Vityaz season review: Dorozhko’s incredible season, first win in playoff game
After moving to Balashikha, Vityaz enjoyed a great season. KHL.ru continues its review of the 2022-2023 campaign with a look at how the team set new records and won a playoff game for the first time.
Life in a new home started off pretty well for Vityaz. The season began with a run of four home victories. That was followed by a losing streak on the road, but overall the team had a winning year.
By the end of the season, Vityaz had several noteworthy achievements. The Moscow Region club set a record for regular season wins (34) and goals scored (169), reaching the playoffs and winning a series for the first time.
That win came in the series opener against Lokomotiv, when 34 saves from Maxim Dorozhko and a goal from Vladimir Galuzin at the start of OT earned a 1-0 verdict.
Best players
94.1% saves, 2.01 GAA, 6 shut-outs
Dorozhko’s rookie season in the KHL was a resounding success. He grabbed his opportunity with both hands and made terrific progress throughout the championship. The 24-year-old won an All-Star call-up and was one of three nominations for the Goalie of the Year award. In regular season, Dorozhko had the second best save percentage in the league, made the top five for total shots saved (1252) and had the seventh best GAA. He kept up his solid form in the playoffs.
32 (4+28) points in 73 games
In recent years, the Vityaz management has done a good job of finding imports who come to Russia and quickly impose themselves in the KHL. Roy represents another success for the front office. He led the team’s defensemen in scoring, and also blocked 118 shots (the best on his team) to contribute a solid +22 rating.
40 (18+22) points in 72 games
Stepan had a great season. In a single campaign he put up more points than in a KHL career that began back in 2017. Starkov, who just turned 24, led Vityaz in assists and his +21 rating was the highest among the team’s forwards.
Coaching
Vyacheslav Butsayev signed a one-year contract with Vityaz after taking a break in the 2021-2022 season. That sabbatical didn’t do the coach any harm – under his guidance, his new team won exactly half of its games and was competitive all year.
“I can’t say we’re 100% happy with the season,” Butsayev said. “There are things to work on. We got the playoffs, but we’re a bit disappointed with how it finished. I think we could have done a bit more. Even so, our players got some priceless experience there.”
Best game
The final game of 2022 was unbelievably exciting as Vityaz rallied to defeat western conference leader SKA 6-5 in OT. SKA opened the scoring, Vityaz responded and opened a 5-2 lead. However, the home team was unable to hold onto that lead as the Petersburg offense hit top gear. Undaunted, Vityaz held their nerve and won on a goal in the last minute of overtime from Galuzin.
Young players
The most productive of Vityaz’ U23s was Stanislav Yarovoi, who had 16 (9+7) points. Ivan Yezhov (6+9) and Ivan Zinchenko (7+1) also did well. On defense, the top youngster was 20-year-old Yaroslav Busygin, who played 46 games and scored two goals and two assists. Were it not for a couple of unfortunate moments in the playoffs, he might have finished the season with a neutral plus/minus.
Summer work
The big news this season was a blockbuster trade with SKA. Zinchenko and Starkov went to Petersburg, with forward Vladislav Tsitsyura and defenseman Kirill Kirsanov coming the other way. Vityaz has focussed on defense so far. Even though Alexei Volgin and Roman Abrosimov both left the team, the management strengthened by acquiring Ruslan Pedan and Nikolai Timashov. Overall, it seems that Vityaz is happy to maintain the core of last season’s team and we don’t anticipate any further big moves on the transfer market this summer.
