Vinogradov’s scoring skills and CSKA’s young leaders. January top youngsters
Commentator for KHL TV channels and expert at KHL.ru, Anton Vasyatin, presents the top ten most prominent young players (U23) in the league based on their performance in the third month of the regular season.
The list is compiled based on the Player Ratings, which the League calculates using an extensive set of statistical metrics.
10. Nikolai Makarov, defenseman (2003, Lada)
Player’s rating: 2.33
In December, CSKA and Lada completed a defensemen swap, with Nikolai Makarov being one of the players involved in the trade. This is one of those cases where a mid-season move proved to be for the better — Makarov (just like Colby Williams) has become an important part of Lada’s revamped blue line. He is now logging heavy minutes, including in special teams situations (primarily on box play), and most importantly, he has been doing so consistently. In January, Makarov played in all twelve of Togliatti’s games, recorded five assists, and celebrated his 23rd birthday during the month. He finished with a plus-4 rating. His stat line also included five takeaways, three pass interceptions, eight blocked shots, seven hits, and sixteen shots on goal. A three-assist performance against SKA marked the most productive game of his career with Lada.
9. Danil Pivchulin, forward (2003, Spartak)
Player’s rating: 2.40
Danil Pivchulin’s current regular season already ranks among the best ever by a 22-year-old Spartak player in KHL history. At the moment, he sits third in average scoring rate, behind only the seasons posted by Alexander Pashin and Sergei Shmelyov. In January, Pivchulin continued to be highly effective despite ice time well below that of the team’s leaders. At even strength, he scored goals against Dynamo Moscow and SKA — both of them game-winners — and also added four assists. With a plus-3 differential and 19 shots on goal, the forward recorded six takeaways, made two pass interceptions, blocked six shots, and delivered six hits. Pivchulin is now one of Spartak’s most valuable players, thanks in part to his strong work on the penalty kill and his overall impact away from the puck.
8. Maxim Arefyev, goalie (2003, Ak Bars)
Player’s rating: 2.50
Maxim Arefyev hasn’t played very often for Ak Bars so far, but he has effectively established himself as the team’s undisputed second goalie. In January, he played four full games, winning the first three. He stopped 34 shots against Barys, 24 against Amur, 23 against Admiral, and 17 against Salavat Yulaev. In Khabarovsk, Arefyev recorded his first career shutout. The only game in January in which the young netminder allowed more than one goal was against Ufa; in all his other starts, Ak Bars came out victorious. Overall for the month, Arefyev posted a 94.2% save percentage and a goals-against average of 1.49. A nice bonus to cap off January was a new three-year contract with the Kazan club.
7. Ivan Patrikhayev, defenseman (2006, CSKA)
Player’s rating: 2.50
In January, Ivan Patrikhaev played nine games, once again proving he is not just a depth player on CSKA’s roster, but a fully integrated member of the main lineup with a significant role in the team. During that span, he recorded five points, including the game-winning goal against Dynamo Moscow. Patrikhayev is impactful both with the puck in the offensive zone and defensively — in January he blocked fourteen opponent shots, delivered four hits, and posted a plus-5 differential (with him on the ice at even strength, Moscow allowed only two goals). At the end of January, the defenseman was recognized as the Best Rookie. He is now just three points shy of the single-season scoring record for 19-year-old CSKA defensemen in the regular season, with Maxim Goncharov leading the way with 7+8 in his first KHL campaign.
6. Prokhor Poltapov, forward (2003, CSKA)
Player’s rating: 2.59
In January, Prokhor Poltapov recorded seven points in nine games for CSKA. In the middle of the month, nearly all of Igor Nikitin’s team goals were directly created with Poltapov’s involvement. He notched two-goal games against the Dragons and Spartak, then extended his scoring streak by finding the net against Avangard. In the first two cases, his goals proved to be game-winners, and he generated many scoring chances on his own. In almost every January game, he tested the goalies with shots on target, showing sharpness even in less obvious situations. CSKA’s leader also recorded two takeaways, five hits, and blocked seven opponent shots, finishing the month with a plus-3 rating. He consistently logs ice time not only at even strength but also on the power play.
