Alexander Blinov stepped down as coach of KHL team Amur Khabarovsk on Saturday after only five games. Though Amur certainly wasn’t favored as a contender this season, they finished 21st in the league last year, the team started 1-4, with the only win coming in overtime against CKSA. Three points in the first five games wasn’t good enough and Blinov was gone.
KHL Coach Fired After Just Five Games
“It’s unclear why our attack has become toothless. We’re averaging 35 shots on goal per game, but we’re not scoring. We’ve played this home series very poorly. I apologize to the fans, you just can’t play like that at home. We have some time now before we go on the road. We’re going to try to figure out the reasons for the losses.”
Blinov’s math is a bit off as Amur’s shot totals were 26-22-22-25-19 through the first five games. Yury Kachalov, an asisstant coach has taken an interim role with Amur as the search for a coach continues. The move is reminiscent of Denis Savard’s ouster in Chicago in 2008. After four games, the Blackhawks were 1-3, Joel Quenneville was added to the mix and the rest is history. However, there is no Patrick Kane and no Jonathan Toews in Khabarovsk and the outlook for the franchise isn’t going to be significantly altered with a simple coaching change.
For more on the KHL and all other European Hockey, visit Puck Worlds, SB Nation’s International Hockey goliath.
See More:
