Last year, Barys was one of the best teams in the league, finishing the season as the Eastern Conference’s second seed. However, the pandemic halted its playoffs run, and it’s now unknown whether they could keep the pace. One of the key figures behind Barys’ success — its head coach Andrei Skabelka — left Kazakhstan and joined Lokomotiv. Will Barys be able to build on Skabelka’s path and top its division again?