(2011) RIP Brad McCrimmon and others

[jarnon]

Brad McCrimmon, who played for the Philadelphia Flyers and other NHL teams, died in a plane crash near Yaroslavl, Russia. The plane was carrying the Lokomotiv team of the Kontinental Hockey League; McCrimmon was a Lokomotiv coach. Other former NHL players on the flight were Pavol Demitra, Ruslan Salei, Karel Rachunek, Karlis Skrastins, Josef Vasicek, and Alexander Vasyunov. Altogether, at least 43 people died and 2 survived.

Plane crash in Russia involves KHL team

[etaoin22]

This is, unfortunately, "the big one" among fears within professional sports leagues -- an entire team killed in a plane crash. It has never happened in the four big North American leagues, and probably will not, given the normal level of jetliner safety in North America, but any team does put on a lot of miles...

It should also be realized that the KHL (Kontinental Hockey League) has aspirations of competing with the NHL, bringing North Americans to play and coach, even as Russians come to our continent. Not just the crash of a local team in a local league, as some of the early wire-service reports suggested. Yaroslavl was one of their better teams.

[jarnon]

NBC just broadcast a moving tribute to Coach McCrimmon and the Lokomotiv team.

[TheConfessor]

This thread reminds me that etaoin22 has been conspicuously absent for a while. Looks like his last post was almost six months ago. Anyone know what happened, or if he's okay?

[littlebeast13]

I was at the ballgame the evening after this happened...

Spoiler

As for etaoin, he has been prone to extended absences in the past. But I did notice he has been missing from my LSWE notebook this year....

lb13