Rodewald leads the way, Bailey produces, Jaros impresses. Week 1 Top Imports

Rodewald’s award-winning start, Bailey’s offensive production, Jaros’ two-way impact and Jaskin’s clutch scoring highlighted the opening week of the regular season. KHL.ru presents the best players from each country.

Canada

Jack Rodewald, Salavat Yulaev

F, 3 G, 5 (4+1) points, +1

Canada’s Jack Rodewald made an immediate impact for Salavat Yulaev, recording five points in his first three games of the season. The forward opened his campaign with two goals in a 3:2 win over Severstal, then added a goal in a 4:0 victory against Avangard. Rodewald finished the week with another two-point performance, scoring once and assisting on another goal in a fourteen-goal thriller against Barys. He also registered nine shots on goal and averaged 21:25 of ice time across the three games. For his efforts, Rodewald was awarded Best Forward for the regular season’s first week.

US

Justin Bailey, Barys

F, 3 G, 7 (3+4) points, +2

Barys’ newcomer Justin Bailey enjoyed a productive opening week with the Kazakh franchise, recording seven points in three games. He scored twice and added an assist in a dominant 7:1 victory over Sibir, then followed that up with a three-point performance, scoring once and assisting twice in an 8:6 win over Salavat Yulaev. Bailey added another assist against Amur to finish the week with four goals and three assists despite the Kazakhs lost their first game of the season. He also registered 16 shots on goal and averaged 18:17 of ice time per game. His offensive contribution helped Barys start the season with two convincing victories.

Slovakia

Christian Jaros, Spartak

D, 4 G, 5 (2+3) points, +5

Imposing defenseman Christian Jaros has been one of Spartak’s key performers at the start of the season, helping the Red-and-Whites win three of their first four games. Jaros opened his account with a goal and an assist in a 3:2 victory over CSKA in the Moscow derby, then added another assist in a 3:1 win against SKA. He continued his strong form with a goal and an assist in Spartak’s emphatic 8:0 victory over Severstal. Through four games, Jaros collected five points, posted a plus-5 differential and averaged 17:07 of ice time. His offensive contribution from the blue line has been an important factor in Spartak’s impressive start to the regular season.

Czechia/Russia

Dmitrij Jaskin, Dragons

F, 3 G, 4 (2+2) points, +1

Czech-Russian forward and Shanghai Dragons captain Dmitrij Jaskin made an immediate impact, scoring the OT game-winning goal in the team’s first game of the season against Neftekhimik. Jaskin also added an assist in the 5:4 victory, and after being held scoreless against Lokomotiv, he delivered another two-point performance against Dinamo Minsk, scoring once and assisting on another in a 4:3 OT win. Jaskin finished the week with two goals and two assists in three games, including one game-winning goal, while averaging 19:35 of ice time. As captain, his offensive production and leadership have already been important to the Dragons’ strong start.