Hockey in Ukraine

I'm travelling to Ukraine right after Christmas and will stay there 'til the 13th of January. I'm going to visit at least Zaporozhe and Kiev, but possibly Lvov, Odessa, Sevastopol and some other cities as well. Can anyone recommend any nice hockey games in the country during this period of time?

Thanks a lot.

There is only one team in Ukraine worth watching - Sokol Kiev! They are the only truly professional team in Ukraine. They play in the Belarus Open league and have quite a good chance to win it! Other cities have teams but they are semi-professional.....

Sokol play in the sports complex "Avangard", which ia a rather small arena (less than 1000). They used to play at the sports palace which is bigger and easier to find (metro Republic Stadium).....not sure where Avangard arena is :dunno:

From what I understand, hockey is starting to die in Ukraine (don't say "the" Ukraine, they don't like it). Outside Kiev it there is not much hockey at any high level.

I hope I am wrong and the trend reverses - it would be interesting to read what you have to say about this when you get back...

I heard that in 2003 Ukraine only had 65 professional hockey players!

I heard that in 2003 Ukraine only had 65 professional hockey players! :(

There is only one team in Ukraine worth watching - Sokol Kiev! They are the only truly professional team in Ukraine. They play in the Belarus Open league and have quite a good chance to win it! Other cities have teams but they are semi-professional.....

Sokol play in the sports complex "Avangard", which ia a rather small arena (less than 1000). They used to play at the sports palace which is bigger and easier to find (metro Republic Stadium).....not sure where Avangard arena is :dunno:

cnacu6o for the information. :) I'll try and locate the Avangard and see a game or two.

26.12.2005 Сокол Неман ( Sokol Kiev - Neman Grodno )

28.12.2005 Сокол Брест ( Sokol - Brest )

09.01.2006 Сокол Химик-СКА ( Sokol - Khimik-SKA )

11.01.2006 Сокол Витебск (Sokol - Vitebsk )

These are the games Sokol play in the Belarus Open League when you are there. Unfortunately all the games are against teams in the bottom half of the table. Brest are 8th, Neman 9th, Khimik-SKA 11th and Vitebsk are bottom (12th). Take your pick !!!

At the moment it seems I'll be heading for the game against Neman or Brest or maybe even both. Nice. Irate-Pirate, do you know if fan jerseys and other stuff can be bought at the Avangard or some other place?

The Sokol team doesn't seem to be full of stars, I only recognize a few Ukrainian national team players. If they had Dmitri Khristich or some other legendary face in the line-up, I'd definitely be waiting for autographs after the game. ;)
Thanks a lot. :)

Well you can easily buy a Ukrainian national jersey around the city (Kiev), a Sokol jersey can be bought here before you go! http://www.russianjerseys.com/sokol.html

I'm not too sure what is in the Avangard arena. Make sure you get there early or buy a ticket in advance because it is usually full....more people than seats, so if you want a decent view...... ;)

That's true, Sokol Kiev are the only thing closest to a professional hockey club in Ukraine.

But I wouldn't say hockey is disappearing in Ukraine as it isn't their fault that many of the best players go and play for Russia.

People tend to forget that we gave Sweden (lost 3-2), USA (tied 1-1) and Canada (lost 2-1) a run for their money at the 2005 IIHF World Championships.

We even got a few words out of Pierre Maguire during the Canada game, 'ridiculous' and 'disgusting' came out of his mouth describing Canada barely overcoming Ukraine.

That's true, Sokol Kiev are the only thing closest to a professional hockey club in Ukraine.

But I wouldn't say hockey is disappearing in Ukraine as it isn't their fault that many of the best players go and play for Russia.

People tend to forget that we gave Sweden (lost 3-2), USA (tied 1-1) and Canada (lost 2-1) a run for their money at the 2005 IIHF World Championships.

We even got a few words out of Pierre Maguire during the Canada game, 'ridiculous' and 'disgusting' came out of his mouth describing Canada barely overcoming Ukraine.Tha's fine, but what about future prospects and the development of youth hockey?

Ukraine barely survived not getting relegated to Div II of the U20 about 10 days ago. Only a come-from-behind victory against Japan on the last day of competition separated them from falling...

The fact that Ukraine has produced some good hockey players in Zhitnik, Khristich, Tverdovsky, Fedotenko.. and others, the potential for a future cast must be there.

The only thing wrong with the hockey agency in Ukraine is that the number of good players crossing over from Ukraine to Russia is ridiculous. No one loses more of the their native-born players to other countries.

Yeah, but these guys developed during the Soviet Union when Sokol was in the Elite league. Things have changed, very few people care about ice-hockey in Ukraine.....

Even though they aren't in the elite leagues anymore, they are still in one that is no pushover. Eventually something's gotta give, we need someone with big money to step up. We need a Surkis or an Akhmetov who are owners soccer clubs Dynamo and Shakhtar respectively. I'm not saying necessarily those exact people because those guys aren't exactly angels or true Ukrainians, but someone with all a lot money willing to develop and build and maybe even persuade some players from thinking twice about leaving to play for Russia.

I'm finally back from Ukraine. I did see the game against Brest, but unfortunately only the 2nd and 3rd period. :( I made my way to the Avangard, located some subway stops from the city centre, only to find out that the game wasn't played there but in Palats Sportu, a much bigger (as well as, I assume, a much older) building near the centre. I got to the Palats right after the 1st period when Brest was leading 0-1 and saw Sokol take a 3-1 victory, so fortunately I didn't miss the best part. :) It was also nice to notice that you could easily bring your own "beverages" and consume them while watching the game. That wouldn't work here in Finland. :D The admission was free, which or course was also a very welcome side of the event.

The game itself was pretty much what I expected: not too skilled or fast, but enjoyable to watch anyway. Most players at least seemed to be trying to complement their weaknesses with a good effort and attitude, which can't always be seen in better leagues. There were maybe a couple of hundred spectators, perhaps even a thousand, it's very hard to say, but they kept chanting "Sokol, Sokol" loud and nice every once in a while. In Finland you can enter an arena of 10000 people and expect a more silent atmosphere. I can post some photos later on, if anyone's interested.

Sokol scored their first two goals right in front of the net and the third one was an empty-netter, and I can't remember seeing any exceptional shots, saves or else, but it was a great and interesting experience whatsoever. If I'll ever travel to Ukraine in Wintertime again, I'll be sure to see their game again.

Please post those photos kipelov, I'm very interested. How did you like Ukraine overall?

Yeah post your pics!!

http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kavonen/Sokol/

Finally, here are some. The quality is far from the best, but I suppose you can get some image of the Palats Sportu at least. Many of the photos are rather dark.

Please pay special attention to this one:
http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/kavonen/Sokol/slides/IMG_0233.JPG

Not all the players went to the locker room during the intermissions. :)

Thanks!

A lot of interesting photos.

Except the last photo...

Thanks...a part the last one :D

Thanks...a part the last one :D

Palats sportu's mens' toilet. : ) That's what quite a few public toilets are in the country. It's really nice to sit down on business after some a$$hole has peed all over the place and cleaned nothing. I wonder if they're like that at home as well? :shakehead