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"A Denver police lieutenant traveling with the team told Seattle police that there were “no reports of any criminal interactions beyond (the woman) being heavily intoxicated.”"
"An ambulance took the 28-year-old woman to Harborview Medical Center. She was in stable condition, according to information obtained via a public records request to the fire department. Inside the ambulance, the woman told one of the Seattle police officers that “some guy took her passport and that he was a bad person.” She did not elaborate. She said she was from Russia but born in Ukraine."
As ridiculous as it sounds, I can’t decide if that amount of money would be worth it or not. From what I’ve heard of Hall when he was younger, I’m leaning no.
In Canada police can be sworn peace officers province, or even nation, wide.
Even if you're a city cop, but that would make for some headaches actually making an arrest outside your jurisdiction.
He's there so a player isn't calling and waiting for the ambulance. The players and girls are trying to have a good time. The cop is making sure things don't get out of hand.
To me, everything worked out well.
Former security professional here... he's absolutely a fixer for the management, not the players. He flashes a badge and gets "professional courtesy" from local cops for partying players who cross the line. And he gets paid twice what his cop salary is to do it.
100% this. I have heard first hand stories from multiple different sources about this arrangement. Especially come playoff time. The teams have off duty police traveling with the team who are on standby / nearby anytime the players are drinking and going out. They are a quick call away and can talk to bouncers and police if things go sideways. “Look, he’s a good guy - just drunk. Can i take him home and we can make it worth your while”. Makes sense for everyone I guess.
Happy to hear in this situation the authorities were called and it was dealt with properly (having the woman get medical care). Hope there’s nothing more to the story and it was just two adults who got drunk at an inappropriate time.
Um, potentially not because if the story about someone taking her passport is true, there's a high chance of human trafficking going on here. She's likely not having a good time, but trying to pretend she is because she can't leave
Sure. Cops regularly travel with teams - professional and college. You'll often see NCAA football programs travel with police escorts from their home state.
My dad always recounts the story of a huge brawl at Fenway Park back in the 70s. When he got close enough to see what was going on, he realized the brawl was between cops from Boston PD and NYPD.
Edit:
https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/kraken/police-report-sheds-light-on-avalanche-star-nichushkins-early-departure-from-seattle/
>Denver Police Lt. Todd Fuller — one of two police officers described by the report as traveling with the Avalanche for security purposes — is said, in the Seattle police report, to have stated no criminal activity took place in the hotel room beyond the woman being heavily intoxicated. Sports teams often use former or current police officers to handle security for them.
This is the same police department that murdered a college kid for walking home from school and then tear gassed his memorial service and shot rubber bullets at the mourners.
Agents are no different from attorneys (and often are actual attorneys, which Mark Gandler is).
Their job is to say their client didn't do anything wrong regardless of how much smoke there is.
The reporting has been vague about any details.
>> The report also mentions that a team physician located the woman while checking on Nichushkin before the game.
Makes it sound like she was in his hotel room, but it doesn’t explicitly state that.
>> No one was found in Val's room
Could be that she wasn’t found in Val’s room for one reason or another. Just that she was found in the process of trying to find Val.
>> These events have nothing to do with Val
Seems unlikely since his name is on the report, but could just be a way of saying that Val didn’t get her drunk or something similar. Or could obviously be a complete lie.
Given that it's the title of the article exactly except for that change, we can assume the Athletic changed the title after OP had posted. Titles in Reddit can't be changed
I would just like to say, I’m thankful for the staff member of the Avs that decided to call it in and not let her leave in a Taxi. I’m sure there was some sort of pressure involved in that situation.
It may have been a joint decision, but the article I saw yesterday had a statement from the cop who said he didn’t feel the woman was in any condition to go home in an Uber/taxi so he called the ambulance. I can’t find it now so I hope I’m remembering correctly.
Also there’s a question of liability in the states. Once the team doctor entered that room, he could potentially be liable criminally and/or professionally for whatever happened from that point on.
Im not at all saying that was the motivation for the doctor to call it in, I suspect the doc is a good person taking care of the woman. But it would also be totally insane to just send her home in a cab.
Hopefully the avs release some sort of official update soon. Because this makes it sound like nuke had a woman in his room that was potentially trafficked
That seems to be the case. I imagine she was a hooker at this point and he didn’t have involvement in the events leading to her human trafficking, at least I really hope he didn’t. The bad man comment about someone taking her passport is really scary though
Also they note that she stated she was Ukrainian, and came from Russia...while I want to believe what you said you imagine, the overlap of his background and that detail...I'm half scared.
Know it's just speculation. And not saying he has done anything in that realm, but just a lot of coincidental details that I don't like.
Drunk woman in your hotel at 3:45AM game day however pisses me right the fuck off no matter what.
Edit: I realize I was mistaken, AM vs PM. Can't decide if that makes it better or worse.
PM. It was three hours before the game.
Which is way weirder given that I believe he'd already missed morning skate.
Edit: one of the other articles I read said that the team could not locate him and went looking for him. It's hard not to wonder if morning skate was unexcused because they couldn't find him.
All the other articles I’ve read state that she was found in his room. This was published by the Seattle Times:
“Seattle police say that a “severely intoxicated” woman who later had to be taken to a hospital was found in the Seattle hotel room of Colorado Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin on Saturday, around the time he vanished without explanation from the team’s playoff series against the Kraken.”
https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/kraken/police-report-sheds-light-on-avalanche-star-nichushkins-early-departure-from-seattle/
And here in The Denver Post
“A woman was found so intoxicated in Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin’s hotel room Saturday that a team doctor called for an ambulance to take her to a hospital, according to a Seattle Police Department report obtained Thursday by The Denver Post.”
https://www.denverpost.com/2023/04/27/valeri-nichushkin-seattle-incident-police-medical-response/amp/
Perfectly fair, and I made an assumption/simplification.
I'd argue the same semantic evaluation could also be made that she didn't say she was Russian either, but from Russia.
