Lock-out over PLH and discredited idea of Dream Team – normal news for Polish hockey fans

First thing is the fall of Dream Team idea in Krynica. Club 1928 KTH, which started league in September now is practically dead. The reason is simple – nobody found main sponsor for this project. The effect is clear – every player, which understand hockey well, don’t play for Krynica anymore. Firstly left Krynica, in October, Krzysztof Zapała (to Sanok) and Mikołaj Łopuski (to GKS Tychy). On the beginning of November Dariusz Gruszka came back to his first club, MMKS Podhale Nowy Targ. Rest of Dream Team left the team on November 22nd: Przemysław Odrobny, Leszek Laszkiewicz and Grzegorz Pasiut joined JKH Jastrzębie. Rafał Dutka, Nicolas Besch, Jacob Milovanovic went to play for Sanok. Two players choose the same way as Łopuski, and are playing for GKS Tychy: Marcin Kolusz and Tomasz Malasiński. Moreover Patryk Wajda is playing for Cracovia and Krystian Dziubiński for Podhale. Finnish forward Tuomas Muhonen simple resolved contract and left Poland. Second problem of KTH, after lost their key’s players, is license. KTH until now didn’t paid for “wild card” and threatens them exclusion from Polish League. The same problem has Podhale. In last days KTH withdrew a reserve team form 1. Liga, due they don’t have enough player to play in both leagues.

And now the main dish – Lockout in PHL. In a few words: Polish clubs want dismissal of PZHL’s boss Hałasik, and Hałasik don’t want his dismissal. So far there was two round cancelled (should be played on 13th and 15th of December), and Polish Cup final is threatened. On December 11th representatives of clubs announced during press conference in Cracow theirs request: clubs want convening Reporting-election Congress of PZHL, which could call off present President of PZHL and choose another. Clubs reported few reasons which contributed to this move:
- Hałasik didn’t find a main sponsor for Polish hockey despite of his promises;
- Hałasik led PZHL’s finances to catastrophic situation;
- Hałasik called off members of Game and Discipline Department and Appeals Committee;
- Hałasik is working for fall down of Polish National Team due he cancelled a NT camp which should be held in December;
- Hałasik working for fall down of Polish League, because he want to throw away from League Podhale Nowy Targ and KTH Krynica, the teams that have not paid for wild card.

In protest against Hałasik’s actions clubs wouldn’t play next two PHL rounds (planned to be played on 13th and 15th of December). Moreover, if Hałasik won’t accept their proposal until December 27th, also the Polish Cup final also won’t be played. Yesterday’s meeting in Sanok didn’t resolve situation, so all hockey fans could only wait for “normality”. Which, I’m afraid, never going to come.

After Sanok’s meeting clubs officials gave a statement, where they saying: President of PZHL promised to call the Reporting-election Congress of PZHL in May next year, which is not satisfactory for clubs. Clubs want to decision about calling this Congress on February 8th, 2014. It means, the lockout is in progress.

Unfortunately, in whole case is one sure fact: decisions of both sides are against Polish hockey fans. Polish hockey don’t have a popularity of different teams disciplines, and situations like this don’t work for this popularity either.

Tweets by @eurohockey