TEAM
RUSSIA PREVIEW
Russia’s Potential Downfall: Anton Babchuk vs. Vladimir Korsunov
When Anton Babchuk’s name wasn’t on the training camp invitee list it was a huge surprised not only for those on this side of the ocean, but also those in tyle=”font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana;color:black”>Russia close to the team. Anton would have provided the team a strong physical presence for Russia, as well as a booming shot from the blue line. One justification of his absence could have been the physical brand of hockey brought to the table by Vladimir Korsunov. However, now that Vladimir is off Russia’s roster with a back injury, there is a gaping hole in Russia’s defensive corps. One would think that Anton deserved a tryout spot more then say, Leonid Zvachkin. Not to take away anything from Zvachkin’s game, Anton would have been a smarter choice.
Biggest surprises that did not make it: Dmitri Semin, Alexander Golovin, Alexander Shinin
Out of the players invited to the training and left off the final roster, these three seem to be the bigger surprises. Alexander Golovin would be the least obvious of the three, since he spent most of the season off Avangard’s roster. However, when he was finally given the chance after the November break, Alexander scored a couple of key goals for Avangard in the last games of the regular season before the December break. Dmitri Semin established himself as a presence in the Super League during the first half of the Super League season while skating for Spartak. He has been among Spartak’s scoring leaders throughout the season and though his role has diminished since November’s reorganization of the team, Dmitri definitely had a lot of speed, skill and experience to offer. Alexander Shinin was a surprising omission from U20 Team Russia’s roster. He has been an offensive presence for Team Russia at a couple of earlier U20 tournaments and has played well for Severstal Cherpovets. Alexander was surprisingly overlooked at the 2002 NHL Entry Draft and this does not help his case for 2003, though his solid play at the other tournaments and with Severstal still makes him a solid choice.
Biggest surprises of those that did make it: Dmitri Pestunov, Denis Ezhov and Dmitri Fakhrutdinov
U20 Team Russia’s final roster selections saw a few fresh, surprising faces. Dmitri Pestunov was the youngest player, besides Ovechkin, invited to the training camp and went on to beat out Dmitri Semin for the final centrеman spot on the team. Dmitri has been consistently playing for Metallurg Magnitagorsk in the Super League and has already made a lot of fans in Magnitagorsk with his great hockey sense and poise. Defenseman Dmitri Fakhrutdinov has been a sort of a Super League revelation thus far this season. After spending most of the previous few years in obscurity amongst the ranks of Yaroslavl’s young players, ’83 born Dmitri earned a roster spot on Lokomotiv’s defensive corps and competed surprisingly well on Super League’s best team. He came to camp as an underdog and by it’s conclusion, he ended up with a roster spot. Dmitri is not a physically imposing player and will not likely contribute offensively. He is another amongst many of Russia’s work horses. Alexander Shinin may have been a better choice, as he is bigger and would have contributed more offensively. Defenseman Denis Ezhov closes out the list of surprises for Team Russia. As Pestunov, he is also an ’85 player. Nothing has gone right for him thus far this year, and this is most definitely a good turn of events for him. Prior to being invited to join Team Russia in Canada, Denis has spent the season playing for Lada’s junior affiliate, not receiving a single invitation to join the main squad. During Team Russia’s training camp, Denis was visiting North America with Lokomotiv’ s junior team and competing against various Canadian junior squads. His familiarity with his Lada’s, and now Team Russia’s teammate Maxim Kondratiev, possession of a visa and proximity to Russia’s base in Sydney, Canada, made Denis an attractive choice to replace Vladimir Korsunov. The move also helps to boost his pre draft rankings, as the scouts will now be able to see him first hand, competing against players up to two years older then him.
Forwards:
Line 1: Alexander Polushin – Yuri Trubachev – Alexander Ovechkin
Line 2: Alexander Perezhogin – Andrei Taratukhin – