Just when you thought this battle between the KHL and NHL had more posturing than a presidential campaign and enough useless press releases to furnish the cages at your local ASPCA, the Nashville Predators have out done everyone. Today they released their entry for the world renowned 'Most Useless Press Release of the Century' competition. Despite the infancy of the current century, the Predators are still confident in their chances of winning.*

Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that Alexander Radulov has been suspended indefinitely without pay for the 2008-09 season.

Radulov, 22, has one season remaining on his existing entry level contract. During the off-season, he signed a contract with a Russian KHL team in violation of his NHL contract.

So let me get this straight. You're suspending a player who isn't really yours anymore. I mean, technically he's under contract for your team, but he basically gave you the middle finger and hopped on a plane to Russia. So yeah, three months later you're suspending him. Awesome. And the Red Wings just now won the Stanley Cup, right?

But so continues the slow death march-type pace of this whole KHL vs. NHL cold war thingy. I imagine the press releases will keep coming and so will their uselessness. For this blogger, it's all reached critical mass. I'm getting pretty sick of all the bluster and posturing. I'm going to go watch football for a week or two before the NHL season starts. Someone come get me if something important happens, OK?


* - They didn't tell me that, but they might of if I had actually contacted them.

Sergei Kostitsyn just gave an interesting interview to Russian Prospects where he touched on a number of different subjects, but the parts I found most interesting had to do with Alexander Radulov's defection to the KHL and what Kostitsyn thinks about its future.

As it turns out, Kostitsyn and Radulov both vacationed in Turkey early in the offseason, with the two staying in adjacent hotels. According to Kostitsyn, the cat was out of the bag about Salavat's offer to Radulov well before the actual announcement came at the beginning of July.

With two years remaining on his own rookie contract, the reporter was wise to ask the 21-year old winger what he would do if confronted with the same choice:

- What would be your choice in this situation?

- Right the opposite. To leave the best league in the World?.. No, thank you.

- That means you're skeptical about the potential of KHL?

- I disagree with the statement that KHL can catch up and take the lead against the NHL in the nearest future. If it ever happens it is a matter of not few years. Also, it's too early for me to talk about "zeroes" in the contract. I'm still young, will get mine when it's due.

[...]

- Don't you feel regret that even after successful debut in the NHL you'll have to play for Montreal on the rookie contract without the right to re-negotiate it? And we're talking about Russia, where you'd been offered double of "untaxed" at least.

- I'll get over. There is time for everything.

The Alexander Radulov scandal has certainly given us something interesting to talk about during a rather slow off-season. While we can understand why a semi-washed up Jaromir Jagr might want to play in the new KHL, it's hard to fathom why a guy like Radulov, with his best years yet to come, would want to flee the NHL early to join a league that has yet to play an actual game that counts.

Over at Russianprospects.com, Alexander opens up on his feelings about the whole matter in a very telling interview. This quote, regarding his possible suspension by the IIHF, certainly jumps up and smacks one in the face.

I can understand both sides. But the position of the Continental Hockey League has significantly more weight: NHL for 15 years brought young players from Europe, first and foremost from Russia. I think that it is time to end this. Simply put: time to stop robbing us!

Oh, the big bad EVIL NHL has been robbing poor Mother Russia blind like a highway robber! A single tear rolls down my cheek.

Radulov should very well understand the concept of PERSONAL CHOICE. Yes, those Russians playing in the NHL made a very personal choice to leave their home country and play in the NHL. Nobody forced Alexander Radulov to play with the Preds in the first place, or play in the Canadian Hockey League as a prospect. Nobody dragged Pavel Bure on a ball and chain to play with the Canucks, right? In fact, I distinctly recall Bure fleeing Russia because it was such a bad place to live and play.

I don't mind that Radulov wants to play at home, but spare us the Cold War rhetoric. kthx!

While most of us in North America were trying to find a way to get away from the heat, Paul Kelly, head of the National Hockey League Players Association wasn't being chary about raising the heat when it came to the fight that's beginning to engulf international hockey.

On Saturday, Kelly released a statement protesting an action by the International Ice Hockey Federation suspending six players from international play, including Alexander Radulov, a Russian now currently under contract to play next season for the Nashville Predators in the NHL as well as Salavat Ulaef of the KHL.

Kelly's statement follows in full:

"Yesterday's announcement by the IIHF that they have suspended certain Players from international competition has no basis in fact or law, and constitutes a violation of the rights of these Players. The affected Players are being unfairly singled out in a dispute between the NHL and the KHL over whether to respect each others' contracts. The NHLPA's strong objection to this unilateral action by the IIHF has been registered, and unless this action is reversed, the NHLPA will consider all legal options available.

As has been previously reported, the IIHF, the KHL, the NHL, the NHLPA, and several IIHF Federation members met in Zurich, Switzerland on July 10th to discuss the issues existing between the NHL and KHL, as well as other international ice hockey matters. Contrary to public comment by various attendees, while the meeting was productive and progress was made in several areas, a transfer agreement was not reached by the parties. In the absence of a transfer agreement or a written memorandum of understanding agreed to by all necessary parties, including the NHLPA, the IIHF cannot unilaterally act to sanction members of the NHLPA.

The NHLPA appreciates that the IIHF is taking action in an attempt to resolve the dispute between the NHL and KHL. The NHLPA will support these efforts by the IIHF, but not if individual Players are subjected to improper sanctions."

Earlier today, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) issued a statement saying that it was investigating the international transfer of six hockey players including Alexander Radulov, the one-time member of the Nashville Predators who has signed a three-year contract with a team in the Russian Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) despite the fact that he has one year remaining on his contract with the Predators.

Further, the IIHF added that all six players would be suspended from international competition pending the outcome of the investigation. The other players included in the announcement are Columbus Blue Jackets draftee Nikita Filatov, Thomas Mojzis, Jason Krog -- who has signed a contract with the Vancouver Canucks as well as a KHL team, Fedor Fedorov and Phoenix Coyotes dratee Viktor Tikhonov.

As multiple outlets have already reported, Nashville Predators winger Alexander Radulov has left the club with one year remaining on his contract to sign with Russian champions Salavat Ulaef, also known as Ufa.

The announcement of the signing comes almost simultaneously with news that the NHL and the new Russian-backed hockey league, the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) had come to terms on an agreement where member clubs would refrain from signing players from the other league who were already under contract.

To get the skinny on the signing, I called in Dmitry Chesnokov, Washington correspondent for Sovetsky Sport, who provided the following translation of an interview Radulov gave to Sovetsky's Pavel Lysenkov. The following will appear in tomorrow's edition of Sovetsky.

"Yes, I signed a contract with Salavat Ulaef," – Radulov confirmed the news to Pavel Lysenkov of Sovetsky Sport. "I wanted to play in Russia. And the offer I was made was very good. That's why I decided to take this step. I signed a three year contract, and will play in the KHL at least until I am 25. Hockey is experiencing a revival in our country. So why not play in the homeland?"