Four of KHL’s Artemi Panarin teammates told The Post that they found it hard to believe the accusations of aggression directed by their KHL coach against the Rangers star and that none of them can remember the ‘incident that happened.
The allegations, transmitted on Monday to a Russian tabloid by former Vityaz coach Andrei Nazarov, have forced Panarin to leave the NHL. The four players were teammates of the Nazarov-led winger, who claims Panarin beat an 18-year-old girl while partying in a hotel bar in Riga, Latvia, after a road loss to Vityaz on December 11, 2011.
Nazarov, a well-known supporter of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, has repeatedly criticized Panarin for the 29-year-old Russian’s strong beliefs about Putin’s regime. In addition, Nazarov also once asked for the imprisonment of foreign players who criticize Russia.
Jon Mirasty, who was called by phone Tuesday afternoon, said his ex-coach’s allegations seem “really heavy” and he had never heard rumors about the incident.
“[Panarin] he was a fantastic kid, I have nothing to say good things about him, so when I heard that I said to myself, ‘Oh, that doesn’t sound like him,’ ”he told The Post Mirasty, a Canadian extreme.“ And I’m surely he would have felt something like that, you know, being one of the oldest veteran players there was.
“I never heard anything like that, so I was impressed. Obviously I’m not saying it didn’t happen, but if I guess so, [it didn’t happen]. And why does it come out ten years later? “
Mirasty said he had a lot of respect for Nazarov considering he had played parts of 16 seasons in the NHL (with Sharks, Lightning, Flames, Ducks, Coyotes and Wild) and that he was a well-established coach in the KHL.
“He treated me well, he was obviously a tough ex man, and then he also played in the NHL,” Mirasty said. “He was always very good to us, and it was a little weird for us there, because we were very few who were Canadian and didn’t speak a word of Russian.
“We related a lot to him because he spoke English quite well and I have nothing bad to say about it. So for me, that’s really shocking. “
Mirasty questioned the timing of the accusations, however, and noted that she had seen Panarin speak out publicly against Putin’s regime. Panarin showed his support for Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in an Instagram post last month.
“I don’t even think Panarin can beat a girl,” Mirasty said. “He was a small, thin boy and he always smiled, he made people laugh, and he was a hell of a hockey player. It just doesn’t add up. “
Arriving on Facebook messenger Tuesday afternoon, Kip Brennan, a Canadian who briefly played for the Islanders, also said he knew nothing about Panarin’s involvement in a physical altercation with a woman during the season they played together.
“I didn’t know or feel that anything like this would ever happen,” Brennan, who spent five seasons in the NHL and played three games with the Islanders in 2007-08, told The Post.
“He was a fantastic guy, he was funny in the locker rooms. He always worked his English with the American boys and was a very talented young player.
Two other former teammates, who asked to remain anonymous, agreed with Mirasty and Brennan’s stances on the situation.
“I only know Artemi as a very happy and funny guy,” one said. “He always had a smile on the court and was a good teammate.”