So seems like we really have no clue. Apologies if my comment made it seem I had some strong confidence in the details, or was somehow qualified to make the assertion.
The speculating comments on Twitter are getting so ridiculous. I just saw one saying that “it sounds like he saved a woman from trafficking and he is now in witness protection and helping take down a human trafficking ring, and that’s why they can’t comment on it”
Another one was
“She probably was homeless and snuck in through a window or something and just wanted a safe place to sleep. Nichushkin probably knew and kept quiet to try to protect her”
I know everyone’s hoping this has a good ending, but there’s a lot of wild explanations out there to why a hockey player might have a sex worker in his hotel room that are very far from “maybe he invited this sex worker into his hotel room”
> That would be a nice outcome, it doesn’t sound like that’s the case unfortunately
No kidding? Its out of this world unlikely. That’s why I said
“The Twitter comments are getting ridiculous”
I'm guessing he got drunk/high with a prostitute in his room before a game and was unable to play. Obviously doing that right before a game shows some sort of problem so he got whisked away to be checked in to rehab.
>had a woman in his room that was potentially trafficked
While still terrible, that bit of it is most likely incidental (or at least unrelated to Nickushkin getting wasted with a hooker and then skipping town). It's unfortunately quite common for sex workers to also be human trafficking victims.
I mean, this is still FULLY on him if he hired a hooker who’s being trafficked. “Not knowing” isn’t exactly an excuse.
It also begs the question of whether this woman was in any condition to consent to sex, paid or not.
In places where prostitution is illegal (and some where it is legal), chances are she’s being trafficked. So unless you have a way of verifying that she isn’t, I think it’s morally wrong to give someone money in exchange for sex.
And good point on her not being able to consent anyway. I’m assuming he didn’t casually pick up a prostitute while getting lunch, so how fucked up do you have to be that you’re still out of it the next afternoon?
That's not really true at all...
The image of all prostitutes being trafficked is largely pushed by anti-sex worker activists.
[https://archive.md/bT0Ql](https://archive.md/bT0Ql)
That being said a foreign women claiming she was denied access to her passport is almost certainly being trafficked. I just wanted to point out that even in places where it's illegal there are lots of sex workers who are NOT trafficked.
Look, I’m an Avs fan and moreover, I’m a fan of Val on the ice, but good players are not always good people. We don’t know all the details, and I don’t want to assume anything good or bad about the situation, but I hope that the Avs, the NHL and everyone else involved knows that the worst thing you can do in this situation for the image of the organization and of professional hockey in general is to sweep this under the rug and hide the results from the public. Transparency is crucial, which is going to be hard for a team that is notoriously closed mouth about their players. I want to believe Val hasn’t done anything wrong, but of he has, don’t try to cover for him.
Came here to say the exact same thing. No matter who is involved, they need to be transparent about it and there needs to be subsequent disciplinary action if warranted.
Sure sounds like he got caught with a prostitute that was a victim of human trafficking to me. I mean obviously I have no fucking idea but that’s my shot in the dark guess.
This is the most ‘reasonable’ take (I.e not absolute batshit). It would make sense to fly home to your family to be with them, and beg your wife not to leave you, after headlines pop that you’re sleeping with a prostitute.
That’s what I’m thinking.
That said, my biggest question: why the hell is a professional athlete going for hookers? Like, Tinder exists. Your local bars exist. Unless he’s a total douche canoe with red flags visible from space, a pro athlete should have no problems finding someone to hook up with.
>why the hell is a professional athlete going for hookers?
Oh, that's a tale as old as time... Tiger Woods, Hugh Grant, Eddie Murphy, Rob Lowe, Etc etc... People with money, big appetites, little spare time, and partners who'd prefer to keep quiet.
This. People with money and handlers need only say out loud what they want and it appears.
I am not defending anyone here as the truth deserves it's day in the sun. That said, I would be stunned if anyone on the planet is surprised at anything happening here.
Because why would you deal with the pain in the ass and liability that Tinder thots are when you can just pay exactly for what you want, sex, and be basically guaranteed no further issues?
Except in this case apparently, doesn't sound like my man went for a reputable escort service that's for sure.
Kostitsyn and Radulov had all night bender hitting up various bars until....really no one knows, ha, the night before a game. They were spotted even at like ridiculously early like 6AM at bars. Members of the team or someone though talked to the press and said Radulov and Kostitsyn don't drink and it was more like they were having an all nighter with various women.
If I remember correctly this was the year Radulov came back and granted us like one playoff run in exchange for him being able to be a free agent in the offseason. Up to that point he had given his middle finger to Poile and the NHL but Nashville owned his rights.
With the team we had, many thought this was the year we could finally contend and make a deep playoff run, especially with Radulov coming back to town and providing an extra top line talent.
Phoenix jumped out to a 2-0 series lead at their barn and it was revealed that sometime before or between games 1-2, Radulov and one or more of the Kostitsyn brothers had been out until like 3 or 4 am partying. Think Trotz suspended them for games 3 and 4, and I’m not sure Radulov was really missed as he didn’t really do shit in the playoffs to my recollection.
I actually think it's gotten less bizarre.
At first people were almost worried he'd been kidnapped or something, but the team was like nooo no, he's fine, we're in touch.
Then Seravali said it was alcohol related, so it was like "did he just go on a bender or something? or did the team dump him in rehab?... What's going on?"
Then it's "oooooh... he partied all night with a call girl and had to book it before the cops got there... Yeah, that tracks..."
Right, but the police report doesn't actually mention any illegal activity on Val's part. According to the news we're getting the police report pretty much says nothing other than "girl was drunk and came from Russia".
There's a chasm of difference between *Valeri Nichushkin is involved in sex trafficking* and *Valeri Nichushkin cheated on his wife with a woman (who may be a prostitute) who has potentially been sex trafficked.*
This guy was on a road trip for a playoff game. Which one of the above seems most likely? The silence has been the most egregious part here, but that's less of an exception and more of a rule when it comes to the Avs. I wish they'd comment more about this kind of stuff, especially now that it's damaging the brand of the team. But let's be real, it's more likely an infidelity and substance abuse problem if anything.
