Recently, foreign hockey players rarely speak positively about the KHL. However, when it comes to comparing the level of our championship with the North American, even Russian experts agree: the NHL is head and shoulders above the domestic league.

However, there are among the overseas players and those who assess the situation differently. Recently, for example, Jake Virtanen made an unexpected and very flattering statement about the KHL. The Canadian striker returned to his homeland – and said that six months in Russia actually saved his career.

Our coaches, it turns out, are no worse than Western ones!

Problems with law? You in the KHL

It is believed that there are not so many high-class legionnaires in the KHL: few people would exchange the opportunity to play in the NHL for a long business trip to Russia. The trends of recent years have completely made the KHL a league for foreign renegades after Brendan Leipsik, who plays for Magnitogorsk, Lokomotiv forward Reed Boucher and Jake Virtanen, who played for Spartak, came to it.

Reed Boucher / Photo: © KHL / Yury Kuzmin

And if Leipsik was accused of misogyny because of insulting the wife of another hockey player, then the latter two were suspected of rape in their homeland. So in overseas hockey they became persona non grata. And if Bush made a deal with the investigation, confessed to the crime and received a suspended sentence, then the second fought for his truth and won. A few weeks ago, 25-year-old Virtanen was found not guilty on charges of sexual assault.

The incident, according to the victim, occurred in 2017, but she reported it to the police only in 2021. Then Virtanen played for Vancouver, who selected him in the first round of the 2014 draft. He was considered a promising striker, but the scandal with the accusations crossed everything out. The Canucks did not want to spoil the reputation, sent Virtanen on vacation, and then bought out the contract, pointing to the door.

The KHL has become a logical continuation of a career for the Canadian. He started the next season with Spartak, where they seriously counted on the former NHL player. But when Virtanen “stalled”, they began to deny it. Jake never finished the season, violating the terms of the agreement in March due to unauthorized absence. In the spring, he returned to Canada, where he prepared for the trial.

KHL made Virtanen better

As a result, the striker was acquitted and even got the opportunity to return to the NHL by signing a two-month trial contract with Edmonton. Now everything depends on the efforts of Virtanen, who is happy even with such a chance. In his first interview since signing, the Canadian expressed his hopes of securing a foothold in the NHL. And he noted that he became better thanks to … his short career in Russia.

Jake Virtanen / Photo: © Icon Sportswire / Contributor / Icon Sportswire / Gettyimages.com

“Training in Russia is on a different level,” Virtanen said. — I tried it on myself for 6-7 months, and it gave results. The guys there work really hard.

An unexpected confession from a hockey player with six years of NHL experience. Curiously, Virtanen is not the first legionnaire who has been impressed by training in the KHL. American hockey player Ryan Whitney unvarnished described his short career in Sochi and became famous thanks to scandalous statements about Russian women. But he spoke about Russia and the Continental League not only nasty things. In an essay for the American media a few years ago, he also recalled hard training:

“A typical practice in Sochi was much harder than any day at the NHL training facility,” Whitney wrote a few years ago. — In Russia, they skate. Then they ride again. And further. You are just dying. You’re about to fall. The coach yells. You look at your Russian teammates and ask, “What did he say?” And he said, “This is a warm-up.” Tired? Batons hurt? Forget the pain. You will only be released from training if your leg comes off. When someone manages to leave a training session due to an injury, the rest look at him with great envy.

Individual approach is not for everyone

The difference in approaches to training in the KHL and overseas has long been known:

due to the tight game schedule and long regular season in the NHL during the season, most often do not spend more than one practice per day on the ice, it takes from 20 to 45 minutes. And that is sometimes canceled depending on the calendar. OFP hockey players are engaged in an individual program. Virtanen’s words indicate that this approach is not suitable for all players. At least not progress. And he was expected from Virtanen in the NHL for six seasons!

In the KHL, the calendar allows for much more frequent and intense training: strength practices are added to the mandatory ice classes, albeit to a lesser extent than at pre-season training camps.

But the difference, it turns out, is not only in the system, but also in relation. For example, the OFP coach of Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo Andrew Caxor noted that specialists like him are looked upon “with respect” in Russia:

– Physical fitness coaches in Russia are respected members of the staff. Therefore, Russian hockey players will always follow the coach’s instructions without asking too many questions. In North America, there is such a culture that the OFP coach must captivate the hockey player with training, while in Russia you need to show how important recovery is, he explained.