The club management understood the solution of the Finns. The situation was not as good in all KHL teams.
Olympic winner Harri Säteri is one of the KHL hockey league Finns who have returned to Finland due to the war in Ukraine. He left Finland for St. Petersburg with four other KHL players after the first round of the KHL playoffs on March 2 in Ufa.
– So flying from Ufa to St. Petersburg and from there by car to Finland. No one had any problems at the border, Säteri says.
A week later, Säteri, who lives in Tampere, is on holiday with his family. He still watches the matches of his club in Sibir Novosibirsk against Salavat Yulayev Ufa.
– I haven’t been in touch with the club or the players anymore. I can’t say how much they still know why me and Jyrki Jokipakka we left.
The Siberian club leadership understood
Säteri is grateful to the club, where he played three seasons.
– The club management understood our situation well. Some of the other players understood what it was about, some probably didn’t. They rely on information from the local media.
He also has an agreement with Siberia for the period 2022–23.
– At the moment it is impossible to say if I can go back and I even want to. Probably going at least until August. Of course, I cannot make any agreements elsewhere.
On February 20, Säteri and 16 other KHL Finnish players celebrated Olympic gold in Beijing. The team returned to Helsinki the next day and celebrated at the Olympic Stadium. Then ten of them returned to their clubs to prepare for the playoffs.
– When what happened in Ukraine a couple of days later, we followed the Finnish media and knew what it was all about. In the locker room, the matter was wondered the first day, then it was no longer talked about. The culture of silence is strong in Russia, Säteri estimates.
– We Finns have a discussion group on Whatsapp. We had discussions there about our situation. Time soon began to hear rumors of a possible border closure and whatever.
There was no talk of politics
Two Finnish players left before the playoffs began on March 1. Eight players played 1-2 matches and then the start was ahead.
Six players were left to continue the playoffs, including Severstal Tsherepovets Joonas Nättinen was the only one to play on Thursday.
– I can’t say if these players would have been able to leave either. I know so much that not every club leadership has been as positive as we have in Novosibirsk, Säteri says.
Was there any talk about the problems between KHL and Russia in the club or between the players at all?
– When the season was running, we players focused on playing, and we didn’t talk about politics with anyone. It is impossible for me to say how popular, for example (Vladimir) Putin is among the people, Säteri says.