Western Canadian college hockey team to host Ukraine national team

The international community is coming together to give a group of Ukrainian young men the chance to compete on Canadian ice.

“I am very happy to go to Canada and play against the best team there,” Ukrainian goalkeeper Sava Serdyuk told reporters.

Serdyuk and his fellow U25 Ukrainian men’s national hockey team will travel to Canada in the coming months to take on four western Canadian university teams in the ‘Hockey Can’t Stop Tour’. A country ravaged by war.

Alberta has one of the largest Ukrainian expat populations in Canada and the world.

Serdiuk, 18, is also the backstop for Sokir Kyiv in the Ukrainian Hockey League.

Kyiv was one of the targets of the first airstrikes on February 24 when Russian forces invaded Ukraine.

And on Wednesday, another aerial attack deprived most Ukrainians in the country of power and water.

“My team, Sokil, practices almost every day. Sometimes we don’t have electricity, water, etc.,” Serdiuk said. “So it is quite difficult to practice in Ukraine.”

A tour of Canada is a rare opportunity for a young Ukrainian man. In Ukraine, most men between the ages of 18 and her 60 are not allowed to leave the country without federal permission, as the Russian invasion plunged into his 10th month.

Ukraine’s assistant coach and former NHLer Dmitri Kristić said the tour is not only a way to get away from the war-torn country for a while, but it’s also an opportunity for players to show off their hockey skills.

“In all respects, it is a great opportunity to show that Ukrainian hockey is still alive and that Ukrainian hockey has a future,” Kristich said.

Head coach Vadim Shahraychuk, who represented Ukraine at the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics, added that the U25 team represents a new vision for Ukrainian hockey.

The war came as a surprise to the Ukrainian Ice Hockey Federation, which earlier this year was working to improve the sport in the European country. Part of these plans was to build 19 ice hockey rinks across the country .

“We really believed that hockey could be built as an example for other kinds of sports, because in Ukraine … and in most post-Soviet countries, children participate in all kinds of sports. Because it’s a very different kind of difficulty to have equal opportunity,” said executive director Oleksandra Slatovitzka.

“No one expected war. No one expected that one day all our lives would change forever.”

Only four arenas are operational in the country. Community arenas such as Donetsk, Mariupol and Kherson all fell victim to the war.

trendy now

trendy now

While being away from family is no stranger to young pros, Serdiuk expects to worry about them while on Canadian soil.

“My family is in Kyiv, Ukraine and I am really worried because they are still in danger. They have no water, no electricity, nothing.

The coaches of four men’s hockey teams – the University of Alberta, the University of Calgary, the University of Manitoba and the University of Saskatchewan – are discussing hosting Ukrainian teams with some players.

Huskies head coach Brandin Cote said this is an opportunity for players to find out what’s going on for their mates on the other side of the world.

“We don’t know what it’s like there, so I think we can give all the information we can to the players so that they have a full understanding of what the challenges[in Ukraine]are,” Court said. told reporters.

“We have given the players the opportunity to speak with the players of the (Ukrainian) team to better understand what they have been through, from a family level, from a sporting level. It’s going to be really beneficial for players to move forward in life and really appreciate what they have.”

The idea for the tour came about when announcer Gord Miller had a conversation with Slatovitzka in Edmonton at the World Junior Championships in August. Miller told Canada he was on a conference call with the West’s head coach and was immediately working on the schedule.

Scheduling conflicts prevented the group from booking Edmonton’s Rogers Place or Calgary’s Scotiabank Saddledome, but Winnipeg Jets Executive Chair Mark Chipman offered to book at the Canada Life Center.

“So it’s an exciting opportunity for the Ukrainian team to play in the NHL building and in front of a huge crowd,” said Miller.

Serdiuk and his team will play matches in four cities in western Canada against the city’s college men’s hockey teams.

• 12/30/2022 vs. University of Saskatchewan Huskies (Marlis Belshire Place).
• Father David Bauer at the Arena against the University of Calgary Dinos on January 2, 2023.
• January 3, 2023 vs. University of Alberta Golden Bears at Clare Drake Arena.
• January 9, 2023, vs. University of Manitoba Bisons at Canada Life Center.

Live streams and donation links are also available on the Canada West website.

Funds from the four games will go to humanitarian activities in Ukraine and Canada, as well as to foundations run by the Ukrainian Ice Hockey Federation.

From there, the Ukrainian team will compete in the Winter University Games in Lake Placid, NY through January 23rd.

Until then, Serdiuk will continue to practice wherever and whenever.

“It’s kind of an escape for me. It’s probably one of the best things in my life. Every morning when I come to practice, I feel like I’m in a safe place with my friends.”

– Use files from Associated Press and The Canadian Press

© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.