Wow, pretty incendiary Russian interview given by Kovalev

[BTH]

No surprises here: Kovalev denies it all.

[KoZed]

It says that only one russian journal covers the Canadien's (Soviet Sport). A journalist form Sovet Sport told Radio-Canada that Football-Hockey (the russian journal that published Kovalev's interview) isn't a serious publication and seeks controversy.

Of course, one newspaper will jump on the first occasion to burry a competitor.

The fact that there's only 1 Russian newspaper following the team actually gives more weight to Kovalev talking. If the other newspaper dont follow the team, then how could they put that kind of article?

And the article actually stems from a radio interview first, so that's who would have made it up.

Le Journal the Montreal also believes it's false...

What will we have?

Sensationalism and Shocking "false" news coming from LAPRESSE!!! LOL

never seen before...

Big up by lapresse IMO

La Presse isnt RDS or Le Journal de Montréal. They've got much higher journalistic standards. It's not the BBC, but it's not a bunch of amateurs.

[alexstream]

Of course, one newspaper will jump on the first occasion to burry a competitor.

The fact that there's only 1 Russian newspaper following the team actually gives more weight to Kovalev talking. If the other newspaper dont follow the team, then how could they put that kind of article?

And the article actually stems from a radio interview first, so that's who would have made it up.

La Presse isnt RDS or Le Journal de Montréal. They've got much higher journalistic standards. It's not the BBC, but it's not a bunch of amateurs.

I know, but if you read entirely the Brunet's article... it makes you wonder if they were 100% sure about the news... or if they wanted to be the first to publish everythign they could about it...

-> the russian reporter stopped replying to them after saying that some parts of the interview "might not be accurate"

-> no one could provide the complete audio interview. if it was totally accurate, there would be no problem in backing it up with the audio file.

[ShortHanded]

I know, but if you read entirely the Brunet's article... it makes you wonder if they were 100% sure about the news... or if they wanted to be the first to publish everythign they could about it...

-> the russian reporter stopped replying to them after saying that some parts of the interview "might not be accurate"

-> no one could provide the complete audio interview. if it was totally accurate, there would be no problem in backing it up with the audio file.

I'm stuck about whether or not to believe it's true... I don't put it past Kovy, but at the same time, does his arrogance trump his stupidity? Would he really put himself in such a bad position? Unless of course he WANTS to be chased out of town, but then making those comments will earn you a bad rep across the league, not just in one city....

In terms of what you said Alexstream, it's true, unless Kovy's got power (or friends who have power) and managed to get them to stop replying for some other reason than that the audio doesn't exist...

[alexstream]

I think he had the interview with the lady and said some of these things.

I just don't think that she reported them accurately... If she had done so, she wouldn't have had a problem to back it up with the audio file.

[KoZed]

I think he had the interview with the lady and said some of these things.

I just don't think that she reported them accurately... If she had done so, she wouldn't have had a problem to back it up with the audio file.

Yeah... that's what I'm tending to think to. Kovalev just said some things to someone on the phone, who turned around and repeated the story to a journalist who made an article out of it. Weither or not the article repeats the exact words of Kovalev is one thing; but in that articles their are strong opinions and descriptions on the team that could hardly come from someone else than a player, so it does point at Kovalev as the source of those opinions and descriptions.

Follow the train of thought of the article, and it can't be tabbed on someone overseas who has never been on the team's beat, in the same plane, in the same locker-room.

[alexstream]

Yeah... that's what I'm tending to think to. Kovalev just said some things to someone on the phone, who turned around and repeated the story to a journalist who made an article out of it. Weither or not the article repeats the exact words of Kovalev is one thing; but in that articles their are strong opinions and descriptions on the team that could hardly come from someone else than a player, so it does point at Kovalev as the source of those opinions and descriptions.

Follow the train of thought of the article, and it can't be tabbed on someone overseas who has never been on the team's beat, in the same plane, in the same locker-room.

yup, but the more I think about it, the more "biased" the article is.

Picture this:

Kovalev plays in Quebec, in a defensive system, with a team which might miss the playoffs, on a team where the coach hates russian players...

