Author: Ihor Stelmach

Few soccer pundits see Ukraine qualifying in Group C of the expanded 24-team 2016 European Championship being played in France from June 10 to July 10. The majority opinion, says coach Mykhailo Fomenko, is that the national team comprises too many aged veterans, like left-back Vyacheslav Shevchuk and captain Ruslan Rotan. The former will be...

Parayko shining  in St. Louis Entering the 2015-2016 season, the top prospects in the St. Louis Blues system were Robby Fabbri, Ivan Barbashev and Jordan Schmaltz. No arguments there – all are youngsters with super potential. But another young man added his name to the watch list: Ukrainian defenseman Colton Parayko. At 6-foot-5, 225 pounds,...

Yarmolenko hoping for English Premier League promotion Andriy Yarmolenko has played the waiting game for many years now. Arguably one of the most talented soccer players of his generation, he joined Dynamo Kyiv in 2007 when the club’s grip on champion trophies began to slip. Perennially the top team playing in the Champions League every...

In the first of two warm-ups for the 2016 European Football Championship to be played in France from June 10 to July 10, Ukraine defeated Cyprus, 1-0. The international friendly match was played at Chorno-morets Stadium in Odesa on March 24. Taras Stepanenko’s first-half goal (40th minute) earned an experienced Ukraine side the victory in...

Ukrainians abound in junior and minor leagues Researching rosters in the three major junior and three professional minor leagues reveals some 45 and 52 players of Ukrainian descent, respectively. A further breakdown shows 32 Ukrainian pucksters in the Western League, 15 in the Ontario League and seven in the Quebec League. Professionally speaking, we found...

Mykhailiuk arrives at Kansas In the course of a week in September 2014, Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk went from playing against some of his biggest heroes on the U.S. team at the World Cup to figuring out where his classes were on the campus at Kansas. What a whirlwind experience for the then-17-year-old sharpshooter from Ukraine. College...

NEWARK, N.J. – In the olden days of rock ‘em/sock ‘em hockey, fans would say they went to a fight and a hockey game broke out. On Sunday, February 14, at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., fans went to a hockey game only to witness a Ukrainian festival. Ukrainians are nothing if not a...

Senyshyn surprisingly selected 15th overall The Hockey News Draft Preview rated him the 47th top prospect in the 2015 NHL Draft. TSN’s Bob McKenzie had him No. 40, while NHL’s Central Scouting’s final rankings listed the young Ukrainian hopeful at No. 38. When Boston Bruins GM Don Sweeney called his name as the 15th overall...

Perhaps he was still suffering from the calf injury that postponed the original bout. Maybe the long layoff (since April 25) took its toll on the aging champion. Then again, the 39-year-old veteran of the fight game may have finally succumbed to the age factor. The three judges scored the fight 115-112, 115-112 and 116-111...

Shakhtar exiled from Donetsk The ball strikes the back of the goal, the crowd swells, but not with its usual electricity. There are no fireworks, no orange smoke, no anthems are sung. The mere 2,000 fans present on March 14 in the 35,000-seat stadium to witness the Donetsk derby soccer match between Shakhtar and Olimpik...

Dubnyk’s resurgence a headline story Minnesota Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk highly appreciates the best season of his career because it followed a summer of great discontent. The 27-year-old was forced into some serious soul-searching at the conclusion of the 2013-2014 campaign after being moved from the Edmonton Oilers to the Nashville Predators and finally to...

Grivko riding for peace The 31-year-old cyclist resides in France after living next door in Italy. He finds Monaco perfect for training and relaxation. It helps the cause to know his wife and family are comfortable in their new surroundings. Tuscany gave way to Monaco, which offers a better climate while being a small, yet...