Man of the Week: Damir Sharipzyanov

KHL.ru’s weekly column returns with Damir Sharipzyanov. The Avangard defenseman just set a KHL record for the most single-season points from the blue line, surpassing Chris Lee’s 2016-2017 campaign.

Damir Sharipzyanov is having the kind of season that simply sets new standards. The Avangard captain has set a new all‑time KHL mark for defensemen with 67 points, built on 23 goals and 44 assists in 66 regular‑season games, an unprecedented level of production from the blue line in the league. In doing so, he has moved past the gold standard for offensive KHL defensemen, eclipsing Chris Lee’s 65‑point campaign (14 goals, 51 assists in 60 games) for Metallurg in 2016–2017, which had stood as the benchmark for nearly a decade. For years, names like Kevin Dallman and Lee defined what an elite KHL attacking defenseman looked like; this season, Sharipzyanov has pushed that ceiling even higher and done it while carrying a massive all‑situations workload for a league contender.

Early years

Sharipzyanov’s career, however, started far from Omsk. Born on Feb. 17 1996, Sharipzyanov came up in Nizhnekamsk, where he learned the game in the Neftekhimik system before heading to North America after a year in the JHL in 2012-2013. The sturdy defenseman joined the Owen Sound Attack in the OHL in 2014–2015 and immediately carved out a reputation as a steady, physical presence with under‑the‑radar puck skills. In his first OHL season he posted nine goals and 25 assists for 34 points in 66 games, adding three points in five playoff contests.

He followed that up in 2015–2016 with five goals and 16 assists for 21 points in 46 games for Owen Sound, while again contributing in the postseason with four points in just six games. Sharipzyanov’s junior years were years of growth: he played heavy minutes, killed penalties, and earned a spot on Russia’s World Junior team at both U18 and U20 level. At the 2016 World Juniors in Finland, he helped Russia to a silver medal.

Ranking up

Turning pro, Sharipzyanov stayed in North America within the Los Angeles Kings organization, who signed him to a three-year entry-level contract in September 2015 after being passed over in the NHL Draft, splitting time between the AHL and ECHL. He made a brief AHL debut with the Ontario Reign in 2015–2016 (one game) before getting a fuller run in 2016–2017: 38 games with Ontario, where he registered three assists and 57 penalty minutes, complemented by 10 games with the Manchester Monarchs in the ECHL, producing two goals and two assists.

Return to Russia

The real turning point in Sharipzyanov’s career came with his return to Russia and his home club, Neftekhimik, in 2017–2018. In his KHL rookie season he put up five goals and 11 assists for 16 points in 54 games, adding three playoff appearances with the Wolves. Those might look modest by today’s standard, but for a 21‑year‑old defenseman they hinted at a two‑way game that could grow. That growth continued in 2018–2019, when he improved to eight goals and 16 assists in 61 games, then five goals and 21 assists for 26 points in 60 games in 2019–2020, his final Neftekhimik season. Across three years, he established himself as a top‑four defenseman who could move the puck and bring a physical edge.

In 2020, Avangard came calling, and Sharipzyanov’s career shifted into a different gear. His first season in Omsk, 2020–2021, didn’t scream “future record‑breaker”, with two goals and six assists in 48 regular‑season games, but the playoffs told a different story. In 24 postseason games he produced three goals and five assists, playing a major role in Avangard’s run to the Gagarin Cup, and was named the best defenseman of the Finals. 

The following seasons built on that foundation. By 2022–2023, with Avangard relying on him more heavily, he played all 66 regular‑season games, recording seven goals and 12 assists for 19 points, then another six points in 14 playoff games. That trajectory continued upward in 2023–2024, when he exploded for 9 goals and 44 assists for 53 points in 66 games, enough to earn him KHL honors such as Most Assists by a Defenseman and a place in the All‑Star Game and Golden Helmet All‑Star Team.

In 2024–2025 he logged 68 games with 13 goals and 34 assists for 47 points, then added six points in 13 playoff games. And now, in 2025–2026, he has gone historic: 67 points, 23 of them goals, in 66 games, leading all KHL defensemen and resetting a record previously held by Chris Lee’s 65‑point masterpiece in Magnitogorsk. With the playoffs starting, Sharipzyanov’s offensive potential can be useful for the Hawks as they will seek another deep run.