It premiered at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival[3] and was released in limited theaters by Sony Pictures Classics on January 23, 2015.

The film also narrates how players were wooed by National Hockey League scouts and eventually flooded NHL rosters.

The site's consensus reads: "Fun and fascinating, Red Army delivers absorbing documentary drama for hockey fans and sports novices alike.

[19] A. O. Scott of The New York Times called the film a "stirring, crazy story—a Russian novel of Tolstoyan sweep and Gogl-esque absurdity".

[20] Time magazine said: "this playful, poignant film presents a human story that transcends decades, borders and ideologies".