The first VHL match in Harbin
On the 14th of September 2017, the first VHL match took place in China between KRS Heilongjiang and HC Buran Voronezh.
Russian Ice Hockey Federation executive director Dmitry Kurbatov, deputy governor of the Heilongjiang province Sun Dongsheng and chief of the sporting department for the Heijlongjiang province Yang Tao took part in the opening ceremony.
Before the match, deputy governor of the Heilongjiang province Sun Dongsheng and vice-president of the IIHF Thomas Wu dropped the puck.
IIHF vice-president Thomas Wu is developing ice hockey in Hong Kong and China. In 2001, he founded amateur ice hockey club in Hong Kong, a move which started the sport's development in the region. Later in 2007, an ice hockey academy was constructed with his participation.