Kovalev loves offensive systems -> Russia is better

Kovalev might miss the playoffs -> Kovalev is available for Russia

Kovalev's coach hates russian -> Canadien/NHL do not deserve Kovalev and Russia is better

Other things reported :

Kovalev is a wonderful TEAM player (let me laugh please!!!), North american players (represented by habs players) are selfish -> Russia is better

Samsonov didn't have his chance (let me laugh please!!!), were not patient, defensive system, didn't believe in him... etc (if we are guilty of something, it's about being too patient with him... he had some value in november!)

This was a strictly patriotic article, made up with a fake/corrupted/made up interview where Kovalev only said 1/3 of the reported things...

[alexstream]

listening to CKAC right now

[simonus]

listening to CKAC right now

anything worth reporting?

[alexstream]

Carbo awkwardly denies it, reports that Alex told him that he never talked to that reporter.

Lats (lots of credibility in his report, unless Carbo who sounded shaky) says that it's so unlike Kovalev to do something like that, he'd have told him directly if he had something to tell... etc. Also, unlike Kovalev to talk that much and that badly to a reporter.

Kovalev told the media that it's not the 1st time that they start such crap and that if they wanna drive him out of town, they're on the good way to doing so.

CKAC didn't express their opinion on whether or not it's true while I was listening.

[simonus]

Kovalev told the media that it's not the 1st time that they start such crap and that if they wanna drive him out of town, they're on the good way to doing so.

he said the french/quebec media has a history of creating these kind of stories or was he accusing the russian media of doing this? (or both I guess)

He said that they were doing a good job of driving him out of town? Like he's going to ask for a trade or something? hmmm...

[alexstream]

Latendresse supports Kovalev:

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20070305...1006/CPSPORTS01

Mathias Brunet contradicts himself. I don't know why they decided to report all of this after the original reporter ended up saying it's finally false!!!

http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20070305...1006/CPSPORTS01

Notre collaboratrice Elena tente ensuite de retracer l'entrevue sur le site Internet de la station de radio mais on n'y diffuse qu'un extrait, au sujet d'une éventuelle participation au Championnat du monde. Il est cependant en tout point conforme à celui du magazine. Elena communique par courriel avec la journaliste en fin d'avant-midi, toujours hier. Regina Sevostianova lui répond par écrit (en russe) qu'elle nous fera parvenir l'entrevue audio dans son intégralité parce qu'elle tient à sa réputation, et elle confirme à nouveau qu'il s'agit d'une retranscription mot à mot de son interview à la radio.

Une heure plus tard, nous apprenons qu'il y a eu conversation téléphonique entre Kovalev et la journaliste après notre premier appel. (Un de ses proches nous confirmera d'ailleurs au bout du fil que Kovalev lui a admis avoir accordé une entrevue à cette femme).

En fin de journée, Sevostianova nous dit (par écrit, en russe) qu'elle a discuté avec son patron et qu'il est impossible de nous faire parvenir le lien audio de l'interview. En outre, elle nous prévient, il y a des différences majeures entre l'entrevue à la radio et celle qui a été retranscrite dans le magazine (après nous avoir confirmé deux fois qu'il s'agissait d'une retranscription mot à mot, et qu'en outre, le texte porte sa signature). Quel revirement inattendu. La pression était-elle trop forte?

Nous lui écrivons alors pour lui demander à nouveau la bande de façon à vérifier s'il y a des inexactitudes comme ils le prétendent soudainement. Pas de réponse de leur part. Nous n'en aurons plus d'ailleurs. Et à 16 h, il n'était plus possible d'accéder au site Internet du magazine Football-Hockey.

Comme le magazine Football-Hockey est très crédible, comme Sevostianova est très crédible elle aussi et qu'elle nous a confirmé en début de journée que le texte du magazine était conforme en tout point à l'entrevue audio, nous avons pris la décision de publier l'entrevue.

he said the french/quebec media has a history of creating these kind of stories or was he accusing the russian media of doing this? (or both I guess)

He said that they were doing a good job of driving him out of town? Like he's going to ask for a trade or something? hmmm...

woah, do not over-interpret there.

They triggered him they led him to such answers, they asked rhetorical questions, etc..

I think the question was : do you still want to play in Montreal

and the answer was something like : "obviously yes! but you guys are not helping it and if you continue (to drive me nuts, to create false rumours, etc... e.g. the fight which didn't happen with Souray), the answer might become different."

