Hockey fiesta in Vilnius – with a special guest and a message to the mayor of the capital Sports

10 years ago, World Division I Group B matches were held in Vilnius, 6 years ago in Kaunas, and now they have returned to the capital of Lithuania.

On Saturday, the green light will be given for the week-long tournament of the third level of ice hockey, where athletes from Lithuania, Ukraine, Estonia, the Netherlands, China and Spain will test their strength.

The first-placed team will grab a ticket to Division I Group A (the second-highest level after the Elite Division), while the last remaining teams will be relegated to Division II Group A (the fourth-highest level).

The Lithuanians, who won the IB group battles in Kaunas six years ago and moved up, but fell back after taking the last place in Great Britain last year, will again set the highest goals in front of their fans this time.

“The expectation, as always, is to win. Last year we were in a higher division, maybe we didn’t play as well as we wanted there. Of course, there were difficult opponents. But I know that the men are preparing only for victories, they have been working intensively for a month, the coach came from Canada, and they have a serious specialist assistant. We would like to win”, said the president of the association “Hockey Lietuva”, legendary ice hockey player Dainius Zubrus, at the event’s presentation press conference.

The tournament manager Remigijus Valickas, who presented the event together with D.Zubrumi, revealed that 80 people contributed to its organization. On Thursday morning, the ice of the Twinsbet arena in Vilnius was already shining, and it was tested both by the journalists invited to the press conference and by the leaders of the Lithuanian national ice hockey team.

“This year, we don’t have such challenges as in 2018, when the arena had to be redone for the Euroleague, but there are other, smaller ones,” said R. Valickas, recalling how six years ago, in the same week, the “Žalgiris” arena was shared by both ice hockey players and the Euroleague playoffs Kaunas “Zalgiris”. – We feel a cardinal change, what is the interest, the very control, both from the international ice hockey federation and from their partners. They are treating these championships as one that could become co-ed in the future, combining the A and B divisions of Group I, making it a bigger event with more teams. They see that Hungary, Great Britain, Poland, we collect full arenas, we have a good market and a high level, which is not so different from the top division as it used to be. So they control and pressure more about the little things, which was not the case in 2014, when you organized the championship here.”

The organizers of the event said that the main reason why it was decided to hold the championship this time in the Lithuanian capital was not the threat of sharing the “Žalgiris” arena again with the Euroleague matches (these days, playoffs could theoretically be held there, but “Žalgiris” did not enter them).

On the contrary, the championship returned to Vilnius after a decade because of the message that the organizers want to convey to the city authorities.

“The main reason why Vilnius was chosen is the desire for an arena to appear here. To show the city, the people, the mayor that it is very necessary. People’s interest in ice hockey, especially in Vilnius, has grown a lot. So that was the goal why we chose Vilnius”, said R. Valickas.

“I would really like another ice arena to appear in Vilnius. The project is there, we have talked about it with the municipality, there were meetings, D. Zubrus added. – We feel that there is a shortage. In 2018, when the championship was held, the mayor of Kaunas promised that he would build an ice arena in Kaunas and he did it. I feel that ice hockey is growing as a sport in Lithuania, more and more children want to play, we are getting more attention, but I see a lack in Vilnius. I hope that this will encourage and after this championship we will all look at it more actively, that it is necessary and we want it.”

During the championship, the Twinsbet arena will accommodate 7,500 people. places. This is 2.5 thousand. less than during a basketball game, because part of the stands are covered by the sides of the hockey field and the ice is slightly larger than the area of ​​the basketball field.

The Lithuanian national team will play five matches in seven days, and the organizers are happy that Lithuanians are willing to buy tickets.

“I can be happy that there are better sales than in Kaunas in 2018,” said R. Valickas. – The specificity of sports events is such that Lithuanians buy tickets for them on the last days. But it has changed a little. Sales 40-50 percent. better than they were in Kaunas at the same time. We will be able to say how those sales will be only after the championship. I can’t say that some kind of miracle has happened, but sales are significantly better than in Kaunas.”

“The lowest prices with taxes start from 15 euros, the highest – about 70 euros. It is strange, but the most expensive ones are best bought. The average ticket price is 25-35 euros,” added the tournament manager.

He revealed that one of the biggest challenges in preparing for the championship was the boards. Allegedly, the IIHF did not allow the use of those that surround the ice during the competitions held in Lithuania during the season.

“There was a big discussion about the boards. Here are Austrian, safe, so-called “flexible” boards. They are really expensive. This was one of the challenges for us. But these are the highest-level boards in the world,” said R. Valickas.

Previous ice hockey championships in Lithuania were accompanied by success. In 2014, Lithuanians won bronze in Vilnius to the great joy of the local fans, and six years ago, represented for the only time by both D. Zubraus and Darius Kasparaitis, they won all five matches and won gold and a ticket to the top.

What progress has Lithuanian ice hockey made since then?

“Darius and other players who have already finished their careers played in that championship. The team has changed a lot. Of course, there will be players who will return. There will also be young, new players. It will be interesting for me to see them, and it will be interesting for them to participate. As a hockey country, we are not very big. The selection of players is not great, but the generation and youth are growing, our U18 and U20 teams are improving, which is nice to see. I think that we are capable of winning all the matches in this tournament”, D. Zubrus emphasized ambitiously.

He said that a guest is also expected in Vilnius during the tournament – another famous Lithuanian ice hockey player Darius Kasparaitis, who also defended the honor of our country in 2018, but who has now finished his career and lives in Miami (USA).

“The invitation has been sent, he will come. Not on Saturday, but he will come, he will be here”, revealed D. Zubrus.

The Lithuanians will play their first match on Saturday at 4 p.m. against Spain.