Moscow, Nov 8 (IANS/RIA Novosti): A two-match ban has been slapped on the coach of a Russian ice hockey team for grabbing a hockey stick and slashing it wildly on the glass that separated a stand full of angry spectators.

The incident occurred Sunday at the end of a Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) game between Vityaz Chekhov and Dinamo Minsk teams in Belarus.

Home fans threw plastic bottles onto the ice, disgruntled at what they termed dirty tactics used by Vityaz players.

Andrei Nazarov, the head coach of the Vityaz Chekhov team, seized a nearby hockey stick and appeared to attempt to strike several fans with it over the glass. He did not appear to be able to reach them, and smashed the stick in half on the glass before snatching a second stick from a player and repeating the attempt.

Security personnel shepherded the fans away.

Nazarov has confirmed the news about the ban but refused to comment on his behaviour.

The game was won 3-2 by Dinamo Minsk.

Three Vityaz players were also handed disqualifications for what the KHL called the "initiation of several conflicts on the ice".

Canadian left wing Kip Brennan got a four-match ban, US centre Nick Tarnasky got two games, while Russia's Artemi Panarin sits out for one match.