Aliaksei Protas and Ilya Protas suited up in a charity game in their hometown of Vitebsk, Belarus, on Saturday. Aliaksei recorded two points (1g, 1a) while Ilya was credited with an assist in the BETERA All-Stars’ 5-2 victory over the Vitebsk Bears.
The scrimmage was part of the 2026 BETERA All-Star Tour, featuring three 15-minute periods of five-on-five hockey. Tickets for the game held at the Vitebsk Ice Sports Palace were sold out.
Ilya’s assist came on the game’s opening goal, when he wrapped around the net and found Stepan Falkovsky in the slot 8:45 into the game.
After the first period, when the score was just 1-0 for the All-Stars, Ilya wasn’t fazed by the low scoring.
“I guess it always starts like this, the matches are a bit stuff. Everyone there doesn’t want to concede early goals,” Ilya said during an in-arena interview after the first period, translated by Google Translate. “The first period turned out quite modest in terms of goals and scoring chances, but now we have a little feel for our opponent, and we will act according to a different tactic.”
He added, “I hope there will be more goals.”
Ilya got his wish, with the All-Stars turning up the heat and both teams scoring six more goals total.
His brother Aliaksei also found the scoresheet himself, recording two points and scoring the only goal between the brothers. In the third period, Aliaksei picked up the puck in his own zone and carried it all the way down the ice, sniping a shot over the goaltender’s shoulder to make it 3-1 All-Stars.
Despite the good effort from Vitebsk, the All-Stars squad composed of NHL and KHL players ultimately came out on top, but fans got to enjoy an entertaining game.
Full game stream
All ticket sales were also donated to charity, sent to the Vitebsk orphanage.
Aliaksei was happy that the sales went to a good cause. “This is a great idea!” he said to BETERA, as translated by Google Translate. “I’m glad that we are able to organize such events.”
Vitebsk was just the first stop on the tour, with more games to come, but it was a special stage for the Protas brothers.
“Unreal, unreal,” Ilya said of the crowd during his in-game interview. “The stands are full. This is, of course, very cool, because we are watching the Vitebsk matches, and we see these sold-out games, full stands, and the support of the fans.
“Of course, I wanted to experience the support of my home crowd, even in a charity match,” he admitted. “And to see how they support me and cheer for me, it’s really cool.”
Aliaksei also valued the opportunity to play in their hometown, focusing on the next generation. “We want guys to have the opportunity to watch hockey players who started in the same relatively small cities,” Aliaksei said.
In addition to the donations, the event served to inspire young fans from Belarus and give them access to and exposure to players they would normally only see on TV.
“We will definitely move to another city so that all the children can see that the impossible is possible, that the guys started the same way and are now achieving such success,” he told Russian outlet News By, per a Google Translate translation.
Before the game, the Protas brothers also helped coach at a master class for young athletes at the Vitebsk Hockey Club’s Youth Sports School. They, along with Vladislav Kolyachonok, Nikita Tolopilo, and Alexander Skorenov, took the players through a warmup before splitting into groups to focus on specific skills. They wrapped up the master class with a scrimmage, giving the students the chance to face off against the pros (including the Pro Bros).
After the master class and after the game, the All-Star team roster was available for autographs.
Ilya and Aliaksei are BETERA ambassadors, along with Egor Sharangovich, who also participated in the match and recorded one assist. The Protas brothers have been busy with BETERA this offseason, also appearing as special guests at a World Championship watch party and visiting the Belarus national football team.
Last summer, the ambassadors faced off in a Protas vs Sharangovich 3-on-3 charity match in Minsk. Team Protas won 12-10.
