Jiří Pacovský

🏒 This is about possible scenarios for the upcoming World Juniors in Edmonton and Red Deer. It's my fourth posting regarding CAS’ decision to uphold the appeal from the Russian Ice Hockey Federation thus allowing Russia back to IIHF championships. 🏒 But before that; fans and others mustn’t look at the CAS decision from the moral or emotional side. Everyone knows that OJ Simpson killed Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman, but OJ won the case because OJ’s lawyers did a better job than the prosecutor. Virtually everyone knows that it’s morally wrong to have Russia currently compete in hockey, but CAS ruled in their favor because Russian lawyers did a better job than the IIHF Council who had five years to adequately amend their regulations, but they didn’t. 🏒 All eyes will now be on the upcoming World Juniors in Edmonton and Red Deer. In the wake of the Canadian government’s decision to deny visas for the Russian team, it may seem that Mark Carney solved the IIHF’s most pressing problem. It’s not that easy. 🇨🇦 That the tournament takes place in Canada presents a major opportunity for Russia. There are at least 70 Russians (probably over 100) who play in various Canadian junior leagues, CHL and below. This means that they already have visas (maybe even work permits) and that they can freely travel within Canada. 🏒 Although this team would most likely be far from what the Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RHF) would normally select, in this case it won’t matter a bit for the RHF. They know that they won the CAS case and they will do everything to ice a team, even if it takes circumventing Canada's visa ban and have a lesser squad. The RHF may even ask a Canadian based NHL team to release an eligible player from their system for the WJC. 🍁 If no Russian team staff is allowed to Canada, it will be fairly easy for the RHF to recruit staff from within Canada’s borders among Russian diaspora or others. As Hockey Canada has a long-standing deal with the CHL to release players for the World Juniors, neither this should present a problem for the RHF. 🏒 The RHF will also closely monitor how the IIHF acts and if they find evidence that the world governing body tries, in any way, to stop or obstruct Russia from taking part, their lawyers will be ready to sue the IIHF for a huge amount for non-compliance with the CAS ruling. 🇸🇪 Swedish lawyer and former CAS arbitrator Conny Jörneklint says that there is a risk that the RHF may also take the individual national federations to CAS if Russia believed that these countries were not following the CAS decision by boycotting matches against Russia. 🏒 Emboldened by the CAS ruling, and full of spite, the RHF will do everything that it takes just to play in the WJC. They are not bothered that at least half of the WJC countries have said that they will forfeit their game if they have to play Russia. The RHF will take any win as a win, even if it will make mockery of the championship, right up to the gold medal game. 🥅 The Pandora’s box is wide open. It was made possible by the IIHF’s non-action on amending their regulations.