The NHL world is in the dog days of summer when news is scarce, and fans are itching for anything hockey-related. Signings have gone way down to where there might be one or two announcements, and it seems like the 2024-25 season will crawl its way to everyone eventually. However, during the weekend of July 20, defenseman Mikhail Sergachev of Utah HC and forward Artemi Panarin brought together the best Russian NHLers & KHL All-Stars for a charity game at CSKA Arena in Moscow, Russia. The charity exhibition game, perfectly named “Match of the Year,” featured 16 Russian players from the NHL and 16 from the KHL to raise money for charities and auction off signed jerseys.
Some of the NHLers included were Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Andrei Svechnikov, Pyotr Kochertkov, Pavel Buchnevich, Dmitry Kulikov, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Kirill Kaprizov. Ovechkin was one of the first players to commit to the event, which took the exhibition game up a level. The KHL counterparts featured the likes of Nikita Zaitsev, Alexander Radulov, Nikolay Goldobin, Sergey Tolchinsky, Grigori Panin, Egor Yakovlev, Vadim Shipachyov, and Alexander Nikishin.
From Russia with Love
The game was going to be shown live on Match TV in Russia, with ways to stream the game on the NUUM app as well. Just from the opening ceremonies of the players getting announced to the sold-out crowd at CSKA Arena, people knew that the charity game would be electric. The sell-out crowd even wowed the players, hoping to see some people interested in the exhibition game.
When asked about the sold-out tickets before the day of the event, Sergachev stated through Google Translation from sports.ru, “A few months ago, when I approached Artemi Panarin and then Sasha Ovechkin with the idea of holding such a match, I understood that the audience would be interested, but I could not imagine such a stir. Tickets on the Internet sold out in a day, and my friends constantly call and write to me asking me to find an opportunity to get into the arena. I see how our fans miss matches of this scale when the best Russian players gather on the ice. To be the organizer of such an event is a great honor for me, but at the same time a great responsibility. On July 20, together with our partners and our team of organizers, we will try to give everyone a great hockey holiday. I’m waiting for everyone in the stands of the CSKA Arena, as well as at the screens of TVs and smartphones – our game will be shown live on the Match TV channel.”
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From the introductions to the purple NHL jerseys and the Orange KHL jerseys, something about the charity game made it more meaningful than Sergachev and Panarin could have imagined. The game was full of highlight reel goals, almost completed trick shots, and spectacular saves.
Here are the lines for both teams:
NHL:
Panarin – Buchnevich – Svechnikov
Ovechkin – Malkin – Kovalchuk
Dadonov – Chinakhov – Podkolzin
Voronokov
Orlov – Sergachev
Romanov – Gavrikov
Kulikov – Lyubushkin
Bobrovsky
Kochetkov
KHL:
Goldobin – Shipachyov – Radulov
Tkachev – Atanasov – Poryadin
Volkov – Jaskin – Burdasov
Nikishin – Zaitsev
Panin – Mironov
Sharipzyanov – Konyushkov
Nesterov
Nabokov
Berdin
Dorozhko
Ovechkin was the first one to get on the board, naturally, but it was the insane trick-shot attempt from Panarin that really stole the show. It looked like a combination of a lacrosse move with a spin-o-rama. While it did not go in, it still got people on their feet. The roof probably would have been blown off if it did, though.
The ability to throw that attempt out there gave the impression that the players were there to have fun and raise money for charity. Carolina Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov got into the scoring as he put the NHL Stars up 3-1 before the five-minute mark in the first period. It was clear that while the guys were there to have fun, it did not mean they did not want to be bested by the other players for “bragging rights.” The game ended in regulation tied 8-8 because The Great 8 was there. At one point, the NHL Stars had a 6-1 lead before the KHL Stars stormed back to tie it after going down to 7-4 at one point. It eventually went into a shootout just for the fun of it.
Ovechkin was named the MVP for the Match of the Year.
Lots of Money Raised for Charity
In the end, the game was widely successful, and it seemed like the fans and players really enjoyed it. The “bulk” of the proceeds from the charity game is expected to go to specific charities that will be named later, and the event organizers will be raffling off autographed jerseys over social media.
Furthermore, the event raised over 10 million rubles, or roughly $114,000. That does not include the jerseys that will be auctioned. When asked about the color selection, Sergachev stated, “I think we have managed to create an interesting and memorable set of game uniforms, which the teams will wear in the charity match on July 20. I hope fans will appreciate the bright and modern design of hockey jerseys and their colors. I am sure that now collectors will be chasing them.”
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There is no doubt that jersey collectors, more so Russian fans, will be chomping at the bit to get their hands on one of those jerseys. Furthermore, the proceeds from the raffled jerseys to go to charity are also amazing. I got to give props to Sergachev and Panarin, along with the organizers, to put the event on. Also, the fans being able to sell out the event on a warm day in July shows how much Russian fans want to see their superstars play each other. Even if it’s an exhibition charity game featuring stars from their native league and the stars they’ve watched play in North America in the NHL.
Start of a Trend?
While we aren’t 48 hours from the end of the “Match of the Year,” could this be the start of more events for Russian players in Russia? Could we see this with Liiga players in Finland or the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) in Sweden? It could be a perfect opportunity to see Finnish and Swedish players from those leagues face off against fellow native players playing in the NHL. Charities in those countries could benefit from games like these, plus the fans get to see their favorite players who are in North America play against their favorite Liiga or SHL players. Either way, the event that Panarin and Sergachev created was a massive success; hopefully, we will see more of these in the future.
