MOSCOW, Sep 24 Czech hockey player San Jose Sharks Tomas Gertl supported Russian players and the club's position on the team's participation in away matches of the National Hockey League (NHL) in Prague. Earlier, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic Martin Smolek said that the agency had warned the NHL about a possible ban on entry into the country for Russian citizens for exhibition matches. The Sharks are played by Russian forwards Alexander Barabanov and Evgeny Svechnikov. On Thursday, a source familiar with the situation said that the NHL has agreements to hold exhibition matches in the Czech Republic and does not expect Russian hockey players to participate in them. If they arise, then the league will not play the scheduled matches in the Czech Republic, and the clubs will play at home. «We support the team, and especially Barbie (Barabanova). I played a lot with him last year and he is a great guy. It's a difficult situation This is not the mistake of the players, and he should not be punished for it. He is one of the nicest guys, «Gertl is quoted by San Jose Hockey Now. The striker's position was supported by another Czech San Jose hockey player, Radim Simek.» Of course, I I support (Gertl's statement). If Barbie stays here, our whole team should stay here,» Simek said. Predators». Yakov Trenin plays for the Predators.
