Post by Jazz on May 29, 2004 13:37:48 GMT -5
Tikhonov replaced as Russia's head coach[/u][/color]
source: slam.canoe.ca/Slam040528/hky_russia-cp.html
MOSCOW (CP) -- Viktor Tikhonov, the most successful coach in the history of international hockey, has been replaced as the head coach of the Russian national team, the country's hockey federation announced Friday.
Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, 49, a former national team defenceman, was unveiled at a news conference as Tikhonov's replacement.
Alexander Steblin, the head of the Russian hockey federation, said Tikhonov, 74, will remain with the national team as senior consultant.
Tikhonov returned to the Russian national team last year and was behind the bench for last month's world championship tournament that was held in Czech Republic.
Bilyaletdinov made his debut with the Soviet national team at the inaugural 1976 Canada Cup, the forerunner of the World Cup of Hockey. His first assignment as the club's coach will be the World Cup of Hockey, which will be held Aug. 30 to Sept. 14 in Canada and the U.S.
Igor Tuzik, the vice-President of the Russian hockey federation, was named general manager of Russia's World Cup of Hockey squad.
Steblin would not say whether Bilyaletdinov will remain the Russian national team's coach after the World Cup, saying only his term as head coach could be extended if Russia's World Cup experience proves successful.
The World Cup of Hockey is organized by the NHL and by the NHL Players' Association in co-operation with the International Ice Hockey Federation.
Vladimir Yurzinov and Valeri Belousov will serve as senior coach advisors leading up to the World Cup. Bilyaletdinov will unveil his coaching staff at a later date.
Yurzinov, who is head coach of the Kloten Flyers of the Swiss league, was Tikhonov's assistant at the world championship. Belousov is head coach of the Russian league-champion Avangard Omsk.
Bilyaletdinov has NHL coaching experience, serving as an assistant with the Winnipeg Jets-Phoenix Coyotes franchise (1993-1997). He also spent time with the Chicago Blackhawks and was the head coach of HC Lugano of the Swiss Elite League in 2002, before returning to Dynamo Moscow.
Bilyaletdinov was a member of six Soviet world championship squads. He also won an Olympic gold medal in Sarajevo in 1984 and was part of the Soviet squad which captured the 1981 Canada Cup. Bilyaletdinov also played in the 1984 Canada Cup.
The Russian hockey federation also named Washington Capitals forward Dainius Zubrus to its World Cup squad. Zubrus, 26, is a Lithuanian citizen, but is eligible to play for Russia in the World Cup because IIHF eligibility rules do not apply.
The Russian hockey federation received the clearance from the Lithuanian Ice Hockey Association to use Zubrus, who will not forfeit his eligibility to play for Lithuania in future world championships.
The remainder of Russia's World Cup roster will be unveiled Tuesday.
Tikhonov led the Soviet and Russian national teams from 1978 to 1994 during which he won three Olympic gold medals (1984, 1988 and 1992) and eight world championship titles.
Tikhonov also led the Soviet national team to the 1981 Canada Cup victory, beating Canada 8-1 in Montreal in the final, as well as to a 6-0 victory in the deciding game of the 1979 Challenge Cup against the NHL all-stars in New York.
Tikhonov, who also led club team CSKA Moscow to 13 national league titles, was inducted to the International Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 1998.
His harsh tactics often angered his players. One of the best examples came after his team won gold at the 1992 Games in Albertville, France, when Tikhonov took backup goalie Nikolai Khabibulin's gold medal and kept it for himself.
Khabibulin always resented Tikhonov for it and eventually received a replacement prior to the 2002 Olympics.
Tikhonov replaced Vladimir Plyushchev who was released from his duties after only one season. Russia lost in the quarter-final of the world championship won by Canada in Finland in May. The Russians finished a disappointing seventh. Russia has not won a world championship since 1993 after winning 23 titles between 1954 and 1993.
