“I don’t see any problem even if the IIHF excludes FHR from its members” – Kovalenko

Olympic champion Andrei Kovalenko told that he does not see a problem in the possible exclusion of the Russian Hockey Federation (RHF) from the International Hockey Federation (IIHF).

In August, the IIHF refused to register a contract with CSKA with goaltender Ivan Fedotov due to the existing agreement with the NHL club Philadelphia Flyers. The Russian goalkeeper was suspended for four months from September 1 and CSKA was banned from international transfers for a year. On Saturday, the IIHF disciplinary council rejected the appeals of Fedotov and CSKA. The goalkeeper continues to ride on the ice as part of the team during matches of the Fonbet KHL Championship, despite the ban from the IIHF. The head of the organization, Luc Tardif, told that if the FHR wants to remain in the international family, it must force CSKA and Fedotov to follow the sanctions.

— The IIHF said it may exclude FHR from membership. How to react to this?

— I think the FHR should respond to this. I have no connection with this organization, so it is difficult for me to comment. To comment on such situations, one must be inside the conflict. Unfortunately, I’m beyond that.

— If the FHR is excluded, how serious will the problem be for our hockey?

“I don’t see any problem even in the event of expulsion.” Our team is not playing anywhere. This means that we will develop our internal championship, raise young people and give talented children the opportunity to play. I am sure that sooner or later the team will play at the World Championships and the Olympic Games,” Kovalenko told .

Watch live broadcasts of the Fonbet KHL championship matches on the channel, as well as on the matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru sites.