Hockey players of the "Ak Bars" and Mayor of Kazan took part in a friendly match at the tournament "Golden Puck"

(KZN.RU, February 10). The friendly match of participants of the All-Russian competition of young hockey players for prizes of the club "Golden Puck" named after A. Tarasov took place in Kazan yesterday evening. Teams “Romantic” of the Moskovsky district of the city and “Berket” of the Kirovsky district meet on the ice arena "Basco". Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, came out on the ice in the “Romantic”. Hockey players of the “Ak Bars” Artem Lukoyanov and Mikhail Varnakov strengthened the team of the Moskovsky district with the Mayor. Sergei Mironov, the head of the Kirovsky and Moskovsky districts administration, and players of the “Ak Bars” Mikhail Sidorov and Andrei Chibisov went to the ice in the “Berket”.

Young hockey players proudly wear a new form, donated by the HC “Ak Bars”. Ravil Shavaleev, the deputy of the Kazan City Duma, put forward the initiative to purchase skates, sticks and a complete outfit for two amateur teams worth 1 million rubles within the framework of the charity project “Good Kazan”. Players of the club eagerly supported it.

It is the dream of all young athletes to get a complete new outfit from the hands of idols before the final games of the competition “Golden Puck”. Yesterday it became a reality for the children of the “Romantic” and the “Berket”. Said Muhamedshin from the team “Berket” received from the Mayor of Kazan the autographed stick as a gift.

Before the meeting, I. Metshin greeted the participants. The Mayor wished the athletes good and fair play. “The future players of our “Ak Bars” will grow from the participants of the “Golden Puck”, said the Mayor of Kazan. Alexander Svitov, the captain of the Tatarstan’s team, supported his words. “Children come to games of the “Puck”, and show themselves in front of coaches. Many can get into the adult hockey then”, he said.

Shyness of young athletes caused by the proximity of sports idols was quickly replaced by excitement from acute scoring moments. Older and younger generations were united. The “Romantic” was clearly distinguished in the first period, which managed to throw 2 unanswered goals. I. Metshin took direct part in the second goal, giving the pass. In the second period, the teams scored 2 goals each. In the final set of the match, the “Berket” could equalize the situation, reducing the gap to a minimum. And only in the last seconds of the game, the players of the “Berket” implemented a bullet, setting the final score 6:6. The fans actively supported their teams with prefabricated chants and placards.

Andrei Chibisov shared his impressions after playing. “Such meetings are egged, carry a lot of positive emotions, and it is impossible to be in hockey without them. It is good that our club take care of the younger generation”, said the striker of the “Ak Bars”. “When the young athletes playing with the pros, they tend to become better, to play in such clubs, they want to grow more”.

The opening of the Municipal Stage of the All-Russian competition took place on February 2 in the hockey box of the school №98. The All-Russia competitions of young hockey players for prizes of the club “Golden Puck” named after A. Tarasov is an annual hockey tournament. This year, 1540 players in the 77 teams participated in regional competitions. The teams, which took 1st place (the Sovetsky district 1 and 2 places) in each age group, will take part in the final tournament of the city, which will be held until February 14. The winners will participate in the national competition, which will be held in the Mamadysh, Chistopol and Zainsk.