By now you probably have heard of the terrible tragedy that occured in Russia earlier today.
An airplane Yak-42 carrying KHL hockey club Lokomotiv Yaroslavl had a failure as it was taking off, and went down shortly after landing, killing 43 passengers on board. Two more passengers survived the crash, but are in critical condition. One is a crew member, and another is a hockey player Alexander Galimov.
According to reports from Russia, among those who were killed in the crash is Daniil Sobchenko, San Jose Sharks prospect that Doug Wilson drafted in the 6th round just three months ago. Sobchenko was a player with a bright future, according to those who saw him play in the international competition. He was also the first player from the former USSR that Doug Wilson ever selected in a draft as a general manager of San Jose Sharks.
Words fail me right now as I look at the list of those who were killed in the crash. We’ve seen many of these players on the ice in NHL and at the Olympics. Sharks organization is impacted too. All of you have to do is look on Twitter and see how many NHL players are reporting they had friends on the board of that plane.
It’s been one terrible summer in hockey today with the deaths of its current and former players. Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse, another tragedy strikes – the kind none of us could have even remotely imagine possible.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of victims.
UPDATE, 10:30am: Emergency Services of Russia confirm that Daniil Sobchenko was on the plane at the time of the crash. Ruslan Salei, whose presence on the plane was questioned in earlier reports, is also listed as a passenger. These reports are as official as we’ll get.
UPDATE, 2:00pm: David Pollak of Working The Corners talks with Sobchenko’s roomate Tommy Wingels and Sharks Head Coach Todd McLellan about the tragic events today.
UPDATE, 3:00pm: Sharks General Manager Doug Wilson released the following statement today concerning prospect Daniil Sobchenko:
“We are very saddened to report that the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry has published a list stating that Sharks prospect Daniil Sobchenko was aboard the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane that crashed today in Yaroslavl, Russia. Daniil attended our development camp this past July and everyone on our staff agreed that he had a bright future with our organization. He was an amazing person with a fun-loving personality and his attitude and energy during his time in San Jose was infectious. Our deepest sympathies go out to his family and friends.”
“This is a difficult day for the hockey world. Many people in our organization had existing relationships with other Lokomotiv players, coaches and staff members. We send our sincere condolences to their families as well.”
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