Tikhonov coached CSKA Moscow in the Russian league after leaving the national team in 1994 and continuously produced top-level talent in his program. Nikolai Zherdev, who was selected fourth overall in the recent NHL draft, was a Tikhonov product. A total of four CSKA Moscow players were selected in the 2003 draft.
source: slam.canoe.ca/Slam040528/hky_russia-cp.html
MOSCOW (CP) -- Viktor Tikhonov, the most successful coach in the history of international hockey, has been replaced as the head coach of the Russian national team, the country's hockey federation announced Friday.
Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, 49, a former national team defenceman, was unveiled at a news conference as Tikhonov's replacement.
Alexander Steblin, the head of the Russian hockey federation, said Tikhonov, 74, will remain with the national team as senior consultant.
Tikhonov returned to the Russian national team last year and was behind the bench for last month's world championship tournament that was held in Czech Republic.
Bilyaletdinov made his debut with the Soviet national team at the inaugural 1976 Canada Cup, the forerunner of the World Cup of Hockey. His first assignment as the club's coach will be the World Cup of Hockey, which will be held Aug. 30 to Sept. 14 in Canada and the U.S.
Igor Tuzik, the vice-President of the Russian hockey federation, was named general manager of Russia's World Cup of Hockey squad.
Steblin would not say whether Bilyaletdinov will remain the Russian national team's coach after the World Cup, saying only his term as head coach could be extended if Russia's World Cup experience proves successful.
The World Cup of Hockey is organized by the NHL and by the NHL Players' Association in co-operation with the International Ice Hockey Federation.
Vladimir Yurzinov and Valeri Belousov will serve as senior coach advisors leading up to the World Cup. Bilyaletdinov will unveil his coaching staff at a later date.
Yurzinov, who is head coach of the Kloten Flyers of the Swiss league, was Tikhonov's assistant at the world championship. Belousov is head coach of the Russian league-champion Avangard Omsk.
Bilyaletdinov has NHL coaching experience, serving as an assistant with the Winnipeg Jets-Phoenix Coyotes franchise (1993-1997). He also spent time with the Chicago Blackhawks and was the head coach of HC Lugano of the Swiss Elite League in 2002, before returning to Dynamo Moscow.
Bilyaletdinov was a member of six Soviet world championship squads. He also won an Olympic gold medal in Sarajevo in 1984 and was part of the Soviet squad which captured the 1981 Canada Cup. Bilyaletdinov also played in the 1984 Canada Cup.
The Russian hockey federation also named Washington Capitals forward Dainius Zubrus to its World Cup squad. Zubrus, 26, is a Lithuanian citizen, but is eligible to play for Russia in the World Cup because IIHF eligibility rules do not apply.
The Russian hockey federation received the clearance from the Lithuanian Ice Hockey Association to use Zubrus, who will not forfeit his eligibility to play for Lithuania in future world championships.
The remainder of Russia's World Cup roster will be unveiled Tuesday.
Tikhonov led the Soviet and Russian national teams from 1978 to 1994 during which he won three Olympic gold medals (1984, 1988 and 1992) and eight world championship titles.
Tikhonov also led the Soviet national team to the 1981 Canada Cup victory, beating Canada 8-1 in Montreal in the final, as well as to a 6-0 victory in the deciding game of the 1979 Challenge Cup against the NHL all-stars in New York.
Tikhonov, who also led club team CSKA Moscow to 13 national league titles, was inducted to the International Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 1998.
His harsh tactics often angered his players. One of the best examples came after his team won gold at the 1992 Games in Albertville, France, when Tikhonov took backup goalie Nikolai Khabibulin's gold medal and kept it for himself.
Khabibulin always resented Tikhonov for it and eventually received a replacement prior to the 2002 Olympics.
Tikhonov replaced Vladimir Plyushchev who was released from his duties after only one season. Russia lost in the quarter-final of the world championship won by Canada in Finland in May. The Russians finished a disappointing seventh. Russia has not won a world championship since 1993 after winning 23 titles between 1954 and 1993.
Tikhonov coached CSKA Moscow in the Russian league after leaving the national team in 1994 and continuously produced top-level talent in his program. Nikolai Zherdev, who was selected fourth overall in the recent NHL draft, was a Tikhonov product. A total of four CSKA Moscow players were selected in the 2003 draft.
