Alexander Yeryomenko: the most honored goalie in the KHL history

KHL.ru continues talking about the league’s legends with Alexander Yeryomenko, the only goalie to lift three Gagarin Cups – this feat helped him to be elected as the goalie for the Fonbet KHL golden team in 2023.

For several years, some experts referred to Alexander Yeryomenko as the “eternal second.” This was largely because he didn’t get a fair chance. Breaking into Dynamo’s roster, the club he came from, in the late 1990s and early 2000s was extremely difficult. In the 1999-2000 season, Vitaly Yeremeyev showed a phenomenal performance. During the offseason, he left to play overseas, signing with the New York Rangers but shortly after the start of the championship, Mikhail Shtalenkov followed in the opposite direction. In 2001, Yeremeyev also returned to the team. At that time, the Blue-and-Whites aimed to achieve the highest achievements, so they relied on experienced netminders – teams aspiring for a spot in the finals usually don’t leave much room to the experiments, especially between the piping.

Initially, Yeryomenko was sent to Dynamo’s farm club, THK Tver, in the Higher League, where he played alongside Ilya Nikulin, Igor Shchadilov, Alexei Ponikarovsky, and other promising players from the team’s pipeline. Then, he was loaned to other Super League clubs – namely Mechel and Amur. He also played for Dynamo, although not frequently. At times, he performed quite well, as it’s evident from his statistics. For example, in the 2002-2003 season, he averaged 1.79 goals against in 17 games with a saves percentage of 92.7%. However, completely displacing Yeremeyev from Dynamo’s lineup at that time was practically impossible.

Even in the lockout season of 2004-2005, Yeryomenko showed great potential. During the regular season, he even had more games than his more experienced colleagues. However, once the elimination stage began, Yeremeyev was back as the side’s undisputed starter. By conceding fewer goals per game and saving 96.6% of the shots, the Kazakhstan-born netminder, like in 2000, significantly contributed to Dynamo’s victory.

It was evident that for Yeryomenko to become a starter, he needed to change teams. Staying in Yeremeyev’s shadow could have continued for a long time. In 2005, the goaltender decided to join Ak Bars, which was building a new team after a mass return of NHL players. Out of all the NHL returnees flooding Kazan, only Alexei Morozov remained. The vacant spots were filled, among others, by Nikulin, Shchadilov, Vladimir Vorobyov, Alexei Tereshchenko, Alexander Stepanov, and Yeryomenko – all well-known to head coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov from their time working together at Dynamo.

However, changing clubs didn’t help Yeryomenko become a starting goalie. Initially, Ak Bars preferred starting with Fred Brathwaite. In the following season, it was Mika Noronen’s turn. Once again, during the regular season, Yeryomenko played not much less than his colleagues, but as soon as decisive matches arrived, he would find himself sitting on the bench.

“The goal was clear from the beginning – to play as much hockey as possible. I understood that I could achieve results only through hard work and dedication. I wanted to prove to myself, first and foremost, that I had the right to play. There was always a good sports anger inside me. I don’t like losing, I don’t like giving up, and I must reach my goals. Perhaps this is what brought me to a certain level. Yes, I was skinny, weak, and small. But I didn’t care who stood in front of me. I had to go out and beat them,” – Yeryomenko said about the early years of his career in an interview with KHL.ru.

The turning point

Paradoxically, but true, the only major tournament where Yeryomenko started in goal for Team Russia was in 2007 while he was serving as the second-choice goaltender for his club. At the IIHF World Championship in Moscow and Mytishchi, he let the tournament in goals-against average (0.98) and save percentage (95.7). However, one mistake made in the semifinal game against Finland overshadowed it all. On the other hand, Mikko Koivu played exceptionally well, knocking down Yeryomenko’s stick and redirecting the puck into the open net with the next touch.

That bronze medal became Yeryomenko’s second piece in his World Championship hardware collection after winning the same honor in 2005. In the following years, the Netminder would go on to win two gold (2008, 2009) and a silver medal (2010). However, in all these competitions, he served as the second or third-string goalie. It’s worth noting that in 2008, during the IIHF World Championship in Quebec, Yeryomenko started the tournament as Team Russia’s number one goalie but got injured in the second game against Team Czechia and couldn’t play any further.

Soon after the 2007 World Championship, Yeryomenko’s career took a turning point with his transfer to Salavat Yulaev. The Ufa side invited a group of players from Ak Bars, including Yeryomenko, Shchadilov, Vorobyov, and Tereshchenko. "That’s when I first played the full playoffs. It was a starting point for me,” the goalie remarked.