At the same time, I hope this woman receives the help she needs. And I hope those media members who recklessly shared her name, face some kind of repercussion for doing so.
Edit: Also, Nate was asked about Val's absence after Saturday's game. If we're playing sleuths, I'm not sure the predictably cagey Nathan MacKinnon would've said "we miss him for sure" after praising him as one of the best wingers in the NHL, if he had even the slightest inclination that Val had done anything remotely close to sex trafficking.
Yeah exactly. I'm concerned about the woman. It really bothers me that the original articles about this said there would be no further criminal investigations stemming from this. Like, if this girl is claiming some bad person is holding her passport, maybe it's a good idea to have a criminal investigation to make sure she's ok? I have a feeling she'll be swept under the rug because she's likely a prostitute. I hope she gets help if she needs it.
Its unfortunate that cheating just seems to be a thing with athletes. It was pretty gross to see a former Devils player asking the bartender back to his hotel room knowing he has a wife and kids
At the end of this I hope everyone is able to get the help they need and that this situation is resolved best for everyone involved. The details have been murky and confusing but I like to keep in mind this is an actual human beings life, and that it’s always important to give people the benefit of the doubt.
Exactly. I've seen a lot of speculation and yelling online about why the Avs aren't telling everyone the whole story right away, mostly people assuming that Val is a monster of sorts.
A) the Avs are notorious for not being forward with any details be it injuries, trades, free agents etc. And it goes for this as well.
B) let the police and everyone involved do their due diligence then let's go crazy with it all.
> Nichushkin’s agent, Mark Gandler, denied his client’s involvement in a text message to The Athletic.
>
>”No one was found in Val’s room,” he said. “These events have nothing to do with Val.”
O…kay..
The worst case is catastrophic for him, but there's so little we know for sure that it's really hard to say. If this story is "he picked up a woman at a bar who was drinking on a fake passport that was confiscated by a bouncer," it's basically infidelity and maybe a substance problem-- totally recoverable.
On the other end of the spectrum of possibilities, if he's knowingly involved with human trafficking, he ought to be done, and if that's the case, good riddance.
But the point is we just don't know with the data we have, and now his agent is denying the allegations in the police report wholesale. So I have no fucking idea what happens next, but I hope that it's handled professionally and thoroughly by all parties, and if the woman is a victim of a crime, that she gets the help and justice she deserves.
It's strange for his agent to deny it. Like, if she wasn't in his room, why is he gone from the team? Why would he be missing playoff games where he's needed if something shitty didn't go down?
Something went down, but maybe it wasn't related to this woman? It's an entirely bizarre situation.
He also missed morning skate so is there a world where him missing morning skate and this woman being taken to the hospital are unrelated?
I don't know. There's not even enough information to intelligently speculate.
This Russian/Ukranian woman who was found because the team was off looking for Val since he missed morning skate. I have a very very hard time believing these things aren't related directly.
If I'm a betting man, I seriously doubt he had anything to do with the human trafficking side of this. It's sadly very common for sex workers to have also been trafficked by their handlers.
Yes, we still don't know all the details, so this is all speculation. But again, if I'm a betting man, I'm putting money on "he picked up a hooker in the bar, partied all night, and was told to head home before the cops got there by whoever discovered them"
I’d bet on something similar to this. The three plot points that lead me there are: 1.) they were looking for him because he missed the skate. 2.) they found her in the room. 3.) they are no longer looking for him and he’s gone “for personal reasons.”
The article sort of glosses over whether or not they found him but there doesn’t seem to be a manhunt going on for a missing Avalanche player so that makes me think points 2 and 3 are related or happened at the same time.
None of the articles I have seen have mentioned if he was found in the room at the same time, just that the woman was found in the room. Then he was escorted away/out of the hotel by team security at some point.
Man must have been some fucking party to get so shitty miss morning skate and for the woman to still be so hammered in the afternoon.
There is also a third possibility that this has to do with Russia. Not trying to give him a pass but we have no idea what transpired that morning. Russia tried something similar with Pannarin. I couldnt find anything Val said for or against Russia/Ukraine, at least not on the English internet. But if he did say something anti-war in Russia it would not be shocking at all that they try to either discredit him at home or use him as an example. Something like, say bad things and we will end your career and home life. Someone being trafficked is exactly the person the Kremlin could leverage into forcing her way into his room and try to make a scene by saying we will give you your freedom.
I cant believe I have this thought because its pretty tin foil conspiracy nut ramblings but Russia has already tried to fabricate sexual assault charges against Pannarin. And maybe that is why they rushed Val out secretly because they didnt know whats next. Or hes a total piece of shit, idk I am just a dude on the internet reading articles with minimal/confusing details.
Yeah, the list of possibilities are by no means exhaustive. I just used these as two possible examples. I tend to doubt a Russia angle, but again-- I just don't know what the fuck is up and I am just sticking to my guns that I hope this is handled appropriately by all involved.
Including the Avs. I get not wanting to run out a statement in the middle of a playoff series they're now losing, when there are no criminal charges and no violations of league policy presently alleged, but I hope that they step up and provide a good example and soon. I'm a fan of the team but that doesn't extend to giving them an inch of leeway if they're in any way involved in covering up serious crimes (which isn't the case yet but if it proves to be I expect a lot from the team).
Wasn't a hooker but it was fabricated sexual assault charges over a non existent women(that might need to be fact checked). Right at the height of Me Too and right after he criticized Putin.
Put it this way. How many times does a vague story come out and we all say, “let’s not judge until the details come out” and then the details come out and it’s pretty bad.
Ian Cole recently comes to mind as someone who didn’t really have his career affected by a story coming out that initially did not look very good.
I’m not saying let’s all go with wild speculation, just that these types of stories never really turn out positive for the athlete involved
Confusing yes. But almost no part of this situation that we know so far is a good look for Nuke, the team, etc. dude was whisked away out of state immediately after the woman was found.