[Oleg Petrov]

Been following this story on SRC, RDS, Cyberpresse, Habs Inside/Out and Le Journal for a few hours now...fascinating...

Now my theory is that Kovalev's story is true. He was asked by somebody at La Presse if he gave a newspaper interview to Regina Whatshername and he said no, he only gives newspaper interviews to Sport Soviet. Later he admitted that he had given an interview to this woman; some of the press here jumped on that as evidence he was lying, as he was changing his story, but the truth was that this interview started as a radio interview for a radio station in Moscow (which is where the audio file comes from). Kovalev says this woman called him up on his birthday, wished him a happy birthday, and then interviewed him for 2-3 minutes where he answered some questions about what sort of a season he's having, and whether he likes playing defensively. He answered that he prefers an offensive style, but it's a team sport, etc. Then she hung up.

That interview was aired on the radio. The audio that the woman sent to La Presse was that short 2-3 minute interview, and she didn't have an explanation for why the rest of the "transcribed" interview that we've been reading with all the controversial stuff in it wasn't with the audio file, just that she only had a part of it at that moment, and she'd get the rest of it to them later, which she never did - that was Friday or something.

Kovalev maintains that the sports newspaper that this interview appeared in is the Russian Sports equivalent of the National Enquirer, and he's backed up on this by a source from Sport Soviet, the newspaper that he exclusively gives interviews to. That reporter says "Football-Hockey" or whatever it's called is notorious for making stuff up on a daily basis to sell papers (I guess we don't know what that's like here!), and that anyway, making up news stories is a fairly common practice in post-Soviet Russia.

Carbo is convinced Kovalev is telling the truth, as is Latendresse. La Presse has wet themselves tarring and feathering Kovalev via about 6 online columnists calling for his head. SRC seems pretty convinced it's all a hoax. Mike Boone on Habs Inside/Out (an hour ago, anyway) is convinced it's true. Le Journal thinks it's fake.

Like I said, I now think he didn't say this stuff...but I sure loved the interview when I thought it was true!

[alexstream]

The Gazette thinks it's true? do they rely solely on Brunet? or do they have an opinion of their own?

[simonus]

woah, do not over-interpret there.

They triggered him they led him to such answers, they asked rhetorical questions, etc..

I think the question was : do you still want to play in Montreal

and the answer was something like : "obviously yes! but you guys are not helping it and if you continue (to drive me nuts, to create false rumours, etc... e.g. the fight which didn't happen with Souray), the answer might become different."

sorry, this whole story is incredibly surreal to me. Nothing is making any sense and I have no sense of how it is all playing out.

[Punkned]

I share Oleg Petrov's conclusion. Nice resumé dude!

[Oleg Petrov]

The Gazette thinks it's true? do they rely solely on Brunet? or do they have an opinion of their own?

The Gazette's main page hints it's probably a hoax; Mike Boone, who blogs on the Gazette's Habs site, thinks it's true just because he thinks the interview sounds so authentically Kovalev. I hope he likes the great taste of crow! Here it is:

http://www.habsinsideout.com/boone/2007/03/its_over.html

It's over

Posted by Mike Boone @ 12:35 PM

It's over for Alex Kovalev in Montreal.

Sure, he denies giving that explosive interview.

But you know what?

It would take a KGB operative right out of a John Le Carré novel to fabricate those quotes – all of which have the ring of authenticity.

Besides, La Presse did its homework. As Matthias Brunet points out, the newspaper held off on publishing the story until its veracity could be checked with the journalist in Moscow who conducted the phone interview with Kovalev.

The story is real, people.

And having slammed his teammates and his coach, Alex Kovalev is toast in Montreal.

But the ripple effect stretches farther than his inevitable departure.

And threatens to derail the team.

Kovalev says that Guy Carbonneau doesn't like Russians. He also accuses the Canadiens of mishandling Sergei Samsonov and ######ing the progress of Andrei Kostitsyn and Mikhail Grabovski.

This accusation of ethnic bias could not have come at a worse time for the Montreal Canadiens.

