Big week for Magnitka, Sibir changes coaching

Week five of the KHL season gave us a new leader, a new head coach and a big signing. Plus there was a goalie fight and an impressive debut from a Canadian forward.

New leader

At the end of week five, the KHL has a new leader. Metallurg moved two points clear of Lokomotiv and Avangard after winning all three of its games. A 4-3 home verdict over Sibir was followed by a successful trip to Moscow that brought back to back wins over CSKA (3-1) and Spartak (6-2). Magnitka forward Dmitry Silantyev remains at the head of the scoring race with 16 (7+9) points, one ahead of Traktor’s Josh Leivo. Roman Kantserov moved into the top five for goals when his double at Spartak moved him to seven for the season.

Kuznetsov to Metallurg

And Magnitogorsk is recruiting from its current position of strength. Evgeny Kuznetsov, who left SKA in the summer, is back in the KHL after signing with Metallurg. The 2018 Stanley Cup winner had 40 (13+27) points in 45 games with the Petersburg club, but could not always produce consistent form. Metallurg is the third KHL team for the Chelyabinsk native, who has 207 points in 296 career games in the league.
 

Panik back in Yaroslavl

Slovak forward Richard Panik has signed a new one-year contract with Lokomotiv. Last season he joined Igor Nikitin’s team partway through the campaign and contributed 16 (7+9) points in 44 games to help the Railwaymen to the Gagarin Cup. On his return, he picked up an assist on debut in a 5-1 win at Barys on Wednesday.
 

Wagner’s dream debut

Shanghai Dragons’ new signing Austin Wagner wasted no time in settling in at his new club. The 28-year-old winger joined from Chicago Wolves of the AHL, having previously spent four seasons in the NHL prior to that. The Canadian’s stats suggested he might be more of a bottom six two-way option, but his KHL debut brought two goals and an assist. All of that helped the Dragons to a thrilling 5-4 OT victory over Traktor, despite allowing a late tying goal from Mikhail Grigorenko.

  

Butsayev replaces Yepanchintsev

Sibir became the second club to change head coach this season after dispensing with Vadim Yepanchintsev. The team had four wins from its opening 10 games, and the management pulled the trigger after it lost 2-5 at Salavat Yulaev on Oct. 1. Last season, Yepanchintsev took Sibir to the playoffs, but fell at the first hurdle, again to Salavat Yulaev. Vyacheslav Butsayev is the incoming head coach: the 55-year-old had a brief spell at Barys last season, but his last full KHL campaign saw him take Vityaz to the 2023 playoffs. He took charge of the team for the first time on Sunday, edging a shoot-out win over Barys following a 0-0 tie.
 

Starchenko join exclusive club

Barys veteran Roman Starchenko recovered from injury to play his first game of the season in that loss in Novosibirsk. That means the 39-year-old becomes only the sixth player to feature in all 18 KHL seasons since the league’s formation. He shares that distinction with Dmitry Vishnevsky (Spartak), Pyotr Khokhryakov and Grigory Panin (Salavat Yulaev), and Vadim Shipachyov and Andrei Stas (both Dinamo Minsk). Of that group, Vishnevsky and Khokhryakov are the youngest, both born in Jan. 1990 and aged 35.


 

Lada snaps skid

After nine straight losses, Lada Togliatti finally got that winning feeling. Thursday’s trip to Neftekhimik brought a 4-1 victory, escaping a repeat of the club’s worst ever run in the KHL. Defensive solidity, a powerful game in center ice and an ability to punish the home team’s errors secured Pavel Desyatkov his first win since taking over as head coach. The next game brought another point in an OT loss against Admiral.
 

Goalie fight

Admiral netminder Adam Huska took part in one of the more unusual events of the week – and, for that matter, this or any other season. He dropped the gloves with his opposite number, Avangard’s Andrei Mishurov, during the Hawks’ 6-1 victory in Omsk. The pair clashed in center ice during the third period, throwing punches with great enthusiasm but limited effectiveness until Mishurov managed to stop his opponent. Both were ejected from the game, which meant Admiral had to return starting goalie Dmitry Shugayev, who was swapped out after allowing three goals in the first 12 minutes.