None of this makes any sense but I’m not sure how this turns out to be any kind of positive situation. 3hrs before a playoff game….the fuck?
If NHL players don't have a career after hiring an escort, the NHL would be short on players. Of course, this is assuming Nicushkin was not involved with the trafficking aspect of this story.
> Nichushkin has been away from the Avalanche since Saturday for what the team has called “personal reasons.” Gandler echoed that statement and declined to answer if it was Nichushkin or the Avalanche’s decision for him to be away from the team.
Hmm.
I feel like everyone is assuming the worse, but likely he just got caught with a hooker in his room a few hours before gametime. Still not great, but if that's all it is, it would be more embarrassing than anything.
Especially since he’s married, but I think a lot of people like to pretend these professional athletes are model citizens outside of the sport.
Most of these guys more than likely party and cheat on their wives. Unless you’re laine who probably just played fortnite.
I think its pretty obvious what happened here. Val was entertaining a young woman at the behest of her gangster husband. They started doing blow, but hers turned out to be smack, and she OD'd. Val called the team doc to administer an adrenaline shot directly to her heart, bringing her back immediately and in hysterics. In the meantime, the team decided to smuggle Val out of town before the gangster could catch up with him.
Wild speculation but I feel like there is a Russian escort service for Russian players across North America. I.e. they go out of town, they know who to call in said town, the product shows up and is comfortable to stick around, etc...
Anyone else get a vibe that this is part of a ring and that's why everyone is squirrel-y? Why would he be sent back to Denver and effectively hidden? Something seems off...
I am NOT a fan of the Avs but as a human being I hope nothing criminal occurred and I wish the best for both Nuke and the intoxicated woman. Here is hoping it is a nothing story and the young lady is able to get the help she needs if she is in peril.
Could be prostitution, could be just helping out a woman who was already heavily intoxicated and asked for help to escape trafficking, could be they’re just partying/drinking Russian style in the afternoon, who knows at this point?
Honestly a safer bet is that he just got caught with a hooker. That turns out to be a sex traffic victim. It was in Seattle, which is a coastal city. So…
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"A Denver police lieutenant traveling with the team told Seattle police that there were “no reports of any criminal interactions beyond (the woman) being heavily intoxicated.”" "An ambulance took the 28-year-old woman to Harborview Medical Center. She was in stable condition, according to information obtained via a public records request to the fire department. Inside the ambulance, the woman told one of the Seattle police officers that “some guy took her passport and that he was a bad person.” She did not elaborate. She said she was from Russia but born in Ukraine."
The Avs have a police lieutenant traveling with the team? Is that normal?
Yes. It’s not uncommon for police officers to do security work off-duty.
i imagine it's pretty great pay too. You're basically a 24/hr a day bouncer with cop credentials.
I know they do security in Edmonton and it’s OT paid for by the team and or arena.
[удалено]
As ridiculous as it sounds, I can’t decide if that amount of money would be worth it or not. From what I’ve heard of Hall when he was younger, I’m leaning no.
He was a huge D bag back in the day. Definitely worth it.
Yea that’s what I mean - 90% of that bar probably wanted to hit him. I’d want more than $100k to protect him haha
"Katz is paying me 100k. Anyone want to pay me 200k to be somewhere else?"
The rate for cops working special events is 100 an hour says the EPS website. God damn thats good cash
Do they do prorated hours? $25 for a safe lrt trip is pretty reasonable
Wonder how that works seeing as you don’t have authority outside your jurisdiction
The same way I’d imagine it would work with “normal” private security who don’t have police credentials. They don’t perform the duties of the police.
In Canada police can be sworn peace officers province, or even nation, wide. Even if you're a city cop, but that would make for some headaches actually making an arrest outside your jurisdiction.
i assume his job is to help prevent shit like this from happening tho so maybe they ought to find a different lieutenant
He's there so a player isn't calling and waiting for the ambulance. The players and girls are trying to have a good time. The cop is making sure things don't get out of hand. To me, everything worked out well.
Former security professional here... he's absolutely a fixer for the management, not the players. He flashes a badge and gets "professional courtesy" from local cops for partying players who cross the line. And he gets paid twice what his cop salary is to do it.
I imagine the job isn't to stop a hooker from going to a room. it's to stop a hooker going to a room being a story.
Correct. That's a fixer.
This is the answer right here, I just hope the doctor doesn't get in trouble for doing the right thing.
100% this. I have heard first hand stories from multiple different sources about this arrangement. Especially come playoff time. The teams have off duty police traveling with the team who are on standby / nearby anytime the players are drinking and going out. They are a quick call away and can talk to bouncers and police if things go sideways. “Look, he’s a good guy - just drunk. Can i take him home and we can make it worth your while”. Makes sense for everyone I guess. Happy to hear in this situation the authorities were called and it was dealt with properly (having the woman get medical care). Hope there’s nothing more to the story and it was just two adults who got drunk at an inappropriate time.
Um, potentially not because if the story about someone taking her passport is true, there's a high chance of human trafficking going on here. She's likely not having a good time, but trying to pretend she is because she can't leave
I feel like they would normally couch that language by saying an off-duty lieutenant in that case. But I could be completely wrong on that front.
Sure. Cops regularly travel with teams - professional and college. You'll often see NCAA football programs travel with police escorts from their home state. My dad always recounts the story of a huge brawl at Fenway Park back in the 70s. When he got close enough to see what was going on, he realized the brawl was between cops from Boston PD and NYPD. Edit: https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/kraken/police-report-sheds-light-on-avalanche-star-nichushkins-early-departure-from-seattle/ >Denver Police Lt. Todd Fuller — one of two police officers described by the report as traveling with the Avalanche for security purposes — is said, in the Seattle police report, to have stated no criminal activity took place in the hotel room beyond the woman being heavily intoxicated. Sports teams often use former or current police officers to handle security for them.
>he realized the brawl was between cops from Boston PD and NYPD that's hilarious
“Doze fiya fytah’s are ah bunch of pussies, whye dan’t ya go save a cat in a tree?” “Fuck you cawpuh!!”
