The KHL commemorates Victory Day

75 years ago, we saw the end of the deadliest war of the 20^th century. Today – celebrated as Victory Day across Russia and the former USSR – we celebrate the defeat of fascism and remember those who gave their lives on the battlefield.

During the war years, no family was left untouched by the conflict. In every home you can find the yellowing papers of relatives who went to the front. Some were lucky enough to return home, others remain eternally young.

This date in May usually coincides with the Ice Hockey World Championship. Team Russia has an established tradition of marking the occasion by laying flowers at a war memorial. No matter where the championship is played, regardless of the host city or nation, the ritual is observed every year because this war affected the whole world. Every country has its own places to commemorate these long-ago, but never forgotten events.

This year, too, we will remember the heroes of that war. We will tell our children of the sacrifices of our parents and grandparents, pay our respects to the veterans who fought on the frontline or served on the home front.

It can feel like an eternity since the guns of the Great Patriotic War fell silent. Time passes, but the memory of those days lives on. It is our duty to preserve their memory.

The KHL wishes to congratulate everybody on the 75^th anniversary of the Great Victory.