On 27 August, speaking at his meeting with the Ak Bars Hockey Club at the base camp of the club in Kazan, the Rais (Head) of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov stated that such meetings before the beginning of the new season have become a good tradition.
“Ak Bars is our favourite team and the real brand of the republic. Tatarstan is proud of its hockey. We are your dedicated fans,” he said and wished the team good luck.
In his turn the Chief Coach of the club Anvar Gatiyatullin said that the team had good preparatory work before the season “We understand that Ak Bars is a business card of Tatarstan. We are facing the uttermost tasks and we will work together to reach them,” he said.
In the end of the meeting, the leader of the team Dmitriy Yashkin handed in the club uniform to Rustam Minnikhanov.