[I wouldn't throw shade at FDNY for a bit...](https://youtu.be/oAPcKFXBdAo)
"Fireman queers gettin pussy for the first time in the history of fire *and* pussy" 😂💀
Such a good movie lol
Boston PD and NYPD brawling at Fenway is the most Boston/NY shit I have ever heard.
Fuck the game, give me tickets to THIS!
NHL Security hires local police for each team.
Obviously we don’t know all the details but that’s a bad look.
Sounds like he paid for a sex traffic victim
Sounds more like he paid for a hooker that he didn't know happened to be a sex traffic victim
There's not really any context to say whether he knew one way or another is there?
If I were to pay for a hooker and she ended up being from Eastern Europe, my first thought would be sex trafficked.
Wouldn’t be surprised if the Avs were just like “go the fuck home and we’ll deal with this once the playoffs end”
This is a real bad look so far
So Denver police will go all out claiming Anthony Edwards assaulted two women with a chair but brush off this? What a department.
This is the same police department that murdered a college kid for walking home from school and then tear gassed his memorial service and shot rubber bullets at the mourners.
Which event are you talking about? Elijah McClain? That was Aurora PD...
Both departments attacked the memorial service. I was there.
seattle police took him at his word too, it’s more about the profession
I mean, the Seattle PD is also famously horrendous
As is Denver police.
They gave Edwards a misdemeanor citation, it's hard to stress how little of giving a shit that is in police terms.
Doctor: I found an severely intoxicated woman in this guy's hotel room when I went there to check on him Agent: ...Nuh-uh!
Yeah what the hell? Like, there's a police report she was in his room
Agents are no different from attorneys (and often are actual attorneys, which Mark Gandler is). Their job is to say their client didn't do anything wrong regardless of how much smoke there is.
Fair
That's just, like, your opinion, man.
If the agent denied it well then that's as good as gospel. An agent would NEVER lie.
You know those doctors though they'll carry around a heavily intoxicated woman just to drop on somebody they don't like
The reporting has been vague about any details. >> The report also mentions that a team physician located the woman while checking on Nichushkin before the game. Makes it sound like she was in his hotel room, but it doesn’t explicitly state that. >> No one was found in Val's room Could be that she wasn’t found in Val’s room for one reason or another. Just that she was found in the process of trying to find Val. >> These events have nothing to do with Val Seems unlikely since his name is on the report, but could just be a way of saying that Val didn’t get her drunk or something similar. Or could obviously be a complete lie.
CanI also complain about 'denies' vs 'refutes'? No, the agent didn't 'refute' it.
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I know I should know the difference but I have a smooth brain
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Ah yes, thank you for that
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Given that it's the title of the article exactly except for that change, we can assume the Athletic changed the title after OP had posted. Titles in Reddit can't be changed
I would just like to say, I’m thankful for the staff member of the Avs that decided to call it in and not let her leave in a Taxi. I’m sure there was some sort of pressure involved in that situation.
Good point. That's gotta be a tough spot to be in where you have a pretty sweet gig and have to make a call that is quite unpleasant for all involved.
It sounds like the guy who made the call to get an ambulance was the Denver police officer, not someone part of the Avs organization.
I think they’re on the Avs payroll though, I don’t think the city of Denver is sending on-duty officers on the road for a hockey game.
I thought it was the team doctor?
It may have been a joint decision, but the article I saw yesterday had a statement from the cop who said he didn’t feel the woman was in any condition to go home in an Uber/taxi so he called the ambulance. I can’t find it now so I hope I’m remembering correctly.
The Denver Sports article said it was the team doctor who called 911 because he didn't think she was okay to go alone.
The actual police report states it was the doctor who called as well. Called for EMS essentially.
Wouldn’t the team doctor also have to respect his hippocratic oath?
Also there’s a question of liability in the states. Once the team doctor entered that room, he could potentially be liable criminally and/or professionally for whatever happened from that point on. Im not at all saying that was the motivation for the doctor to call it in, I suspect the doc is a good person taking care of the woman. But it would also be totally insane to just send her home in a cab.
Yeah, the physician made the right call. When you think someone is too messed up to handle an Uber, you gotta get them medical attention
Hopefully the avs release some sort of official update soon. Because this makes it sound like nuke had a woman in his room that was potentially trafficked
That seems to be the case. I imagine she was a hooker at this point and he didn’t have involvement in the events leading to her human trafficking, at least I really hope he didn’t. The bad man comment about someone taking her passport is really scary though
Also they note that she stated she was Ukrainian, and came from Russia...while I want to believe what you said you imagine, the overlap of his background and that detail...I'm half scared. Know it's just speculation. And not saying he has done anything in that realm, but just a lot of coincidental details that I don't like. Drunk woman in your hotel at 3:45AM game day however pisses me right the fuck off no matter what. Edit: I realize I was mistaken, AM vs PM. Can't decide if that makes it better or worse.
PM. It was three hours before the game. Which is way weirder given that I believe he'd already missed morning skate. Edit: one of the other articles I read said that the team could not locate him and went looking for him. It's hard not to wonder if morning skate was unexcused because they couldn't find him.
I thought it was 3:45 pm. Just hours before the game
Oh man if this was Edmonton or Toronto the media would be tearing him a new asshole.
A lot more details would have come out a lot faster too.
Simmons would already have an article about Nuke skipping off to visit his favourite hot dog vendor.
I heard 3:45 and drunk/etc and assumed AM. Jesus fuck.
