Atlant Moscow Oblast
Encyclopedia
Atlant Moscow Oblast is a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

n professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 team based in Mytishchi
Mytishchi
Mytishchi is a city and the administrative center of Mytishchinsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia, which lies to the northeast of Russia's capital Moscow, on the Yauza River and the Moscow–Yaroslavl railroad. The city is the oblast's largest center for industry and education...

, Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...

. They are members of the Tarasov division of the Kontinental Hockey League
Kontinental Hockey League
The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league in Eurasia founded in 2008. As of 2009, it is ranked as the strongest hockey league in Europe....

 (KHL).

Overview

Atlant Moscow was founded on December 20, 1953, then under the name Khimik (1953–2008) in Voskresensk
Voskresensk
Voskresensk is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located southeast from Moscow, on the shores of the Moskva River. Population: Town status was granted to Voskresensk in 1938.-Notable athletes:...

. Khimik played its first game on December 27, 1953. Immediate success allowed Khimik to play in the Championship of the Soviet Union. Leading the team was playing-coach Nikolai Epstein. In three short years, Khimik was graduated to the top league of the Soviet Union. Three bronze medal
Bronze medal
A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...

 results between 1965 and 1984 were capitulated in 1989 when the team achieved silver under prestigious head coach Vladimir Vasiliyev, a major accomplishment for a team from a small town. More impressive is how much successful homegrown talent has come out of the Khimik system, withs names including future Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...

 winners such as Igor Larionov
Igor Larionov
Igor Nikolayevich Larionov is a Russian retired professional ice hockey player, known as The Professor. Along with Viacheslav Fetisov, he was instrumental in breaking the barrier that stopped Soviet players from joining the National Hockey League . He primarily played the centre position, and is...

 and Valeri Kamensky
Valeri Kamensky
Valeri Viktorovich Kamensky is a retired Russian hockey player. Before the NHL, he started his career with Khimik Voskresensk in the Soviet Championship League and also played for CSKA Moscow...

.

In the spring of 1998, the status of the team changed, representing not only the city of Voskresensk
Voskresensk
Voskresensk is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located southeast from Moscow, on the shores of the Moskva River. Population: Town status was granted to Voskresensk in 1938.-Notable athletes:...

 but also the entire Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...

. This event took place on their 45th anniversary. During the 2005–06 season, the team relocated within the Moscow Oblast, from Voskresensk to Mytishchi
Mytishchi
Mytishchi is a city and the administrative center of Mytishchinsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia, which lies to the northeast of Russia's capital Moscow, on the Yauza River and the Moscow–Yaroslavl railroad. The city is the oblast's largest center for industry and education...

. Following this, the team changed its name to Atlant, prior to its inclusion in the Kontinental Hockey League
Kontinental Hockey League
The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league in Eurasia founded in 2008. As of 2009, it is ranked as the strongest hockey league in Europe....

 (KHL). Their new team logo features a Central Asian Shepherd Dog.

Recent history

Atlant signed NHL goaltender Ray Emery
Ray Emery
Ray Emery , often nicknamed Razor or Sugar Ray, is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender, currently with the Chicago Blackhawks. He formerly played for the Anaheim Ducks, Philadelphia Flyers, and the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League and Atlant Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey...

 to a single year contract on July 9, 2008. The deal was reportedly worth in excess of $2 million, plus bonuses.

Atlant and Emery had several issues, including Emery attacking the team trainer and his temporary refusal to return to the team after the KHL break over a contract dispute. Emery was upset that the his pay was in rubles that were not inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...

 protected. He returned to the team shortly after to play the remainder of the season.

Runners-up

  • Championship of the USSR
    Soviet Hockey League
    The Soviet Championship was the highest level ice hockey league in the Soviet Union, running from 1946 to 1992. Before the 1940s the game of ice hockey was not cultivated in Russia, instead the more popular form of hockey was bandy, with history of the game in Russia dating several centuries into...

    (1): 1989
  • Championship of the USSR
    Soviet Hockey League
    The Soviet Championship was the highest level ice hockey league in the Soviet Union, running from 1946 to 1992. Before the 1940s the game of ice hockey was not cultivated in Russia, instead the more popular form of hockey was bandy, with history of the game in Russia dating several centuries into...

    Bronze Prize
    (4): 1965, 1970, 1984, 1990


External links

Atlant Official Website
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