VHL weekly review

CELEBRATION OF THE WEEK

The fifth VHL Russian Classic took place on Saturday the 14th of January, with Dynamo Balashikha hosting HC Khimik Voskresensk at Moscow's Legends Park outdoor ice rink. 1831 fans were in attendance.

Just like all previous Russian Classics, it was the visiting team who came away with the points. Two late goals sealed a 3:1 Khimik victory, their first win of 2017! Sticking to the traditions, Khimik received a special samovar after the final buzzer. 

BURAN BACK IN BUSINESS

HC Buran Voronezh, a club which had been prevented from signing any new players, can now once again register newbies. In a statement, the RIHF revealed that Buran have paid off their debts from the 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 seasons, meaning that they are allowed to have new players again. Buran have indeed already seen a few new players enter their ranks, however only time will tell if it will help them turn around their poor league fortunes.

TRANSFERS OF THE WEEK

Denis Orlovich-Grudkov and Mikhail Tikhonov, who both recently joined KHL club HC Amur Khabarovsk, have already returned to Saint Petersburg. The former is still one of the VHL's top scorers, starring in his first senior ice hockey season.

Heard of Mikhail Anisin? You probably have. The 2012 KHL Gagarin Cup winner, who has since developed a reputation as a difficult character to handle, has signed for Saryarka in Kazakhstan. After a home match, he even sung in front of the Saryarka faithful, expressing his appreciation of their support. 

SERIES OF THE WEEK

League leaders Torpedo, who had entered 2017 with a ten match winning streak, saw their run come to an end at home to Molot-Prikamye. They are being chased down at the top by a rampant SKA-Neva, who have won an incredible eleven matches in a row. The Saint Petersburgers are proving impossible to stop, not giving their opponents a chance. Pyotr Vorobyov's outfit were boosted by the appearance of goalkeeper Evgeny Ivannikov, who was sent down from SKA Saint Petersburg's main KHL team.

Beating Dynamo Balashikha in the Russian Classic, Khimik earned their first win in eight.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

SKA-Neva's Evgeny Ivannikov is the best goalkeeper. In two games, Evgeny earned one shutout as well as a 97.9 saves percentage and a goals against average of 0.50.

Teammate Andrei Churkin has been named the top defenseman, racking up two points (1+1) and a plus/minus rating of +5.

Artyom Antipov, who plays for Zvezda, is the best forward. Artyom picked up six points (5+1) and a +4 plus/minus rating.

The VHL's weekly best newbie is Maxim Dzhoshvili of THC Tver, who took five points (5+0). His plus/minus rating was +2.

Russian Ice Hockey Federation