MOSCOW (AP) The Russian Hockey Federation has been fined 80,000 Swiss francs ($85,000) after the national team left the ice during Canada's victory celebrations at the world championships.
After losing the gold medal game 6-1 to Canada on May 17, most of the Russian players skated off before the Canadian anthem was played during the victory ceremony.
The Russian federation claimed its players had been confused after a gate was left open and had taken that as a signal to leave, but the International Ice Hockey Federation's disciplinary board ruled the gate was ''irrelevant.''
The IIHF said the Russians' exit was ''not the result of an unfortunate misunderstanding,'' citing an apparent signal from Russian captain Ilya Kovalchuk to his teammates and Russia's ''vast experience'' with world championship procedures.
