24 February 2021

On the eve of the Defender of the Fatherland Day an ice hockey match of veterans took place at the Crystal Ice Arena. Yenisey Siberia 60+ and Krasnaya Zvezda met.

Hockey players from Krasnoyarsk teams such as Polytechnic and Energia, ex-players of Sokol played for Yenisey Siberia 60+. The Krasnaya Zvezda team was formed with veterans of the armed forces and security officers.

The match was attended by the Governor of the Krasnoyarsk Region Alexander Uss. It was with his support that the Yenisei Siberia 60+ hockey club was created in October, 2019, bringing together hockey players over 60 from the Krasnoyarsk Region, the Republic of Khakassia and the Tyva Republic.

Alexander Uss congratulated all those present on the upcoming Defender of the Fatherland Day, and then conducted a symbolic face-off.

The game consisted of three periods of 25 minutes of gross time. And two periods were characterized by a tense struggle. The score was opened in the 7th minute by Zvezda, but the rivals not only equalized before the break, but also took a 2:1 lead.

“The match is tense, we are playing against the masters, and, as you know, there are no former masters,” the captain of Krasnaya Zvezda, reserve colonel Konstantin Kazakov shared his mood during the break. “The opponents are serious, but we are trying to fight back.”

The players of Krasnaya Zvezda played with dignity in the second period, which ended 4:2, in favor of the Siberians. But in the third period, the excellence of the Yenisey Siberia 60+ players affected the game a lot, and they won a convincing victory – 7:2.

The reliable play of the goalkeepers of both teams should be noted as well. In a veterans hockey, a penalty shot is taken instead of the imposition of a penalty to a player or team. In this game, five shots were awarded, and the goalkeepers saved all penalties in the shootouts.

“The opponents were strong, they were the first to open the score, but we managed to change the game and win. This is a victory not only over the opponent, but also over age,” said the captain of the Yenisey Siberia 60+ team and the author of the Generation 60+ project Sergey Peshkov after the game. “We congratulate everyone on the holiday and wish you positive spirits.”