EuroVision: Semin to play for peanuts

Alex Semin, acquired this summer by the Carolina Hurricanes for a whopping $7 million for one season, is set to make his 2012-13 debut Friday for Sokol Krasnoyarsk, which is not a KHL team but does play hockey close to where he grew up.

Sokol is part of the Russian Major Hockey League, a feeder system below the KHL that does not pay its players nearly as much.

“Money is not the most important thing in life. Even if I spend the entire season in Krasnoyarsk, it won’t be a loss for me,” the sniper, who could still reportedly move up to the KHL later this season, told Pavel Lysenkov of Sovietsky Sport.

Watch Semin practise with his new team:


Stanley Cup champion Anze Kopitar made his debut with his younger brother Gasper’s team, Mora IK of Sweden’s second-tier league, HockeyAllsvenskan. And to the surprise of no one, he’s lighting it up. Kopitar earned “player of the match” status after scoring four points in Mora’s 6-2 victory over Vasteras.


Winger Nikolay Zheredev — late of the NHL’s Blue Jackets, Rangers and Flyers — scores on a beauty ‘tween-the-legs dangle for Atlant Moscow Oblast, a team he joined last season to get the jump on all the imports:


Swiss team EHC Biel’s new acquisition, Tyler Seguin, to his imaginary dog: “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not at TD Garden anymore.”


NHL goalie duel set for Sunday? Yes, these are desperate times. Stream if you’re starving:

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