5. Dmitry Gamzin, goalie (2003, CSKA)
Player’s rating: 2.64
In the first month of 2026, goaltender Dmitry Gamzin appeared in five games, four of which were full starts. No opponent managed to score more than two goals per game against him. Gamzin made 19 saves against Lokomotiv, then played against the Dragons (28 saves), Avangard (23), Barys (28 saves, including a shutout), and Severstal (17). CSKA won three of these games, while the matchup against Yaroslavl went to a shootout, earning the team one point. His key stats for January highlight his consistency: a 94.2% save percentage and a goals-against average of 1.44. It is very likely that in the upcoming playoffs we will see Gamzin’s first career playoff game, as he has not had this experience before.
4. Gleb Pugachyov, forward (2008, Torpedo)
Player’s rating: 2.74
Gleb Pugachyov has impressed with his efficiency from his very first KHL games. The 17-year-old Torpedo forward made his debut on Jan. 6 in a home game against Barys. Despite taking a penalty, the young player immediately stood out in a positive way, both for his impressive size compared to seasoned professionals and for his physical edge (three hits) and direct approach to the net (two shots on goal).
In his fourth game, against Lokomotiv, Pugachyov scored his first goal in the league, and a few days later he found the net again versus Spartak. Both goals proved to be game-winners. Against the Yaroslavl side, he also picked up an assist on Yegor Sokolov’s goal. With Pugachyov on the ice, Torpedo did not concede a single even-strength goal over the span of a month (ending January with a plus-7 differential), while he averages more than three hits per game. He has repeatedly shown smart puck-stealing skills as well.
All of this has come with limited ice time, usually no more than ten minutes per game, and without any work on special teams so far. It is already clear that in the coming years Gleb Pugachyov can take another step forward, both physically and in terms of overall skill. This is a player with a very bright future.
3. Ilya Nabokov, goalie (2003, Metallurg)
Player’s rating: 3.30
January was an excellent month for Ilya Nabokov — six full games and six wins. The Magnitogorsk goalie took the ice against Lokomotiv (31 saves), SKA (16), HC Sochi (19), Amur (two games, stopping 26 shots on the road and 28 at home), and Traktor (24). His shutout against the Sochi side was Nabokov’s first of the current season. In four of his January appearances, he allowed no more than two goals, finishing the month with a 92.3% save percentage. His winning streak, which began in late November, has now reached 12 games — something very few goalies manage, even when playing for one of the league’s top teams.
2. Semyon Vyazovoi, goalie (2003, Salavat Yulaev)
Player’s rating: 3.82
Another goalie who has grown accustomed to winning lately is Semyon Vyazovoyi The Salavat Yulaev netminder appeared in ten games in January, earning nine victories. He did not record a shutout, but consistency was his calling card — in six games, Vyazovoy allowed exactly one goal. His busiest night came in Omsk, where he turned aside 43 of 46 shots (his second-highest total of saves this season), with Ufa also coming away victorious. The only loss of the month came against Avangard, this time at home, and even then, the goalie recovered after a difficult start to stop 36 shots. Vyazovoy wrapped up January with a 1.78 goals-against average and a .939 save percentage.
Salavat Yulaev’s transformation this season is partly linked to the play of its starting goalie — once Vyazovoi returned to his usual form in October, Viktor Kozlov’s team left behind a very tough start to the regular season. Since then, everything has been consistently positive for the Ufa side.
1. Yegor Vinogradov, forward (2003, Torpedo)
Player’s rating: 4.81
Yegor Vinogradov’s progress in recent years — especially under the guidance of Alexey Isakov — has been rapid. And once true on-ice chemistry finally clicked within Torpedo’s first line, Vinogradov turned into the team’s driving force. That was clearly reflected in his January numbers. He opened the calendar year with a four-point performance against Spartak — only the second such game of his career — and later extended his scoring streak to four games, capping it with a goal against Dynamo Moscow that tied the score in the final minute of regulation.
In the second half of the month, Torpedo’s leader picked up points in five straight games, finding the net against the Dragons, SKA (two goals), Sibir, and Severstal. Add to that two assists — including one on the game-winning goal — in a road game versus Lokomotiv. Overall, Vinogradov collected 17 points in twelve January games, retaining his status as Nizhny Novgorod’s leading scorer. He contributes in special teams situations as well, and in January also recorded seven takeaways, four steals, five blocked shots, and 23 hits.