Consider:

• The team's best defenceman, Andrei Markov, is Russian. He becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

• Any list of the Canadiens' most promising forwards would include Grabovski (a Russian born in Germany) and two Belarussian brothers: Andre and Sergei Kostitsyn.

• In an organization that is very shallow on defence, help is expected to come from two young Russians: Evgeni Yemelin and Pavel Valentenko.

So what are the chances, after this mess, that Markov will stay in Montreal?

And what's going through the minds of all those Russian prospects?

Thanks, Kovy.

Thanks for 13 goals, 27 assists and minus-10 in the second season of a four-year deal that pays you $4.5 million per.

Thanks for driving a succession of linemates crazy as they tried to anticipate where you were going and what you would do when you got there.

Thanks for taking yourself out of the lineup at a crucial point in the season.

Thanks for all the dumb-ass, lazy, momentum-killing penalties.

Thanks for the puck-hogging, the extra-long shifts and and the Ice Capades pirouettes that end in turnovers.

And thanks for breaking the hearts of all the fans who – despite the aforementioned lacuna – loved the way you played hockey.

Edited March 5, 2007 by Oleg Petrov

[dark_faerie87]

Consider:

• The team's best defenceman, Andrei Markov, is Russian. He becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

• Any list of the Canadiens' most promising forwards would include Grabovski (a Russian born in Germany) and two Belarussian brothers: Andre and Sergei Kostitsyn.

• In an organization that is very shallow on defence, help is expected to come from two young Russians: Evgeni Yemelin and Pavel Valentenko.

Errr, isn't Grabovski a Belarussian too?

[bobby]

• In an organization that is very shallow on defence, help is expected to come from two young Russians: Evgeni Yemelin and Pavel Valentenko.

Hey Mike don't get ahead of yourself. We have to draft EVGENI Emelin first. Then convert him from forward to defense. That could take some time... Might be easier to see how his older brother Alexei does first....

edit - actually Aleksey Emelin's younger brother (I think it is his brother) is named Konstantin. He is a draft eligible forward currently playing in the Lada Togliatti organization.

Edited March 5, 2007 by bobby

[Oleg Petrov]

Grabovski is indeed Belarussian.

Just watched the RDS coverage of the story on Sports 30. Very irresponsible yellow journalism. Interview with Matthias Brunet demonstrating that both he and Renaud Lavoie are emasculated profferers of falsehood.

Jacques Demers, the lone voice of reason, commented that Kovalev deserves the benefit of the doubt.

[KoZed]

False or not, this story could be the emotional spur Kovalev needed to get in gear. The Plex line is doing well so far, so this could shake Kovy just enough for him to decide to up the tempo.

[sakiqc]

False or not, this story could be the emotional spur Kovalev needed to get in gear. The Plex line is doing well so far, so this could shake Kovy just enough for him to decide to up the tempo.

I think it'll do the reverse effect. It'll get worse and he'll get "injured" next game

[bobby]

Yeah, I think that Gainey and Carbo can easily turn this into a positive. Develop a siege mentality within the team, "Us against the world". Realistically, things can't get any worse on the ice, so any change or distraction is a welcome event. Politicians constantly demonize the media in an effort to prop up the loyalty of their followers. It works more often than not.

[Tony]

I agree with Streamer here, the article sounds like bullshit. La Presse apparently has 5 pages of this whole Kovalev situation (RDS and La Presse's website have the EXACT articles all the time) where everyone else thinks it's fabricated.

I'm going to have to give credit to Jacques Demers where he says to give Kovalev the benefit of the doubt here since a similar situation happened to Demers in Detroit.

Either way, if this officially turns out to be false, way to look stupid La Presse.

[alexstream]

I agree with Streamer here, the article sounds like bullshit. La Presse apparently has 5 pages of this whole Kovalev situation (RDS and La Presse's website have the EXACT articles all the time) where everyone else thinks it's fabricated.

I'm going to have to give credit to Jacques Demers where he says to give Kovalev the benefit of the doubt here since a similar situation happened to Demers in Detroit.

Either way, if this officially turns out to be false, way to look stupid La Presse.

Nah, what's weird Tony is that Lapresse got it out and said it's true... that passage from Brunet though is contradictory... and shows a flaw... Hints that it could be false after all...