Spring is the time for ice hockey!

Dear friends!

Spring is traditionally the time of year when the season's decisive ice hockey matches take place. At the moment, ice hockey fans are intently watching the finals of the KHL, MHL and VHL playoffs, with the teams fighting to hoist the Gagarin, Kharlamov and Petrov cups aloft respectively.

I will shortly fly to Novosibirsk, where the Liga Stavok Future Cup will be contested by the junior Russian, Belarusian and Kazakh national teams. This will be the first major international tournament in history to be hosted by the newly constructed Sibir Arena! The administration of Novosibirsk Region pays a lot of attention to the development of our sport at all levels.

At the same time, the Tretiak Cup is being contested among teams consisting of players aged between 11 and 14. I can still remember the first medals which I won at junior level! This year, the tournament is being played in Yekaterinburg, Novokuznetsk, Ukhta and Voronezh. The fact that the competition is taking place in different cities so far apart from one another once again proves how ice hockey is gaining popularity across all of our country's regions.

Special attention will be paid to the Liga Stavok Big National Team Tour in May. With the competition fast approaching, our players have already began training at the complex in Novogorsk. The development of our national team system in these challenging times is a crucial aspect of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation's (RIHF) work. It's vital to provide our players with international games, as this will ensure that they're ready to play and beat any opposing national team when the opportunity arises. Furthermore, it's important to play in front of our fans in different regions of Russia.

We managed to win all three of our matches at the Channel One Cup in December. As usual we have the highest expectations for this tournament, we've selected a strong squad which will display exciting, entertaining ice hockey. Players from cities such as Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Cherepovets, Sochi, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Tolyatti and Omsk will represent our team. Last year, our team won seven of their nine games while playing in front of sold-out arenas, so make sure to snap up your ticket soon if you're planning to support the side in Omsk or Tula!

I also want to note that a number of youth tournaments organised by the RIHF will be contested during May, with federal teams consisting of players aged either 15, 16 or 17 to compete against each other in Sochi, Tolyatti and Chelyabinsk. The final of the Youth Hockey League will also take place in Ufa. Over on junior.fhr.ru, you can watch game broadcasts and take in match statistics.

Spring ice hockey is only just starting! Let's support our national teams together!

President of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation,

Vladislav Tretiak