North Bay Battalion vows to support eastern European players in wake of invasion

The North Bay Battalion is pledging to watch out for and support its players from eastern Europe in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Battalion forward Michael Podolioukh is Ukrainian. Nikita Tarasevich is from Belarus and the Troops have three other players on their roster from Russia. They are Matvey Petrov, Alexander Lukin and Rodion Tatarenko.

The Ontario Hockey League (OHL) issued a statement condemning the invasion and supporting the IIHF’s and Hockey Canada’s decisions to suspend Russia and Belarus from international competition and participation in national team events held in Canada.

"The Ontario Hockey League condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, desiring a peaceful resolution to the ongoing conflict as quickly as possible," the OHL said.

"The OHL remains in communication with its member teams, monitoring the well-being of all players and especially those European players originating from countries directly impacted by the conflict. These young student-athletes have the full support of the Ontario Hockey League as they continue to represent their respective teams, regardless of their country of origin."

North Bay Battalion

Battalion General Manager Adam Dennis addressed the situation Wednesday saying each player is being supported by the team.

"They’re part of our family so our job is there to make sure we’re there for them and support them in any way that we can," said Dennis. "I think everybody that has family over there is affected by it a little bit. It’s hard not to think about it.”

Dennis agreed with the league’s statement saying the team is lucky to have its eastern European players.

"I think that was their big point they were making was that there are supports in place for our players individually and we have all got to know Michal, Matvey, Alex, Nikita, Rodion very well and they are great kids," concluded Dennis.

The UN refugee agency says one million Ukrainians have fled the country since Vladimir Putin’s forces began bombing and shelling the country.

Ukrainian officials have said that more than 2,000 civilians have died since the invasion began on Feb. 24.