Weird traditions and sports go together like peanut butter and jelly. In North America, these customs usually amount to, like, a silly hat or something. But in Russia, things are a little different.
It’s good to recognize excellence.
Lots of teams have rituals for when they win. The NHL’s New York Rangers hand out a “Broadway hat” (which looks more like a safari hat tbh) to their best player after the game.
Winning is fun.
Some post-game traditions aren’t as subtle as the Rangers’ silly hat award. The Carolina Hurricanes do a whole host of weird things after they win, and they even get the fans involved.
Russia is a different beast.
While hockey players in North America and Europe are playing the same game fundamentally, there are a few differences. Take the Kontinental Hockey League, which has teams in several countries but is mostly based in Russia.
We’re taking a deep dive.
The KHL is Europe’s top level of hockey, and possibly the second best league in the world. Beneath this level, though, is the Supreme Hockey League. As we’ll see, they take things very seriously here.
This team just won.
Let’s set the scene by breaking down the video. These players are members of Izhstal Izhevsk, a team in the Supreme Hockey League. They’ve just won a hard-fought victory against a team called (checks notes) Chelmet.
Cut to the locker room.
The players take off their gear, and mean-mug the poor cameraperson, as they wait for their coach to leave his office and debrief following a hard-earned victory. There’s a prize to be won, after all.
In comes the coach.
The guy looks like a pretty standard hockey coach, but he…it’s tough to get a good look, but this coach is carrying something that’s typically not really associated with coaches.
Yep.
Yes, the coach brings out a freakin’ AK-47 assault rifle like it’s no big deal. It looks like he’s going to mow down his comrades, but this is a happy occasion, not a tragedy about to unfold.
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Time for the handoff.
The coach approaches a player — not to shoot him, but to hand off the AK. This player is the team captain, and has a crucial role in this whole weird ceremony.
A stirring speech ensues!
Still wearing his hockey pants and brandishing an assault rifle, the captain gives what’s no doubt a stirring speech. If I knew how to speak Russian, I might even tell you what it is that he said.
Come on down!
The captain gives the rifle to its eventual recipient: goaltender Saveli Kononov, who’s being acknowledged as player of the game after backstopping his team to a big 3-2 victory.
Russia gonna Russia.
A hockey team keeps an AK-47 in its locker room, but apparently it’s no big deal. Let us know what you think of this quintessentially Russian story in the comments!
h/t: Daily Mail
