him to be in under any circumstances.

HAHAHA, be careful what you say Kristi. The Russian mafia is EVERYWHERE, in fact they may very well be looking at this board RIGHT NOW.

....I think I just heard a knock at your door.

[Tiger Trauma]

Evgeni Malkin officially filed a letter of resignation with the Russian Super League, according to Metallurg Magnitogorsk coach Dave King.


The Russian star's resignation is the first step in an attempt to sign with the Pittsburgh Penguins next year and begin his National League Hockey career.

In an interview with Toronto's all-sports radio station the FAN 590, King said the team had received Malkin's resignation. Under Russian law, an employee - even an athlete with a valid contract - is allowed to leave his job by giving two week's written notice.

Described as the best player not in the NHL, Malkin, drafted second overall in 2004 by Penguins, recently reworked his contract with Metallurg in favour of a one-year deal, allowing him to join the Penguins in 2007. His previous contract was through 2008.

But even though he is still contracted to Metallurg, Malkin was quoted in Russian newspapers as saying he wanted to play in Pittsburgh this coming season.

The 20-year-old player mysteriously bolted from Metallurg on Saturday after the team arrived in Helsinki for a training camp, leaving with his belongings and passport and, possibly, a Canadian visa, according to reports.

His whereabouts are unknown, but the Associated Press is reporting Malkin flew to Canada and has remained there with no timetable of his arrival in Pittsburgh for the start of the Penguins' training camp in three weeks.

Malkin's North American agents, J.P. Barry and Pat Brisson of CAA Sports, said he was safe, though they wouldn't confirm his arrival in Canada.

"J.P. and I have been in constant touch with Evgeni, as we would do with any player, but especially with Evgeni," Brisson said Wednesday.

Brisson would not comment when Malkin might emerge in the United States.

Friends of the Russian star said he was under heavy pressure to sign the deal and reports in Russia suggest the renegotiated contract wasn't finalized until 3 a.m.

Metallurg general director Gennady Velichkin reprimanded Malkin for suddenly leaving the team and has threatened to sue the Penguins if they sign him.

However, Velichkin's uncompromising view on Malkin isn't shared by Russian national team coach Slava Bykov, who said Malkin can play on the national team at any time.

"I think you can't blame him until you know what exactly happened when he was signing the contract," Bykov told Moscow's Sport-Express Daily newspaper.

"There is only one thing I can't understand with this story with Malkin. We live in a free and democratic country, and anybody could leave it at any moment."

The score reports he is currently In Los Angelas

[Kristi]

Malkin turns up in Los Angeles
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Associated Press
Posted: 21 hours ago



PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Evgeni Malkin mystery finally ended Thursday as the hockey star surfaced in Los Angeles with his agents, five days after slipping away from his Russian Super League team during training camp in Helsinki, Finland, and vanishing from sight.

Less than 24 hours after flying from Finland to the United States, the Pittsburgh Penguins' draft pick showed up, naturally enough, on a hockey rink. He skated with about 20 NHL players at the Los Angeles Kings' practice rink in El Segundo, trading passes and working out with players such as Rob Blake, Glen Murray, Chris Simon and Anson Carter.
"He got in a great workout today," agent Pat Brisson told The Associated Press. "He's going to stay here for a while, until we can move forward with Pittsburgh."

Malkin's next step is to try to get on the Penguins' ice for the start of their rookie camp in early September. Malkin's agents, J.P. Barry and Brisson of CAA Sports, are working with lawyers to determine when the 2004 No. 2 draft pick can join them.

"We have been informed by Evgeni Malkin's agents that Evgeni is now in the United States," Penguins general manager Ray Shero said in the first statement by the team regarding Malkin's situation. "At the appropriate time, we look forward to sitting down with Evgeni and his representatives to discuss what can be a very bright future with the Pittsburgh Penguins."

The Penguins would have one of the NHL's best 1-2 center combinations with Sidney Crosby and the 20-year-old Malkin, often called the best player in the world not currently in the NHL.

Malkin agreed less than two weeks ago to a one-year contract to keep playing for his hometown Metallurg Magnitogorsk. The deal circumvented a previous deal that ran through 2008, and apparently was agreed to by Malkin under pressure during a late-night negotiating session.

After reworking that contract, with Russian agents who have long had ties to the Metallurg team, Malkin changed North American agents for the second time this summer in an attempt to get into the NHL immediately. Then, after arriving in Helsinki, he left his team, took his belongings and passport and joined Barry, and the two stayed hidden until a U.S. visa was granted Wednesday.

Malkin's agents had previously declined to reveal where he was staying to make certain the player remained safe. Malkin's disappearance was front-page news in Russia, where the Olympic team star is considered one of the country's top athletes.

Within hours of Malkin leaving his team, the North American agents faxed a letter of resignation Sunday to the Metallurg team. Under Russian law, Malkin can quit his job by giving two weeks' notice, even if he is under contract. He had also sent such a notice in July, before he negotiated the new contract.

Once the two-week period is up, it is believed that Malkin can sign an entry-level, three-year contract with the Penguins that could be worth close to $1 million a year, plus as much as $2.8 million a year in incentives, though Malkin's agents are still deciding what legal steps to take.

The Russian team has threatened to sue, though previous legal attempts by Russian teams to get back players who jumped to the NHL were thrown out of U.S. courts.

Malkin's contract will be identical to that of the player drafted immediately ahead of him in 2004, NHL rookie of the year Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals. Ovechkin's Moscow Dynamo team also tried legally to get him to return last year, but the case was thrown out of U.S. District Court.

The NHL has not publicly stated any support for Malkin, but deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league believes any player should have the right to choose where he wants to play as long as he is legally free to do so.

[LifelongChiefsFan]

Why doesn't Russia just sign the agreement to get compensation for having their players come over to the NHL? It seems pointless not to. Unless there is something I'm missing (I have never really read what the agreement states) but I think it's safe to say that many to most potential Russian superstars will probably come to the NHL whether the agreement is in effect or not. Wouldn't it make sense to sign it and get something rather than sue, have the case tossed out, and get nothing? I don't understand their stubborness at all, again unless I'm missing something.

[Beaner]

The Russians want more $$ for their players. Thats why they havent signed.