VHL weekly review

UNIVERSIADE PREPARATION

Headed by coach Vladislav Khromykh, the Russian national team are preparing for the 2017 Winter Universiade which will take place in Kazakhstan between January 28th and February 8th.

Squad list:

Goalkeepers: Ilya Andryukhov (Sokol), Timur Bilyalov (Bars), Alexander Samonov (THC Tver).

Defensemen: Stanislav Zabornikov (Sokol), Yury Kozlovsky (SKA-Neva Saint Petersburg), Roman Kudinov (THC Tver), Msxim Kudryashov (THC Tver), Mikhail Orlov (THC Tver), Vladimir Repin (THC Tver), Roman Tatalin (THC Tver), Andrei Scherbov (Sokol).

Forwards: Andrei Alexxev (Dynamo Balashikha), Andrei Erofeev (Chelmet), Vladimir Efremov (Dynamo Balashikha), Ivan Ivanov (Torpedo), Daniil Ilin (Sokol), Dmitry Kirillov (Sokol), Artyom Osipov (Bars), Kirill Pilipenko (Dynamo Balashikha), Nikita Sirotkin (Zauralye), Sergei Smurov (THC Tver), Alexander Tarasov (Dizel Penza), Vadim Shutov (THC Tver).

Russia's first match will take place on January 30th against South Korea at 09:30 Moscow time.

HERO OF THE WEEK

SKA-Neva forward Andrei Altybarmakyan, who plays in the VHL and the MHL (SKA-Serebryanie Livy), won the MHL Challenge Cup and was gifted a place on the Chernyshev Division roster for the 2017 KHL All-Star Game. Alongside Andrei, Zvezda's Pavel Podluboshhnov was another VHL representative.

To the surprise of many, Andrei Altybarmakyan turned out to be the KHL All-Star hero. With only four minutes remaining in the final match, he received the puck on the crease, deked and beautifully slotted it into the left corner. A stunning winning goal!

Afterwards, Andrei thanked goalkeeper Ilya Sorokin for letting him score, while expressing his gratitude to his teammates for supporting him. In the dressing room, he took a seat next to Salavat Yulaev Ufa stars Kirill Kaprizov and Zakhar Arzamastsev.

RETURN OF THE WEEK

Back on the 26th of September, Yuzhniy Ural defenseman Ilya Susloparov received a horrible looking injury, taking a puck full in the eyes. However, despite the setback, brilliant work from doctors enabled Ilya to return to the ice in January. While Ilya has to compete in a protective mask at the moment, he has already picked up one assist since his return.

DEFEAT STREAKS

When winning the VHL Russian Classic not long ago, it seemed that HC Khimik Voskresensk would finally pick up form. Nevertheless, despite those hopes, Khimik have once again started losing. Indeed, since that outdoor win against Dynamo Balashikha, they have dropped three consecutive defeats to Ermak, Sokol and Saryarka.

Still, they aren't willing to give up. To prove that their Russian Classic victory wasn't a fluke, they managed to get the better of leaders Torpedo 2:1 on penalty shots at home.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Artyom Zagidullin, who plays for Yuzhniy Ural, has been named the best goalkeeper. He played in two matches, not conceding a goal in either of them.

Molot-Prikamye player Maxim Salakhov is the top defenseman. In three games, he scored two goals and earned a plus/minus rating of +4.

The best forward is Sputnik's Mikhail Mokin. Mikhail picked up four points (3+1) and a +4 plus/minus rating.

THC Tver goalkeeper Alexander Samonov, born in 1995, is the VHL's top rookie. He earned a 93.7 saves percentage, conceding an average of 1.69 goals a game.

Russian Ice Hockey Federation