Spartak preview: developing a new Moscow

Spartak had a busy summer, including one of the biggest trades of preseason. The club also acquired several interesting new players. KHL.ru runs the rule over preparations as the Red-and-Whites look to at least match last year’s second round appearance.

Last season

Spartak was consistent throughout the regular season. The team started with four wins in its first five games and continued to pick up points regularly throughout the campaign. True, games against the top teams did not always go well, but Spartak was impressive against its immediate rivals for the playoffs. The final standings were determined by off-ice calculations. Spartak had more points than Lokomotiv when the season was halted (56 against 55), but the Railwaymen played fewer games and won a higher percentage of their available points (58.51% against 58.33%). That pushed Spartak down to sixth — and unexpectedly placed them directly into the second round. Scheduled opponent Jokerit withdrew from the competition, sending the Muscovites straight to a match-up with SKA. The opening game produced a shock 6-1 win for Spartak, but subsequently SKA reeled off four successive 2-1 victories to progress to the Conference final.

Roster

Arrivals

Goalie: Patrik Rybar (Dinamo Minsk)

Defense: Zakhar Arzamastsev (Kladno, CZE), Joey Keane (Carolina, NHL), Nikita Sedov (SKA), Artyom Serikov (Chicago, AHL), Timur Khairullin (Metallurg Novokuznetsk, VHL), Igor Chibrikov (Owen Sound, OHL)

Forwards: Dmitry Arkhipov (Amur), Phil Varone (Bern, SUI), Ivan Guskov (Krylya Sovietov, JHL), Artyom Demkov (Dinamo Minsk), Artyom Zhuk (Lada, VHL), Miks Indrasis (Bil, SUI), Kirill Kozhevnikov (Saryarka, KAZ), Maxim Krovyakov (SKA), Andrei Kuznetsov (Ryazan, VHL), Pavel Kukshtel (SKA), Alexei Lipanov (Texas, AHL), Roman Luyubimov (Amur), Maxim Musorov (Des Moines, USHL), Shane Prince (Lugano, SUI), German Rubtsov (try-out, Charlotte, AHL), Roman Starchenko (Barys)

Remaining

Goalies: Alexei Krasikov, Andrei Skovronsky

Defense: Maxim Afanasyev, Alexander Bryntsev, Dmitry Vishnevsky, Mikhail Mamkin, Semyon Ruchkin, Yegor Savikov

Forwards: Ilya Baranov, Metvei Zaseda, Danila Kvartalnov, Dmitry Kugryshev, Andrei Loktionov, Ilya Talaluyev, Daniel Usmanov, Timur Khafizov, Alexander Khokhlachyov, Maxim Tsyplakov, Nikolai Chebykin, Ilya Shipov

Departures

Goalie: Oscar Dansk (Calgary, NHL)

Defense: Nikita Gromov (Avangard), Oleg Yevenko, Jakub Jerabek (Trinec, CZE), Dmitry Kostenko (Kunlun Red Star, loan), Alexander Nikishin (SKA), Akim Trishin (Lada, VHL), Tim Heed (Ambri-Piotta, SUI)

Alexander Nikishin’s blockbuster trade to SKA and Spartak’s conflict with Miks Indrasis overshadowed the other transfer activity this summer. Yet the club made several interesting acquisitions. For starters, Spartak refreshed its imports, signing goalie Patrik Rybar, defenseman Joey Keane and forwards Phil Varone and Shane Prince. Then there were a clutch of promising youngsters, and not only those who moved as part of the Nikishin deal. For example, Spartak now has Alexei Lipanov and one of the leaders for Kazakhstan’s U20s, Maxim Musorov. Moreover, there is huge experience on the team following the arrival of Roman Starchenko. The former Barys man played in every KHL season since the very start.

Coaching

Last season was Boris Mironov’s rookie year as a head coach in the KHL. Previously, he had worked as an assistant at Neftekhimik. His debut can be regarded as a success. As he said, Mironov took charge of a completely new team in which he needed to nurture the right atmosphere as well as determining a winning gameplan. In this aspect, he definitely succeeded: through the season Spartak was a spirited and attractive team.

