Irkutsk Gearing Up For 2nd Leg of Russian Cup

The second leg of the Russian Bandy Cup kicks off October 14th, and Irkutsk, one of the host cities, has begun to prepare the ice.

The tournament will be played at Irkutsk's smaller Rekord stadium, which has a cooling system for the ice surface, unlike Trud Stadium, where Baikal-Energia plays its regular season matches. Organizers were not expecting to put the ice down in Rekord until next week, but a recent cold snap has allowed them to lay down the surface a few days early. This was a boon for Baikal-Energia, who had been practicing in the city of Angarsk, about 60 km to the north.

Irkutsk will be hosting Group IV in the second leg of the Russian Cup. In addition to Baikal-Energia, the group includes SKA-Neftyanik Khabarovsk, Sayany Abakan and regional rival Metallurg Bratsk.

The second leg is a round robin format, and the top two teams in each of the four groups will advance to the Russian Cup finals, which will be held in Moscow on November 5-8.

Groups:

Group I, Moscow

Dynamo Moscow
Rodina Kirov
Vodnik Arkhangelsk
Mayak Krasnoturinsk

Group II, Krasnogorsk

Zorky Krasnogorsk
Uralsky Trubnik Pervouralsk
Raketa Kazan
Volga Ulyanovsk

Group III, Krasnoyarsk

Yenisey Krasnoyarsk
Kuzbass Kemerovo
Sibselmash Novosibirsk
SKA-Zabaikalets Chita

Group IV, Irkutsk

Baikal-Energia Irkutsk
SKA-Neftyanik Khabarovsk
Sayany Abakan
Metallurg Bratsk