The arena offered refunds to the tickets, originally sold for the opening night game between the two clubs. No one accepted and all money from the sales went to the Lokomotiv.
There is a video below of a condensed version of the ceremony.
As you can see in the video, it was a very touching ceremony with pictures of the fallen players and coaches. The Dynamo players each came out with such grace and respect to the portraits, took a knee, then skated a puck for each player into their own net as a sign of loss to the Lokomotiv.
Each spectator brought flowers. All the Belarusian leadership, including President Aleksandr Lukashenko, were present at the event according to Russia Today. Those are the people wearing red jerseys, lead by the President.
That was a very touching tribute by the Kontinental Hockey League, the Dynamo, and the Belarusian government.
Below is the full ceremony.
The KHL is committed to returning hockey to Yaroslavl as soon as possible.
KHL president Aleksandr Medvedev has pledged to the people of Yaroslavl that their team will play again.
"I want to reassure you that we'll do whatever we can so that the highest level of ice hockey in Yaroslavl will continue to exist, and so that the Lokomotiv club will continue to be one of the strongest clubs in the Kontinental Hockey League," he said.
According to the Sport-Express paper, a total of 36 KHL players have already expressed a wish to join the new Lokomotiv.
The first game of the season between last year’s finalists Salavat Yulaev and Atlant was interrupted during the second period. The league has yet to confirm the official re-start of the season, but it will not be earlier than Monday.
In his address to the crowd present at the opening game of the season, the KHL President Aleksandr Medvedev stated that all players and staff of the Yaroslavl team except one survivor, Russian Aleksandr Galimov, who is in a local hospital in grave condition, died in a plane crash near the city of Yaroslavl in Central Russia.
Following the address, the sell-out crowd held a moment of silence. After that the two squads headed to the nearest church to honor the legacy of their departed friends. The game was not completed.
Below is the Salavat Yulaev training staff reacting to the news about the tragedy (still video from the KHL season opener live coverage from rt.com).
Such an outpouring of sympathy in such tragedy from everywhere, including here in the NHL. The Calgary Flames, New Jersey Devils, and the Detroit Red Wings are among many NHL teams feeling the effects and mouring with the rest of the hockey world by offering releases about the incident. Of course, no where here in the states matches the overflowing grief felt and expressed in Russian and elsewhere in the five countries within the KHL. Memorials are all over the region with roses, notes, and candles.
Below is a video that Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins, heavy with emotions, wanted to do in order say a few words to his fellow countrymen in his native Russian, grieving with them after the plane crash this week that killed the players and coaches of Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.
"It is difficult to describe with words everything that happened. I still cannot comprehend it. I have a heavy heart… My sincere condolences to all the close ones, parents, wives, children and the entire city of Yaroslavl that supports this team.
"We are all sincerely feeling sorry and sincerely supporting all the close ones, relatives. Any help that may be needed — we will always help.
"All the players who are overseas right now — and I talked with a lot of them — we are all feeling for you, supporting…. This is a terrible tragedy. We have to live through it together. We have to keep together and move on. I know that Russia will get back on its feet and will carry on moving forward."
Very touching and heart-felt.
Here is a report from Russia Today summing up much of what is in this blog.
No matter your language, no matter your sport, we are just humans that too often forget the big picture until it is too late.
Thanks for posting all the videos. I can't understand a word but it is so heartfelt. Truly a beautiful ceremony for such a tragedy.
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