American player says Canadian coach threatened him during KHL playoffs
There aren't a lot of foreigners left in the KHL playoffs, with most leaving once Russia's invasion of Ukraine got underway. Two that are left, however, got involved in a verbal battle with each other as their teams duked it out in the KHL playoffs. Both have ties to the NHL.
Defenceman Steven Kampfer - who played for Boston, Minnesota, Florida, and the New York Rangers in the NHL - is a member of Ak Bars Kazan. His team was involved in a first-round series against Avangard Omsk, which is coached by Bob Hartley. Hartley won a Stanley Cup as bench boss of the Colorado Avalanche in 2001. Kampfer claims in one of the games that Hartley threatened to send someone from Avangard after him.
Hartley flat-out denied saying that to Kampfer when asked about it by reporters. Kampfer says it happened, and calls it "low".
"I think it's a low act, I don't care if it's tactics or whatever. Telling a player that he will be hunted down is a low thing," Kampfer added.
Hartley has long been known to say whatever's on his mind in both the NHL and KHL. His last job in the NHL came as head coach of the Calgary Flames. He started in 2012, won the Jack Adams as Coach of the Year in 2015 with the team, and was fired in 2016 after a major regression for the Flames in the standings. Besides Colorado and Calgary, the Ontario native also had a stint as coach of the Atlanta Thrashers. He's been is Russia since 2018 and coached Avangard to a Gagarin Cup last season. Avangard eliminated Ak Bars Kazan in the first round and is now taking on Magnitogorsk is the conference semi-finals.
Kampfer was born and raised in Ann Arbour Michigan, and was a fourth-round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 2007.
Source: Championat.com
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