Players of the week

A change of coach has brought an improvement in form for the top goaltender of week 8, Dinamo Minsk’s Andrei Mezin (pictured). As his team picked up a hat-trick of wins, Mezin was beaten just three times and saved 96.3 per cent of efforts on his goal.

Salavat Yulayev’s all-conquering form was underpinned by defenseman of the week Dmitry Kalinin. He finished the week with an impressive +7 rating, which included two goals and three assists in his three games.

Sharp-shooting Stanislav Chistov took the attacking honors, grabbing three goals and three assists for Metallurg Magnitogorsk to finish at a +5.

For the second week running, the rookie of the week prize went to Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg. Their 19-year-old forward Anatoly Nikontsev took the award after scoring twice in two games and gaining a +1. The youngster averaged 11-and-a-half minutes on ice in his matches.

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