Pavel Kanarsky speaks after playing Belarus U18

After competing in the first match at the Sibir Arena in Novosibirsk against the under 18 Belarusian national team (1:3), Russia U18 head coach Pavel Kanarsky shared his thoughts.

Russia U18 head coach Pavel Kanarsky:

- A huge thank you goes to the management of Novosibirsk Region and the Russian Ice Hockey Federation for staging such games. It's wonderful that such a fantastic arena has been constructed! Taking into account just how much the fans love ice hockey here, it was important to build a new stadium. I haven't seen such a grand opening ceremony for a long time, it was a truly celebratory atmosphere. I would like to congratulate Belarus with their victory, they produced a solid performance.

Our guys didn't quite cope with the responsibility of participating in this match, they hadn't played at such a large arena before. It was a difficult challenge for them, and they felt the pressure - especially in the first period. This game will serve as a good lesson for us.