Lokomotiv will not play in KHL for 2011-2012

MOSCOW – According to multiple media sources, the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl hockey team that was decimated by a plane crash last week will not be rebuilt for the 2011-2012 season.
The Associated Press reported that Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko announced Monday that the team would be moved down to the Major Hockey League, one level below the KHL, and most likely with a roster consisting of players from Lokomotiv’s youth team. The plan to demote the Lokomotiv team was confirmed to SovSport by Russian Hockey Federation president Vladislav Tretiak.
The news comes following a meeting called by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to discuss the fate of the franchise. Last Wednesday, 36 members of the Lokomotiv team including players, coaches and others, were killed when their chartered Yak-42 airplane crashed along the Volga River shortly after takeoff. The lone surviving player, 26-year old Alexander Galimov, died earlier Monday from burns sustained in the crash.
Lokomotiv Team President Yury Yakovlyev said the new squad may begin play in the MHL in December. Yakovlyev had stated Friday that the team would not play in the KHL this year in order to focus on helping the families of the victims of the accident.
The KHL had floated a plan to rebuild the team immediately using players from the other league teams and said that upwards of 35 players who at one time or another had played for Lokomotiv had volunteered to return to Yaroslavl. The plan would have hinged upon the member clubs continuing to pay their players who went to Yaroslavl for the season, allowing Lokomotiv management to use its financial resources to honor the contracts of the victims and help the families of the deceased players and coaches.
Stay with Pro Hockey News for more information on this developing story.
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