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Esmark U16 to participate in Russian Tournament

By DLG, 07/28/19, 12:45PM EDT

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U16 team to play in Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan

Pittsburgh, PA - The Esmark Stars AAA Hockey Club, proud members of the North American Prospects Hockey League (NAPHL), has announced that it will be sending a team, U16 AAA, to the city of Nizhnekamsk in Tatarstan, Russia to participate in an International Friendship Hockey Tournament, Aug. 24-31, 2019.

The tournament will take place at the Neftekhimik Ice Palace in Nizhnekamsk.  The Neftekhimik Ice Palace is home to the Kontinental Hockey League's (KHL) Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk.

Tatarstan, is home to two KHL teams, the Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk, who play in the tournament’s host city of Nizhnekamsk, and the Ak Bars Kazan, which is based in the capital city of Kazan. Both teams are members of the Kharlamov Division in the Eastern Conference of the KHL.

The KHL, considered to be the premier professional ice hockey league in Europe and Asia, and second in the world behind the National Hockey League (NHL), is home to 24 member clubs based in Belarus, China, Finland, Latvia, Kazakhstan and Russia.

In addition to the Esmark Stars club, other teams scheduled to participate in the tournament include: Avangard Omsk (Omsk, Russia), Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia), Ak Bars Kazan (Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia), Neftehimik Nizhnekamsk (Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan, Russia), Neftyannik Almetyevsk (Almetyevsk, Russia), and Metallurg Magnitogorsk (Magnitogorsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia).

The tournament and participation of the Esmark Stars AAA club is being coordinated by the Sports Ministry of the Republic of Tatarstan and the US-based Friendship Bridge Association, in addition, to the KHL's Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk hockey club.

The hockey tournament is the first of several international sporting events in Tatarstan for US-based teams and programs planned by Friendship Bridge Association.  Upcoming events with American teams participating will include boxing, gymnastics and judo competitions.

"This is a great opportunity for the Stars to kick-off our 35th year celebration," said Stars founder and general manager Dave Kosick.

"By traveling internationally, it will allow us to truly celebrate the history of our program," Kosick added, "as the Stars hockey club highlighted our inaugural season in 1984 by traveling to Finland."

The Pittsburgh Stars AAA Hockey program, predecessor to the Esmark Stars AAA Club, was founded in 1984.

In addition to Finland, the Stars program has also previously sent teams to participate in Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the Czech Republic.

The Esmark Stars AAA Hockey program, based in Pittsburgh, PA, is a nationally and internationally recognized amateur hockey club, under the umbrella of USA Hockey and the Mid-American Hockey District. The program, founded in 1984, provides elite level amateur hockey players exposure on a local, regional, national and international level. 

The Stars program provides elite level ice hockey training and development designed to allow each player to maximize their potential while providing a showcase for athletes for junior, collegiate and professional opportunities ... all while providing constructive lessons that allow them to excel in life.