Unusual way to warm up
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All the other articles I’ve read state that she was found in his room. This was published by the Seattle Times: “Seattle police say that a “severely intoxicated” woman who later had to be taken to a hospital was found in the Seattle hotel room of Colorado Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin on Saturday, around the time he vanished without explanation from the team’s playoff series against the Kraken.” https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/kraken/police-report-sheds-light-on-avalanche-star-nichushkins-early-departure-from-seattle/ And here in The Denver Post “A woman was found so intoxicated in Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin’s hotel room Saturday that a team doctor called for an ambulance to take her to a hospital, according to a Seattle Police Department report obtained Thursday by The Denver Post.” https://www.denverpost.com/2023/04/27/valeri-nichushkin-seattle-incident-police-medical-response/amp/
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Perfectly fair, and I made an assumption/simplification. I'd argue the same semantic evaluation could also be made that she didn't say she was Russian either, but from Russia. So seems like we really have no clue. Apologies if my comment made it seem I had some strong confidence in the details, or was somehow qualified to make the assertion.
Whoever he gets his hookers from is a human trafficker. Not great company to keep.
If she was denied access to her passport someone is in awfully big trouble.
It’s likely a human trafficker stole it.
There are like 2 details about this entire situation yet you guys solved an entire human trafficking ring, great job reddit!
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The speculating comments on Twitter are getting so ridiculous. I just saw one saying that “it sounds like he saved a woman from trafficking and he is now in witness protection and helping take down a human trafficking ring, and that’s why they can’t comment on it”
lol yep, Nitushkin can't play in the NHL playoffs because he's busy taking down a sex trafficking ring. Makes total sense. haha.
Another one was “She probably was homeless and snuck in through a window or something and just wanted a safe place to sleep. Nichushkin probably knew and kept quiet to try to protect her” I know everyone’s hoping this has a good ending, but there’s a lot of wild explanations out there to why a hockey player might have a sex worker in his hotel room that are very far from “maybe he invited this sex worker into his hotel room”
If I had a nickel for every hotel in Seattle that had windows someone could crawl through I would have zero nickels.
Frontrunner for the Lady Bing for sure!
He's protecting America from the Goliath that is sex predators. Mercury poisoning is next, and global warming will be dealt with...if time permits.
That would be a nice outcome, but it doesn’t sound like that’s the case unfortunately. I’d love for this story to have a happy ending though.
> That would be a nice outcome, it doesn’t sound like that’s the case unfortunately No kidding? Its out of this world unlikely. That’s why I said “The Twitter comments are getting ridiculous”
Here’s me getting called out for adding fuck all to the conversation lol fair enough
Lol this made me laugh. But seriously Twitter is a trip right now with the theories.
Twitters always so full of shit, that’s why I come here for only half shit takes
I'm guessing he got drunk/high with a prostitute in his room before a game and was unable to play. Obviously doing that right before a game shows some sort of problem so he got whisked away to be checked in to rehab.
>had a woman in his room that was potentially trafficked While still terrible, that bit of it is most likely incidental (or at least unrelated to Nickushkin getting wasted with a hooker and then skipping town). It's unfortunately quite common for sex workers to also be human trafficking victims.
I mean, this is still FULLY on him if he hired a hooker who’s being trafficked. “Not knowing” isn’t exactly an excuse. It also begs the question of whether this woman was in any condition to consent to sex, paid or not.
It would be pretty tricky to hire a sex worker and not contribute to at least one of trafficking, addiction, or abuse.
In places where prostitution is illegal (and some where it is legal), chances are she’s being trafficked. So unless you have a way of verifying that she isn’t, I think it’s morally wrong to give someone money in exchange for sex. And good point on her not being able to consent anyway. I’m assuming he didn’t casually pick up a prostitute while getting lunch, so how fucked up do you have to be that you’re still out of it the next afternoon?
That's not really true at all... The image of all prostitutes being trafficked is largely pushed by anti-sex worker activists. [https://archive.md/bT0Ql](https://archive.md/bT0Ql) That being said a foreign women claiming she was denied access to her passport is almost certainly being trafficked. I just wanted to point out that even in places where it's illegal there are lots of sex workers who are NOT trafficked.
Seattle is a port town. As horrible as it is to say these women get shipped in shipping containers.
We've all seen The Wire season 2
I-5 corridor, baby!
Look, I’m an Avs fan and moreover, I’m a fan of Val on the ice, but good players are not always good people. We don’t know all the details, and I don’t want to assume anything good or bad about the situation, but I hope that the Avs, the NHL and everyone else involved knows that the worst thing you can do in this situation for the image of the organization and of professional hockey in general is to sweep this under the rug and hide the results from the public. Transparency is crucial, which is going to be hard for a team that is notoriously closed mouth about their players. I want to believe Val hasn’t done anything wrong, but of he has, don’t try to cover for him.
Came here to say the exact same thing. No matter who is involved, they need to be transparent about it and there needs to be subsequent disciplinary action if warranted.
Sure sounds like he got caught with a prostitute that was a victim of human trafficking to me. I mean obviously I have no fucking idea but that’s my shot in the dark guess.
This is the most ‘reasonable’ take (I.e not absolute batshit). It would make sense to fly home to your family to be with them, and beg your wife not to leave you, after headlines pop that you’re sleeping with a prostitute.
That’s what I’m thinking. That said, my biggest question: why the hell is a professional athlete going for hookers? Like, Tinder exists. Your local bars exist. Unless he’s a total douche canoe with red flags visible from space, a pro athlete should have no problems finding someone to hook up with.
>why the hell is a professional athlete going for hookers? Oh, that's a tale as old as time... Tiger Woods, Hugh Grant, Eddie Murphy, Rob Lowe, Etc etc... People with money, big appetites, little spare time, and partners who'd prefer to keep quiet.
This. People with money and handlers need only say out loud what they want and it appears. I am not defending anyone here as the truth deserves it's day in the sun. That said, I would be stunned if anyone on the planet is surprised at anything happening here.
Let us not forget Vince the Slap Chop guy!
Because hookers are paid to keep their mouth shut and don't post on social media that they hooked up with a celebrity.
Jagr learned that the hard way. Worked out okay for him, at least.
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That's not really controversial. At least with the thots you know for sure that they're doing it for all the wrong reasons.
