However, a packed arena in the country's capital offered the perfect opportunity to see the heroes.

Almost half a million dollars was raised, while Vyacheslav Fetisov, Dominik Hasek and Viktor Shalimov were other stars who took to the ice.

The game itself was far from serious, with the scoreboard ticking over like a basketball match. Fittingly, the game ended in a draw – 13-all – with fans more than impressed at seeing their heroes in action.

“It’s a game for the kids. And it had to be a tie. And we just appreciate everybody who showed up today. And I think it was a big holiday for everybody. Everybody knows what happened in Russia in the recent month, and I hope the money we have raised will help the kids to recover a little bit,” Ilya Kovalchuk said.

“It was a great idea from Kovalchuk and Ovechkin and others to bring all these people together and help the kids. I am happy to be part of it,” Domink Hasek commented.

“We are all friends and we haven’t played with each other for a while, with the exception of the Russian national team. I think I’ll remember this day for along time,” Evgeny Malkin said.

Such was the success of the event that Ovechkin has already called for this charity match to become a regular pre-season feature.