The State Duma spoke about the timing of the hockey match with the United States

The hockey match between the teams of Russia and the USA will take place no earlier than September. This was stated by State Duma deputy Svetlana Zhurova on Wednesday, April 2.

The politician explained that the players of the National Hockey League (NHL) are bound by contracts that prohibit them from participating in any other matches during the playoffs.

"In September, it will become clear who won the Stanley Cup. If the Washington Capitals, then maybe Russian hockey player Alexander Ovechkin will bring the cup to Russia. In recent years, this has not been allowed, but under the new US President, Donald Trump, I think the situation may be different," Zhurova said in a conversation with Lenta.Ru .

According to the parliamentarian, despite the desire of the parties to hold a joint match, this event will be quite difficult to organize due to the large number of restrictions on the players themselves. At the same time, she expressed confidence that the future match will definitely be spectacular.

"I would love to play in a match between the KHL and NHL teams"

Avangard hockey player Konstantin Okulov — about the game that Putin and Trump agreed on, the chances of the Russian national team returning to the international stage, the success of the Omsk club and the extension of the contract

Washington Capitals forward Ovechkin said on March 21 that the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump on the possible holding of matches between NHL and Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) players could lay the foundation in the process of lifting unsportsmanlike restrictions against the Russian Federation.

He noted that if everything worked out, he would love to go on the ice.

The Washington forward stressed that holding meetings between KHL and NHL players was "the decision of two wise leaders who began to build and restore relations between the two great powers."

Earlier, on March 19, the president of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation Vladislav Tretyak said in a conversation with Life.Holding matches between the NHL and the KHL is an important event for world hockey. He recalled the importance of hockey as a means of strengthening international relations, mentioning the famous matches of 1972. 360.ru .

The phone conversation between Putin and Trump on March 18 lasted more than two hours. During this time, the leaders discussed a wide range of topics, from the Ukrainian settlement and the situation in the Middle East to improving relations between Moscow and Washington. We also talked about hockey. The American leader supported the idea of the Russian president to hold hockey matches in both countries between Russian and American players playing in the KHL and NHL.

The KHL and NHL clubs played three matches against each other. Magnitogorsk Metallurg lost to New York Rangers in Bern, Switzerland, in 2008 (3:4). SKA St. Petersburg beat Carolina at home in 2010 (5:3), and Dinamo Riga lost to Phoenix on its ice (1:3).