Arlan Kokshetau wins Kazakhstan Cup

30 Aug 2012 | Davide Tuniz

Carried away by Canadian line, Arlan won its first trophy beating League champion Beybarys in a thrilling final

Arlan Kokshetau wins its first ever trophy grabbing Kazakhstan Cup 2012 after a thrilling final at Kazakhstan Sport Palace in Astana. All tournament was played, as usual, in a week and in a single location, the capital of Kazakhstan. Both finalists, Arlan Kokshetau and current league champion Beybarys Atyrau, come to final with a perfect record, winning all the games of their group: Arlan had a great contribute from his first line: Canadian Yannick Riendeau and Maxim Boisclair and Latvian Arturs Ozolins; Riendeau scored 4 goals and 4 assists in 4 games, Boisclair had 2 goals and four assists and Ozolins 3 goals and 2 assists. Beybarys still counts with its key players from winning campaign in last league, one for all the Latvian goalie Martins Raitums. In the final Arlan takes advantage three times with Riendeau, Ozolins and Boisclair, but Beybarys manages to recover, so game was at shootout where both goalies were decisive, until the winning goal scored by Boisclair.

Arlan Kokshetau, winner of Kazakhstan Cup 2012 (Photo: Kazakhstan Federation)

After the game, Arlan's players want to share the success with many fans cheering on the stands: " I have no words, the fans have seen with our own eyes, we are very happy that we now have the cup and bring it to Kokshetau. I would like to say a big thank you to our fans for their support. Without them, it would be much more difficult. We wanted this victory and we really draw out it. We originally had a task: to win every match and the Cup, which we did - said Arlan captain Marat Askarov.
Forward Alexei Obukhov: "We played with great intensity, the opponent was very serious and worthy. That's why we are so happy, we want to win. Our fans gave us a huge support, we took the cup for them, so they do not come here for nothing to Astana"
Ertis Pavlodar won bronze medal winning 5-2 the 3rd place final against HK Almaty

After the game, Kazakhstan Federation announces the awards:
- Vitaly Evdokimov (Arlan) - best goalie
- Roman Tesluk (Beybarys) - best defender
- Yannick Riendeau (Arlan) - best forward

Review all Kazakhstan Cup 2012 games here