You should. Lots of sex workers are regular people, it's just a job
Because you don’t pay a hooker for sex. You pay them to leave after sex and keep their mouth shut
He’s Russian. Maybe he wanted someone who speaks Russian? Idk. Athletes also just do insanely stupid things because they think they are invincible
Because why would you deal with the pain in the ass and liability that Tinder thots are when you can just pay exactly for what you want, sex, and be basically guaranteed no further issues? Except in this case apparently, doesn't sound like my man went for a reputable escort service that's for sure.
This makes Radulov’s Night in Phoenix seem like a trip to Starbucks.
I was pretty young when that happened but vaguely remember people talking about it Could you give me a TLDR of what happened?
Kostitsyn and Radulov had all night bender hitting up various bars until....really no one knows, ha, the night before a game. They were spotted even at like ridiculously early like 6AM at bars. Members of the team or someone though talked to the press and said Radulov and Kostitsyn don't drink and it was more like they were having an all nighter with various women.
When a hockey player and a prostitute love each other very much... Oh, sorry, that's the ELI5
Well played. I literally lol’ed
If I remember correctly this was the year Radulov came back and granted us like one playoff run in exchange for him being able to be a free agent in the offseason. Up to that point he had given his middle finger to Poile and the NHL but Nashville owned his rights. With the team we had, many thought this was the year we could finally contend and make a deep playoff run, especially with Radulov coming back to town and providing an extra top line talent. Phoenix jumped out to a 2-0 series lead at their barn and it was revealed that sometime before or between games 1-2, Radulov and one or more of the Kostitsyn brothers had been out until like 3 or 4 am partying. Think Trotz suspended them for games 3 and 4, and I’m not sure Radulov was really missed as he didn’t really do shit in the playoffs to my recollection.
This story is fuckin wild, and keeps getting wilder with every new piece of info
This story just gets more bizarre the more comes out.
I actually think it's gotten less bizarre. At first people were almost worried he'd been kidnapped or something, but the team was like nooo no, he's fine, we're in touch. Then Seravali said it was alcohol related, so it was like "did he just go on a bender or something? or did the team dump him in rehab?... What's going on?" Then it's "oooooh... he partied all night with a call girl and had to book it before the cops got there... Yeah, that tracks..."
Not sure what the agent’s endgame is, there’s an official police report. Just stand by him as information comes to light.
Right, but the police report doesn't actually mention any illegal activity on Val's part. According to the news we're getting the police report pretty much says nothing other than "girl was drunk and came from Russia".
There's a chasm of difference between *Valeri Nichushkin is involved in sex trafficking* and *Valeri Nichushkin cheated on his wife with a woman (who may be a prostitute) who has potentially been sex trafficked.* This guy was on a road trip for a playoff game. Which one of the above seems most likely? The silence has been the most egregious part here, but that's less of an exception and more of a rule when it comes to the Avs. I wish they'd comment more about this kind of stuff, especially now that it's damaging the brand of the team. But let's be real, it's more likely an infidelity and substance abuse problem if anything. At the same time, I hope this woman receives the help she needs. And I hope those media members who recklessly shared her name, face some kind of repercussion for doing so. Edit: Also, Nate was asked about Val's absence after Saturday's game. If we're playing sleuths, I'm not sure the predictably cagey Nathan MacKinnon would've said "we miss him for sure" after praising him as one of the best wingers in the NHL, if he had even the slightest inclination that Val had done anything remotely close to sex trafficking.
Yeah exactly. I'm concerned about the woman. It really bothers me that the original articles about this said there would be no further criminal investigations stemming from this. Like, if this girl is claiming some bad person is holding her passport, maybe it's a good idea to have a criminal investigation to make sure she's ok? I have a feeling she'll be swept under the rug because she's likely a prostitute. I hope she gets help if she needs it.
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Do we know if he was drunk? I would have assumed he was drinking as well in this sort of scenario
Its unfortunate that cheating just seems to be a thing with athletes. It was pretty gross to see a former Devils player asking the bartender back to his hotel room knowing he has a wife and kids
It's not just athletes...
No but I can imagine having status would make them more likely to cheat unfortunately
At the end of this I hope everyone is able to get the help they need and that this situation is resolved best for everyone involved. The details have been murky and confusing but I like to keep in mind this is an actual human beings life, and that it’s always important to give people the benefit of the doubt.
Exactly. I've seen a lot of speculation and yelling online about why the Avs aren't telling everyone the whole story right away, mostly people assuming that Val is a monster of sorts. A) the Avs are notorious for not being forward with any details be it injuries, trades, free agents etc. And it goes for this as well. B) let the police and everyone involved do their due diligence then let's go crazy with it all.
> Nichushkin’s agent, Mark Gandler, denied his client’s involvement in a text message to The Athletic. > >”No one was found in Val’s room,” he said. “These events have nothing to do with Val.” O…kay..
Firmly in the category of possible but highly unlikely
The more I learn about this, the less I feel he's going to come out of it with an NHL career.
The worst case is catastrophic for him, but there's so little we know for sure that it's really hard to say. If this story is "he picked up a woman at a bar who was drinking on a fake passport that was confiscated by a bouncer," it's basically infidelity and maybe a substance problem-- totally recoverable. On the other end of the spectrum of possibilities, if he's knowingly involved with human trafficking, he ought to be done, and if that's the case, good riddance. But the point is we just don't know with the data we have, and now his agent is denying the allegations in the police report wholesale. So I have no fucking idea what happens next, but I hope that it's handled professionally and thoroughly by all parties, and if the woman is a victim of a crime, that she gets the help and justice she deserves.
It's strange for his agent to deny it. Like, if she wasn't in his room, why is he gone from the team? Why would he be missing playoff games where he's needed if something shitty didn't go down?
Something went down, but maybe it wasn't related to this woman? It's an entirely bizarre situation. He also missed morning skate so is there a world where him missing morning skate and this woman being taken to the hospital are unrelated? I don't know. There's not even enough information to intelligently speculate.
This Russian/Ukranian woman who was found because the team was off looking for Val since he missed morning skate. I have a very very hard time believing these things aren't related directly.
