Alexei Yashin’s team failed to take revenge on Jagomir Jagr’s men in the KHL All-Star Game. The championship’s best Russian players were beaten 8-11 by the League’s strongest foreign imports.
Jagomir Jagr was also victorious in Red Square last year, and while they say winning is not everything in such games, Alexei Yashin was dreaming all year of avenging that defeat.
- The goaltenders will have the hardest time, - suggested forward Sergei Fedorov. - Everyone will be trying to score, and trying as often as possible.
- That doesn’t worry me, - remarked Georgy Gelashvili. - Of course, it’ll be tough, and keeping a clean sheet is probably out of the question, but the main thing for me is being selected for such a game.
A full stadium in Minsk was cheered by seeing 19 goals, since right to the end no one could decide whom to support in the event. The local hockey fans had divided loyalties, as both teams boasted a Dinamo Minsk player in the line-up.
Vyacheslav Bykov’s team took the lead when Danis Zaripov opened the scoring, but the legionnaires hit back with four goals without reply, taking a 4-1 lead into the break.
The second period provided the most action, with the sides scoring eight times between them, and ended with Team Yashin now trailing by the slenderest of margins with the score at 6-7.
In the final period, Team Jagr once again surged into a comfortable lead, scoring four times and stretching the lead to five. The Russians fought back again with two goals but could not add any more, despite playing six against five for the closing minutes. Further drama came when Patrick Thoresen was presented with the chance to complete a hat-trick, but he failed to convert a penalty.
The goal scorers for the victors were Marcel Hossa, Patrick Thoresen, Jiri Hudler (two goals each), Mattias Weinhandl, Martin Strbak, Josef Vasicek, Ville Peltonen and Jagomir Jagr.
For Alexei Yashin’s team the goals were struck by the captain himself, Danis Zaripov, Sergei Fedorov, Maxim Sushinsky (twice), Sergei Zubov, Anton Babchuk and Alexei Morozov.