Many people will talk of ‘second season syndrome’, when players and coaches alike struggle to live up to the standards of their rookie year. However, Mironov is ready for a new challenge and is optimistically anticipating the new season: “There are things we can improve, we’ll keep looking ahead,” he said. “Our minimum target is to make the playoffs, our ultimate ambition is to win the cup.”

Goalies

Spartak has a pair of strong Russian goalies. Alexei Krasikov, 26, is in great shape, while 24-year-old Andrei Skovronsky made an impressive KHL debut last season. Skovronsky stopped 96.5% of the shots he faced in his rookie season and had a shut-out in only his second full game in the KHL. That shut-out was no gimme either: he made 38 saves against a dangerous Jokerit offense.

The third name on the list will also expect to play a significant role. New signing Patrik Rybar had a decent campaign with Dinamo Minsk last term and, as a bonus, won Olympic bronze with Slovakia.

Defense

Dmitry Vishnevsky will wear the ‘C’. The 32-year-old has been at Spartak since December 2018 and puts up decent numbers every season. Yegor Savikov could be viewed as the future of Spartak’s defense. He’s not yet 20, but he scored his first KHL goal in the playoffs against SKA and his pre-season form has been impressive.

Artyom Serikov and Joey Keane are also noteworthy. Both played in the AHL for Chicago Wolves last season and contributed to a Calder Cup triumph. Spartak fans will recall Serikov for his time with the club in 2020-2021, while Keane is a newcomer to the league. The key strength of this right-handed d-man is his offensive potential. Not only did he just win the Calder Cup, he was also the most productive defenseman in last year’s AHL playoffs.

Offense

Naturally, Keane won’t carry all the attacking load. Alexander Khokhlachyov will expect to play a leading role after clearing 30 points for the fifth successive season. In pre-season, he often played with Dmitry Kugryshev and fit again Andrei Loktionov. It’s widely assumed that this three will form Spartak’s top line. In any event, these three are likely to be the team’s most productive players in 2022-2023.

Nikolai Chebykin’s performance will be intriguing. This tall, powerful forward arrived at Spartak during the previous season and although he didn’t score heavily he still made a good contribution to the Red-and-Whites. Fun fact: in 2016-2017 Chebykin played on Dynamo Balashikha’s champion roster in the VHL alongside current Spartak team-mates Ilya Shipov, Ilya Baranov and Alexei Lipanov.

Both Spartak’s new import forwards are experienced in the KHL. Shane Prince has represented Sibir, Dinamo Minsk and Avtomobilist. His best season came in Belarus, when he had 55 (26+29) points in regular and post season. That year, Phil Varone played for Barys and was one of the most effective centers, contributing on power play and penalty kill alike.

Youngsters

Spartak’s management takes a long-term view — the system has many promising prospects on long-term contracts.

There are almost 10 players born in 2002 alone on Spartak’s roster. They include goalie Zakhar Vinogradov, defensemen Alexei Yegorov and Yegor Savikov (speaking of long contracts, Savikov is signed up until 2025), plus forwards Ivan Guskov, Artyom Lidkovsky, Maxim Krovyakov, Nikita Miller, Daniel Usmanov and Dmitry Zlodeyev. Last seaseon, Zlodeyev had just 15 shifts across two games for Spartak in the KHL, but over the summer he has been one of the team’s leading goal scorers. That might be enough to persuade Mironov to give him more opportunities in the league.

And there are a few slightly older players. For example, Igor Chibrikov returned to Russia this summer after spending the bulk of his career overseas. Even so, he was able to get a taste of JHL and VHL action with Traktor’s system in 2020-2021. He’s a big defenseman (201 cm, 92 kg) and he only turned 21 last November.

Expectations

If the team steers clear of injuries, Spartak should be capable of achieving a 5-6th place finish in the West.