Shipachyov sets record on home ice
When Vadim Shipachyov made his Russian Superleague debut for Severstal back in 2006-2007, few outside of Cherepovets noticed. The youngster, who was still playing on the wing at that time, still had plenty to learn about the pro game and was destined for a spell in the minors with Belgorod before returning to the top flight in the KHL’s first season.
However, when Vadim Shipachyov, now 37, returned to his hometown with Dinamo Minsk on Tuesday, everybody was paying attention. From those humble roots, he had evolved into one of the most feared forwards in the game. Moving from the flanks to the center, he kept on scoring relentlessly through a career that brought him a bulging trophy cabinet. In the KHL, he won two Gagarin Cups with SKA. On the international stage he is a World and Olympic champion with Team Russia. Vadim also has a long catalog of individual awards to his name. And today, he added perhaps the biggest achievement of them all – the KHL all-time scoring record.
“Of course, Cherepovets is a special place for me,” Shipachyov said. “That’s where my mother and brother live. Even though my family now lives in Moscow, I still feel a close tie with Severstal and the city where I come from.”
As for his relationship with coach Kvartalnov, that’s another recurring story in Shipachyov’s career. “He’s a demanding coach, then and now,” the forward added. “He tries to get the most out of every player. Back then, Dmitry was just starting out as a coach like I was just starting as a player. We were both young, just gaining experience. Since then, he’s worked with a lot of teams and I’ve played for a lot of clubs.”
The wait is over
The big moment arrived in the ninth minute of Dinamo’s game at Severstal. Shipachyov’s pass off the boards released Vadim Moroz. His finish was true, and the assist took Shipachyov to 929 career points. That moves him ahead of Sergei Mozyakin’s 928 (419+509). And it happened where it all began for Shipachyov, and under the guidance of his first KHL head coach Dmitry Kvartalnov, now behind the bench at Dinamo Minsk.
At the end of last season, Shipachyov was within touching distance of Mozyakin’s record. He finished the campaign with Ak Bars on 920 points. But after moving to Minsk, things moved slowly at first and his ninth, record-breaking point of the current campaign came in his 19th game for Dinamo.
“Of course, you could see it for yourself,” Shipachyov said. “I tried to keep doing the same things, prepare just like before, but it was incredibly hard to keep picking up points. Even though we were creating chances, it wouldn’t happen.
“You try to distract yourself from the record, but journalists keep reminding you! It happens to a lot of players [when they are close to a record] and I encountered that difficult period this season.”
Although it was a long time ago, Shipachyov still remembers the first of his 929 points clearly. “I was called up for the game and managed to get a point for an assist. I think I shot the puck along the boards and was credited with a secondary assist. And I still remember my first goal, which I scored on Kostya Barulin at CSKA.”
And what’s the secret of a long career? Enjoying every moment, or as many as possible.
“Of course, there are things in hockey that I don’t enjoy, like pre-season training!” Shipachyov smiled. “But I sincerely love this game. Traveling to different cities, doing my favorite thing, helping my team win, it’s a privilege and a pleasure!”
Hailing a legend
After Shipachyov set the record, the tributes soon started:
Sergei Mozyakin, previous KHL all-time leading scorer:
Vadim, congratulations on this achievement. It’s your record now! I’m happy that in every sport there is never an unbreakable record. Now, working with kids, I hope that our records for goals, assists and points will one day be broken. Once again, my congratulations, you’ve done a great job!
KHL president Alexei Morozov:
Congratulations to Vadim Shipachyov on a new KHL scoring record. It’s symbolic that he did it in his hometown. For many years, Vadim has consistently been one of the best players in the league, whichever team he played for. His great hockey IQ is a pleasure to watch for all fans, regardless of team loyalties. And the title of KHL all-time scoring leader is an important entry on Vadim’s long list of achievements alongside two Gagarin Cups and victory at the World Championships and Olympics. It’s not so long that Sergei Mozyakin’s record looked like it might never be beaten. Today, Vadim has raised the bar to a new level and will keep setting new standards with every subsequent point he scores.
Nikita Gusev, former team-mate and Dynamo Moscow forward:
I’m really happy for Vadim and congratulate him on this achievement. It’s really cool! Did I help him get closer to the record? I don’t know if I could say that. In the early days, he helped me adapt to playing in the big league. After that, we tried to do our job on the ice and bring success to our team. I think it’s important that every player has to overcome some adversity. I was never worried for Vadim, I knew that he would get the record!
Dmitry Kagarlitsky, former team-mate now playing for Torpedo:
I’ve known Vadim for a long time, back when we played together in the first league in Cherepovets. As time went by, they started calling him into the first team. Later, when we both got offers from Dynamo, we called each other, we talked and we decided we needed to play together again. And that’s how we began our journey as comrades. At the start of this season, the points weren’t coming for him, nor for me. We kept in touch, encouraged each other, tried to find ways out of the situation. I never had any doubts. I was certain that it was only a matter of time – after all, a new team and a new role isn’t always easy. This achievement is just phenomenal, it’s really not easy. I’m sure Vadim will keep going, adding to his total and trying to reach 1,000. I hope he never stops! Good luck, brother!
