Team Kharlamov wins All-Star gold
Day two of the 2023 Fonbet KHL All-Star Game saw some of Russia’s greatest footballers show off their hockey skills. This year, the four assistant coaches were all drawn from the 11-a-side game and in the medal games they were sent out with their hockey colleagues to show what they could do on a frozen field.
Bronze for Team Bobrov
Team Bobrov 7 Team Chernyshev 4 (4-2, 3-2)
Although the All-Star tournament is billed as a 3x3 event, today’s action was 4x4 to provide space for Alexander Mostovoi and Dmitry Sychev to show their hockey skills. Both footballers have played this game to a decent amateur level, and neither looked out of place on the ice. Indeed, Sychev had an assist late in the game for Team Chernyshev late in the game.
Dmitry Sychev, Team Chernyshev assistant coach
I wouldn’t say I was any kind of hockey star, but it’s been a great few days. Getting this taste of life as a pro hockey player, working with the best in the KHL, it means a lot. Omsk is my hometown, and I follow Avangard closely. I watch pretty much every game I can. In the KHL, I also like Spartak and Torpedo.
Before that, though the teams traded four early goals. Bobrov jumped to a 2-0 lead on markers from Alexander Nikishin and Vladimir Alistrov, two SKA players enjoying life in front of the Petersburg crowd. The response was equally swift, with Cam Lee and junior prospect Igor Chernyshyov tying it up by 4:39. However, Bobrov scored twice in a minute – Alistrov getting his second, then Nikolai Goldobin finding the net – to lead 4-2 at the intermission.
After the break, Team Bobrov extended its lead thanks to Maxim Letunov and Vasily Atanasov, the latter scoring after goalie Mikhail Berdin joined him on a breakaway and helped pass a pathway through the Chernyshev defense. Riley Barber set up Vladimir Tkachyov to reduce the arrears, then Sychev set up Evgeny Lisovets to make it 4-6 with a minute to play. For the first time, a footballer picked up a point at a KHL All-Star event. Team Chernyshev tried to save the game, but Atanasov got his second of the game to secure bronze for Bobrov.
Alexei Zhamnov, Team Bobrov head coach
We put on a show, and that’s the main thing for the fans. Mostovoi did his job well, helped keep the team afloat. We wanted the guys to have fun here.
During the second period, Cam Lee dropped the gloves and squared up to Goldobin before the two players remembered the occasion.
Cam Lee, Team Chernyshev defenseman
He asked if I was up for it, and I said yes. He’s lucky it was a friendly game, otherwise I’d have laid into him [laughs]. It was a lot of fun. We lost both our games, but that’s not a big deal. It helped me feel a bit closer, it was a good experience.
Soccer stars on the scoreboard
Team Tarasov 7 Team Kharlamov 8 SO (2-2, 5-5, 0-1)
Anything Sychev can do, Andrei Arshavin and Roman Shirokov can do better! The two footballers bettered their Euro 2008 team-mate by producing a goal an assist apiece in the All-Star final. Arshavin’s Team Kharlamov ended up winning the All-Star Game for the first time thanks to a shoot-out success.
Andrei Razin, Team Kharlamov head coach
It’s my first time here as a coach. I really enjoyed it all – a great atmosphere, and a wonderful chance to spend time with the guys in an informal environment. I understood that as a coach I didn’t have to do much – the guys worked it out for themselves.
Former Zenit St. Petersburg and Arsenal star Arshavin scored the opening goal in this game. The soccer ace put Team Kharlamov ahead after two minutes. Then Arshavin added an assist as young Sergei Kolesnikov restored the lead.
After that, though, Team Tarasov took control. Shirokov helped Vitaly Pinchuk tied the scores just before the intermission, then three goals early in the second opened a 5-2 lead. Shirokov joined Arshavin on 1+1 during that sequence of play – maybe these footballers have some hockey skills after all.
Troy Josephs, Team Kharlamov forward
Good times! We got a chance to have a great time in St. Petersburg with the fans and the other players. We all enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere. We’ll remember these days, and so will our families. We’ve never seen so many fans in a hockey arena before, it was a great experience to have so much support. I think everyone had a lot of fans here.
Kolesnikov’s second of the game triggered a Kharlamov fightback and Maxim Shabanov tied the game on 16:45. In the closing stages, both teams held the lead but it finished 7-7 after a last-minute leveller from Lokomotiv’s Yaroslav Likhachyov.
In the shoot-out, Semyon Der-Arguchintsev was the only player to score, giving Team Kharlamov the win.
Semyon Der-Arguchintsev, Team Kharlamov forward
Everything was very good, it made an amazing impression. Everything here was great, the atmosphere was special, it was cool. It was nice to score the winning shot. Both teams really wanted to win in that shoot-out. It’s fun to be part of an event like this, it’s my first time this weekend and I’m really happy to be here.
KHL President Alexei Morozov
I can say with confidence that we had a real festival of hockey. These two days were action packed, the players, fans and coaches got a lot of good vibes. Many thanks go to St. Petersburg and the SKA Arena for such a warm welcome. This is a hockey arena at a global level and it made a fantastic impression on everyone. The 2023 Fonbet KHL All-Star Game set a new attendance record – on day one we had 19,682 spectators and on day two it was 20,383. That’s no surprise, because the Petersburg public loves its hockey: there’s no doubt that when we start playing KHL games here, they will also sell out.
On the ice, it was good to see Team Kharlamov become a new winner of the All-Star Game. But the most important thing is that we had fun and put on some spectacular, memorable hockey for the fans. I’m delighted that this year we saw many young players who, despite their age, are already among the leaders at their clubs and across the whole league. It was good to see stars from our football on the benches – they showed they know their way around sticks and pucks as well. It was a great adventure, and we’ll see you all again next year!
