China's KHL team sparkles at home debut

Players of the Kunlun Red Star celebrate after scoring a goal during a KHL game played between Kunlun Red Star and Admiral Vladivostok in LeSport Center, Beijing on Sept 5, 2016. [Photo/VCG]

Kunlun Red Star, the first Chinese team to join the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), sparkled at their home debut in Beijing on Monday, beating Russia's Admiral Vladivostok 6-3.

The solid victory comes just four days after the Red Star's first win in the 60-game regular season on Sept 1, when they defeated Russia's HC Amur in the city of Khabarovsk.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, both in Hangzhou for the 2016 G20 summit, spoke highly of the professional ice hockey game.

Xi said that the game is of great importance in boosting the cooperation between the two countries in winter sports, while Putin praised China for cherishing sports culture, which could help popularize the sport.

"It is our players' great hope to perform well at home and take it as a good opportunity to appreciate our Chinese fans," said the team's head coach Vladimir Yurzinov Jr in the press conference, "This is the very first time a professional ice hockey game was played here in China, and we really hope more fans join us in the future."