27.02.2001 First game for Dynamo’s senior team.
18.05.2008 First IIHF World Championship gold medal with Team Russia.
10.01.2009 Participation in the first KHL All-Star Game at the Red Square in Moscow.
16.04.2011 Gagarin Cup triumph with Salavat Yulaev.
25.04.2012 Second Gagarin Cup win with Dynamo Moscow and MVP honors.
17.04.2013 Another Gagarin Cup win with Dynamo, again with MVP honors.

A starting point at the age of 27. But in professional sports, anything can happen, especially when it comes to goalies who often mature closer to their 30s.

During his four seasons in Ufa, Yeryomenko achieved two championships and one Gagarin Cup. The championship seasons were different for the netminder. In 2008, he was the starting goalie, while in 2011, the coaches relied on Erik Ersberg from Sweden. After three seasons in prominent roles, Yeryomenko found himself on the bench once again and realized that it was time for a change.

“What’s the point of sitting down and just receiving money? I want to produce results, help the team, and be in the spotlight. That’s what matters to me. Money comes after. Yes, financially, I took a hit. But I believe I made the right decision. In a way, I got complacent, and I needed a fresh start. Thankfully, I was picked up by Dynamo, where I had to prove myself again,” Yeryomenko recalled.

Two Cups with Dynamo

In 2011, Yeryomenko’s agreement with Ufa still had two seasons remaining, but the goalie declared that he wanted out and dissolve his contract. He transferred to his hometown team, Dynamo, probably never suspecting that he would immediately lift the Gagarin Cup. Nevertheless, that’s exactly what happened. The series between Avangard and Dynamo will forever be etched in KHL history as the first final confrontation in which a team overcame a 1-3 deficit to emerge as a winner. Another such series occurred in 2022 when CSKA was trailing Metallurg with the same scoreline.

In the following season, Dynamo repeated its success by defeating Traktor 4-2 in the finals. Thanks to these victories, Yeryomenko became the most decorated goalie in the KHL, with three Gagarin Cup titles. Only Danis Zaripov has more trophies, with five. A whole group of players also has three titles. Our featured hero also won the Russian championship six times, the same number as Zaripov this time. However, Igor Shchadilov tops the list with seven championship wins with his teams.

After the victory over Traktor in the finals, Yeryomenko played nine more seasons with Dynamo. However, the team couldn’t progress past the second round during that time. Nevertheless, little can be said about the goalie’s play; he maintained a high level in all seasons and provided fans with numerous memorable moments. Winning the Gagarin Cup three times in a row is exceptionally difficult, and no one else has achieved it yet. Furthermore, the Dynamo lineup at that time lacked prominent stars. A little later, both SKA and CSKA gained significant strength and have remained tough competitors to this day, not just for Dynamo, but for all the other clubs in the League.

22.05.2013 Second consecutive Best goalie award.
23.03.2022 Announces his retirement following Dynamo’s loss in the playoffs.
19.05.2022 Sergei Gimayev prize for loyalty to hockey winner.
515 games, 299 wins
Second goalie in the KHL history for games played and shutouts.
Three-time Gagarin Cup winner (2011, 2012, 2013).
Six-time Russian champion (2005, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013).
Two-time World Champion (2008, 2009).
KHL All-Star Game (2009, 2015).
Two-time playoffs’ MVP (2012, 2013).
Two-time KHL Best goalie (2012, 2013).

Yeryomenko announced his retirement at the age of 42 in the spring of 2022. Playing as a goalie until such an age is a rare occurrence. He became the third goalie in Russian hockey history for games played (709), second for playoff games played (132) and shutouts (94). Yeryomenko is also the third goalie with the most matches in the KHL (515). He is second for number of games played in the Gagarin Cup playoffs (110) and shutouts (63).

Currently, Yeryomenko works as the head of the Dynamo’s goaltending system, passing on his experience to young players and collaborating with coaches. Who knows, maybe in a few years, thanks to the work of the most decorated KHL goalie, Russian hockey will have a new Alexander Yeryomenko.

Dossier

Alexander Vladimirovich Yeryomenko
Born Apr 10, 1980, in Moscow.
Playing career: 2000, 2002-2005, 2011-2022 – Dynamo Moscow, 2001 – Mechel, 2003 – Amur, 2005-2007 – Ak Bars, 2007-2011 – Salavat Yulaev.
Honors: Russian champion (2005, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013), Gagarin Cup winner (2011, 2012, 2013). KHL playoffs’ MVP (2012, 2013). KHL Best goalie (2012, 2013). KHL First All-Star Team (2007, 2008, 2012, 2013). European Champions Cup winner (2007). Gold (2008, 2009), silver (2010) and bronze medal (2005, 2007) at the IIHF World Championship, selected as a goalie for the Fonbet KHL Golden Team (2023).