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Rendulic’s hat-trick and Fucale’s shutout. Top imports
Zach Fucale records his first league shutout, while Rendulic nets three for Sochi. KHL.ru presents the best players from each country.
Slovakia
D, Lokomotiv
3 G, 5 (2+3) points, +6
The Slovakian imposing defenseman had a fantastic week this time around, with five points and a three-game scoring streak which is still alive. However, the best part was Lokomotiv’s 5:0 victory over Severstal on Saturday. In that game, Gernat potted his first KHL double and added an assist for a three-point performance, once again a first time for the Slovak. On top of that, he also led all the blueliners in the league with a plus-6 differential. For his efforts, Gernat was awarded best defenseman of the week honors as Lokomotiv leads the Western Conference tied with Dynamo Moscow.
Croatia
F, HC Sochi
3 G, 4 (3+1) points, +2
Sochi’s Croatian forward achieved a significant milestone in his KHL career last Saturday by recording his first-ever hat-trick. His accomplishment played a crucial role in Sochi’s impressive 5:2 victory over the table-topping Torpedo. Rendulic, 31, made his return to the KHL this season after his last appearance in 2019 when he completed 95 games with Vityaz. He then lined up for teams in Germany and Sweden. However, it seems that HC Sochi suits him well, as he has scored eight goals in just 12 games this season, a substantial improvement compared to his scoring rate at Vityaz, where he had 22 tallies in 95 games. Other than his impressive hat-trick over Torpedo, Rendulic had an assist for Sochi’s lone goal in its 1:7 loss to CSKA on Thursday.
Czechia
D, Barys
3 G, 6 (0+6) points, +3
Last week, the Kazakhs had one win and two losses – one after SO to Admiral – but what didn’t change was David Sklenicka getting to the scoresheet. Sklenicka started his week posting a hat-trick of assists in Barys’ 6:5, OT win over Neftekhimik – that was the second time in this season that the Czech blueliner has at least three assists in a single game, oddly enough with both occurrences being against the Wolves. Sklenicka then had two assists when Barys lost to Admiral on Thursday (2:3 SO), and another assist in Barys’ defeat to Sibir two days later (1:2). The Astana franchise is currently the tenth seed in the East, and Andrei Skabelka will need all Sklenicka’s production to climb up back to playoff places.
Canada
G, Traktor
3 G, 94.32%, GAA .62, 1 SO
The Canadian netminder is currently one of the top in the league – always giving Traktor a chance to win even if the offense fails to deliver. Last week, Fucale had his first KHL shutout when the Chelyabinsk side traveled to Togliatti, achieving a hard-fought 1:0, OT win with Semyon Der-Arguchintsev potting the game-winner. Two days later, Traktor lost to Salavat Yulaev, with Fucale allowing four goals, but on Saturday, the Quebec native was instrumental once again, posting a season-high 37 saves when Traktor defeated Spartak in OT again (2:1). Fucale is currently one of the toughest goalies to beat in the league, and this will give the Chelyabinsk team a chance to reach the elimination stage.
United States
F, Barys
3 G, 6 (2+4) points, +2
If Barys could count on a strong performance by David Sklenicka on the blueline, the forward positions also saw some excellent showings, with Pontus Aberg and Riley Barber being similar figures in the team’s offense. Barber in particular was excellent last week, posting four points in Barys’ win over Neftekhimik and adding a goal and an assist in the Kazakhs’ loss to Admiral on Thursday. For his efforts, Barber was awarded best forward of the week on Monday, for the first time this season. If he keeps on producing at this pace, it won’t be his only honor for the current season.
