MOSCOW, Oct 6 Two-time Stanley Cup winner, Olympic champion with the national team Czech Republic Dominik Hasek on his Twitter said that the Czech authorities could not ban Russian players from entering the country for the matches of the National Hockey League (NHL). Clubs in their social networks announced their arrival in the Czech Republic. San Jose previously played a friendly in Germany and Nashville played in Switzerland.
"Unfortunately. According to the laws of the European Union, which in this case are above ours, if they arrived in the country from another EU state, we cannot refuse to let them in. Only if we are not in immediate danger. We could stop them at the airport upon arrival from the US", Hasek wrote, answering the question whether the Czech authorities could not simply let Russian hockey players into the country.
Earlier, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic Martin Smolek said, that the department warned the NHL about a possible ban on entry into the country for Russian citizens for the rendered matches between the San Jose Sharks and the Nashville Predators. Russian forwards Alexander Barabanov and Yevgeny Svechnikov play in the «sharks», Yakov Trenin plays for the «predators». Later, the country's Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky announced that the Czech Republic would let Russian players into NHL exhibition matches on previously issued Schengen visas. The NHL season starts with meetings within the Global Series in Prague on October 7 and 8.