Neftekhimik season preview: leaders leave, new imports arrive

As Neftekhimik looks to quickly integrate its new signings into the team and compensate for the loss of several leaders, KHL.ru gives the lowdown on how Nizhnekamsk is preparing for the coming season.

Last season

Before the start of the season, Neftekhimik was widely expected to be in the thick of the race for a playoff spot in the East. And those expectations were fulfilled. With 52 points from 49 games, the team took seventh place in the Eastern Conference. The team started with three successive wins over Kunlun Red Star, Jokerit and Sibir, while its longest losing skid was six games. Ultimately, the playoff place was secured in the Far East, with Neftekhimik taking eight points from a possible 10 against its closest rivals for a top-eight finish.

In the first round, Neftekhimik came up against Traktor and caused more problems than a 0-4 scoreline might suggest. All four games were decided by a single goal, and the third of the series went to overtime.

Roster

Arrivals

Goalie: Alexei Murygin (Torpedo)

Defense: Evgeny Kashnikov (Gatineau, QMJHL), Bogdan Konyushkov (Dizel, VHL, try-out), Vladislav Leontiev (Avtomobilist, loan), Johann Auvito (HIFK, FIN)

Forwards: Andrei Belozyorov (Lada, VHL), Samuel Bucek (Nitra, SVK), Anthony Camara (Dynamo Pardubice, CZE), Mikhail Nazarov (Lada, VHL), Denis Parshin (Kosice, SVK)

Remaining

Goalies: Yaroslav Ozolin, Alexander Sudnitsin

Defense: Maxim Berezin, Kirill Vorobyov, Bulat Motygullin, Ruslan Petrishchev, Alexei Puzanov, Gleb Semyonov, Mikhail Sidorov

Forwards: Rafael Bikmullin, Denis Vikharev, Ansel Galimov, Eduard Gimatov, Sergei Kuptsov, Vyacheslav Leshchenko, Evgeny Mityakin, Danila Popov, Yegor Popov, Pavel Poryadin, Andrei Chibilyov, Timur Sharifyanov, Bulat Shafigullin.

Departures

Defense: Lukas Klok, Ronald Knot (both Arizona, NHL), Alexander Sevostyanov (Avtomobilist, loan)

Forwards: Evgeny Artyukhin, Alexander Belyayev (Izhstal, VHL), Marat Khairullin (SKA), Vladislav Shutov (Ugra, VHL)

Neftekhimik’s summer activity saw the club refresh its imports. Antony Camara, Johann Auvito and Samuel Bucek all arrived at the club. It’s fair to assume that the team will expect each of them to play a leading role in the coming campaign. There are a couple more new additions: goalie Alexei Murygin was twice the KHL’s top goalie in terms of save percentage, while Denis Parshin has represented top clubs in CSKA, Avangard and Metallurg.

The newbies face the tough task of replacing three leading players who were real difference-makers last season. The greatest loss is Marat Khairullin’s move to SKA: he led the offense last season, captained the team and blazed a trail for homegrown talent on the roster. Czech d-men Ronald Knot and Lukas Klok are both off to Arizona. Considering the work they got through last season, the coaching staff will have its work cut out to replace them.

Coaching

A year ago, Oleg Leontiev took charge of the team. At that team, his experience was limited to a few months as acting head coach at Avtomobilist and Admiral. Before the start of the season he told KHL. ru: “On every team where I’ve worked, we put the emphasis on attacking, entertaining and aggressive hockey. We wanted to be strong and to play in the opposition’s zone. Our preparations will try to get the team ready for that style of play.”

Leontiev and his coaches succeeded. Neftekhimik was rated as one of the most attractive teams in the league. Throughout the season, these underdogs got their teeth into higher-ranked opposition, scoring victories over Lokomotiv, Avangard, Avtomobilist, Traktor and Dynamo Moscow. Gambling on an attacking game paid off with a ticket to the playoffs. This season promises to be even more interesting as we look at how Leontiev can further develop his team. After all, there is a fear that ‘second season syndrome’ can hit coaches as well as players.

Goalies

Back in October, Neftekhimik signed a contract with Alexander Sudnitsin. He did well enough to earn himself an extension during the course of the season. Now he is joined by Alexei Murygin, who didn’t see much action at Torpedo last season. Those two will fight it out for a starting role. The two netminders have one thing in common: they are hugely experienced and remain calm under pressure. Whoever is handed the understudy role will not suffer any crisis of confidence. Young Yaroslav Ozolin is the third choice and seems set to get at least a taste of the action during the season.

Defense

The big issue with this summer’s departures is not the quantity but the quality of those who have left. Knot and Klok played in the first pair, took a power play role and, overall, formed a key part of Neftekhimik’s system last term. Experienced French international Auvito will try to replace them. He has played in the NHL, KHL, Swedish and Finnish leagues, as well as 10 World Championships.

In addition, it will be interesting to see how Evgeny Kashnikov and Vladislav Leontiev perform. The latter, on loan from Avtomobilist, is the son of the head coach. There are examples of how a father-son pairing can bring results: Yury and Nikita Mikhailis for Barys and Kazakhstan, Vladimir Tarasenko at Sibir and, this summer, Igor Larionov Jr at Torpedo.

Offense

Apart from Khairullin, Neftkehimik’s management secured the services of all their scoring leaders. Vyacheslav Leshchenko, Rafael Bikmullin, Denis Vikharev and Sergei Kuptsev re-signed, Pavel Poryadin and Evgeny Mityakin had contracts running to the end of this season. Both Camara and Bucek should reinforce the offense further. The former had 38 (22+16) points from 58 games in the Czech championship, while the latter led the Slovak league in scoring (54 points in 69 games). In addition, Andrei Belozyorov and Mikhail Nazarov were among the leading scorers in last year’s VHL and are looking for a chance to step up to the big league.

Youngsters

Neftekhimik is a club that puts a real emphasis on developing young players and in recent season that faith has been repaid in goals and assists. Last season Danila Popov, 21, Andrei Chivilyov, 22, and Bulat Shafigullin, also 22, all made an impression in the first team. In addition, Ozolin and Leontiev Jr are both 22. Shafigullin is a good example of the club’s commitment to developing its prospects. Last season was his fifth in the KHL, and he produced his best results to date with 15 points in 49 games.

From the junior team, Reaktor, there are four stand-out prospects — Raul Yakupov, Vladislav Korobkin, Robert Chernov and Daniil Mikhailov. All four had 40+ points in the regular season last time. In addition, defenseman Daniil Novikov blocked more shots than any other player. Yakupov has already featured with the first time in pre-season, while Novikov and Danil Sherstobitov travelled to the President of Kazakhstan Cup this week.

Expectations

It’s clear that Neftekhimik will be among the teams battle for a playoff spot in the East once again. After making post season in 2022, Nizhnekamsk has higher expectations this time. This team could even improve on its seventh place from last term, but that depends on several factors: how quickly the newcomers adapt, an injury-free season and an unexpected slump from one or more direct rivals. Whatever the outcome, though, watching Neftekhimik in the coming season promises to be intriguing.