Biryukov, Panin, and Shirokov finalists for Loyalty to Hockey Award

KHL.ru presents the finalists for the Sergei Gimayev prize for Loyalty to Hockey for the 2023-2024 KHL season.

Evgeny Biryukov (Salavat Yulaev)

33 games, 4 (1+3) points

Last season, 38-year-old Biryukov became the first player in the KHL history to play 1,000 games in the league. On May 1st, he announced the end of his professional career and joined the coaching staff of the Ufa team.

Grigory Panin (Salavat Yulaev)

57 games, 7 (3+4) points

At the beginning of the 2023-2024 season, Panin played his 1000th game at the top level of Russian leagues. To reach Biryukov’s milestone of 1,000 games in the KHL, Panin has 168 appearances left. In the upcoming season, he will continue to play for Salavat Yulaev.

Sergei Shirokov (Avtomobilist)

69 games, 32 (13+19) points

Last term, Shirokov captained Avtomobilist and helped the team achieve a historic accomplishment – their first bronze medals in the KHL championship and at the top level of Russian hockey. At the end of the season, the Ural team decided not to renew ties with the veteran forward.

Oleg Petrov, Alexander Koreshkov, Sergei Fedorov, Andrei Subbotin, Maxim Sokolov, Alexei Kalyuzhny, Vyacheslav Kozlov, Konstantin Gorovikov, Pavel Datsyuk (twice), Alexander Popov, Alexander Syomin, Alexander Yeryomenko, and Vasily Koshechkin have won this award in the past.

The Closing Ceremony for the 2023-2024 season will be held on May 13, 2024.