Match 1. November 25th, 20:30, Kyiv, Sports Palace. Broadcast: YouTube FHU
Match 2. November 26th, 13:30, Kyiv, Sports Palace. Broadcast: YouTube FHU
The championship of Ukraine in women’s hockey teams is set to commence today, marking the seventh edition of this competition. The tournament was previously put on hold due to the full-scale invasion of russia and will now resume with paired rounds hosted in Kyiv and Odesa.
During this championship, each team will participate in 12 matches, engaging in six played rounds. The opening match will witness Yevhen Alipov’s team facing off against Prydniprovsk. It is worth mentioning that both teams consist of players from other collectives that previously represented Kyiv and Dnipro: Ukrayinochka, Dniprovski Bilky, and Korolevy Dnipra. Moreover, in an effort to enhance the roster with talented female hockey players, Yevhen Alipov and Oleksandr Lalomov have also included promising athletes from the local Junior High School.
In terms of the Dnipro girls’ composition, there is generally a noticeable difference in experience levels. The team boasts four female hockey players who are aged 30 or above, with the oldest being 45-year-old Yuliya Rozhenko. On the other hand, the core strength of the Prydniprovsk team lies in its youthful players. One particular area where this is evident is in the goalkeeper position, as the responsibility falls on the shoulders of 17-year-old Darya Moldovan under the guidance of coach Oleksandr Lalomov.
Meanwhile, the Kyiv team’s most experienced player is 27-year-old striker Anna Gorbach. However, coach Yevhen Alipov also has a multitude of young players in his team, and he is likely to allocate significant playing time to them. An interesting example is the goalkeeper position, where two players born in 2010 accompany 23-year-old Iryna Zaichenko.
It is worth noting that coach Yevhen Alipov is acquainted with many female hockey players due to his extensive work at the club level and in the national team. In fact, five players from the Kyiv team (Iryna Zaichenko, Alipov sisters, Angelina Maifeld, and Yuliia Dobrovolska) were included in the pre-season preview’s TOP-10 by the FHU website. With all this talent and potential, let us extend our best wishes to the women’s team, of Kyiv Capitals, for a successful start to the season!