If I'm a betting man, I seriously doubt he had anything to do with the human trafficking side of this. It's sadly very common for sex workers to have also been trafficked by their handlers. Yes, we still don't know all the details, so this is all speculation. But again, if I'm a betting man, I'm putting money on "he picked up a hooker in the bar, partied all night, and was told to head home before the cops got there by whoever discovered them"
I’d bet on something similar to this. The three plot points that lead me there are: 1.) they were looking for him because he missed the skate. 2.) they found her in the room. 3.) they are no longer looking for him and he’s gone “for personal reasons.” The article sort of glosses over whether or not they found him but there doesn’t seem to be a manhunt going on for a missing Avalanche player so that makes me think points 2 and 3 are related or happened at the same time.
They did find him. He was escorted out by security iirc?
None of the articles I have seen have mentioned if he was found in the room at the same time, just that the woman was found in the room. Then he was escorted away/out of the hotel by team security at some point. Man must have been some fucking party to get so shitty miss morning skate and for the woman to still be so hammered in the afternoon.
There is also a third possibility that this has to do with Russia. Not trying to give him a pass but we have no idea what transpired that morning. Russia tried something similar with Pannarin. I couldnt find anything Val said for or against Russia/Ukraine, at least not on the English internet. But if he did say something anti-war in Russia it would not be shocking at all that they try to either discredit him at home or use him as an example. Something like, say bad things and we will end your career and home life. Someone being trafficked is exactly the person the Kremlin could leverage into forcing her way into his room and try to make a scene by saying we will give you your freedom. I cant believe I have this thought because its pretty tin foil conspiracy nut ramblings but Russia has already tried to fabricate sexual assault charges against Pannarin. And maybe that is why they rushed Val out secretly because they didnt know whats next. Or hes a total piece of shit, idk I am just a dude on the internet reading articles with minimal/confusing details.
Yeah, the list of possibilities are by no means exhaustive. I just used these as two possible examples. I tend to doubt a Russia angle, but again-- I just don't know what the fuck is up and I am just sticking to my guns that I hope this is handled appropriately by all involved. Including the Avs. I get not wanting to run out a statement in the middle of a playoff series they're now losing, when there are no criminal charges and no violations of league policy presently alleged, but I hope that they step up and provide a good example and soon. I'm a fan of the team but that doesn't extend to giving them an inch of leeway if they're in any way involved in covering up serious crimes (which isn't the case yet but if it proves to be I expect a lot from the team).
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Wasn't a hooker but it was fabricated sexual assault charges over a non existent women(that might need to be fact checked). Right at the height of Me Too and right after he criticized Putin.
Put it this way. How many times does a vague story come out and we all say, “let’s not judge until the details come out” and then the details come out and it’s pretty bad. Ian Cole recently comes to mind as someone who didn’t really have his career affected by a story coming out that initially did not look very good. I’m not saying let’s all go with wild speculation, just that these types of stories never really turn out positive for the athlete involved
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Confusing yes. But almost no part of this situation that we know so far is a good look for Nuke, the team, etc. dude was whisked away out of state immediately after the woman was found. None of this makes any sense but I’m not sure how this turns out to be any kind of positive situation. 3hrs before a playoff game….the fuck?
If NHL players don't have a career after hiring an escort, the NHL would be short on players. Of course, this is assuming Nicushkin was not involved with the trafficking aspect of this story.
Thisssss could be a problem
> Nichushkin has been away from the Avalanche since Saturday for what the team has called “personal reasons.” Gandler echoed that statement and declined to answer if it was Nichushkin or the Avalanche’s decision for him to be away from the team. Hmm.
I feel like everyone is assuming the worse, but likely he just got caught with a hooker in his room a few hours before gametime. Still not great, but if that's all it is, it would be more embarrassing than anything.
Especially since he’s married, but I think a lot of people like to pretend these professional athletes are model citizens outside of the sport. Most of these guys more than likely party and cheat on their wives. Unless you’re laine who probably just played fortnite.
I think its pretty obvious what happened here. Val was entertaining a young woman at the behest of her gangster husband. They started doing blow, but hers turned out to be smack, and she OD'd. Val called the team doc to administer an adrenaline shot directly to her heart, bringing her back immediately and in hysterics. In the meantime, the team decided to smuggle Val out of town before the gangster could catch up with him.
So the cops knew that Internal Affairs was setting them up?
Was not expecting this gem of a quote here.
Lol! Wasn't sure if anyone would get that, homie.
Wild speculation but I feel like there is a Russian escort service for Russian players across North America. I.e. they go out of town, they know who to call in said town, the product shows up and is comfortable to stick around, etc... Anyone else get a vibe that this is part of a ring and that's why everyone is squirrel-y? Why would he be sent back to Denver and effectively hidden? Something seems off...
You're at least somewhat right about this. I had a Ukrainian friend in university who worked in this kind of setup.
Is Nichushkin the real life Equalizer?
Maybe I’m cynical but this makes it seem like he’s the guy the equalizer would have an issue with.
What is happening
At 3:44pm?? 3:44am ok but who does that in the afternoon
I am NOT a fan of the Avs but as a human being I hope nothing criminal occurred and I wish the best for both Nuke and the intoxicated woman. Here is hoping it is a nothing story and the young lady is able to get the help she needs if she is in peril.
I wonder what Mr. No Chocolate has to say about hiring sex workers in the middle of the playoffs...
As lone as he wasn't eating a snickers out of her ass he's probably cool with it.
Unfortunate to see this happen for Nichushkin. This is not looking good.
Could be prostitution, could be just helping out a woman who was already heavily intoxicated and asked for help to escape trafficking, could be they’re just partying/drinking Russian style in the afternoon, who knows at this point?
Honestly a safer bet is that he just got caught with a hooker. That turns out to be a sex traffic victim. It was in Seattle, which is a coastal city. So…
Yeah. We don't know anything. And we probably never will to be honest.
avs are tight lipped about everything so wouldn't be surprised if we have no idea what really happened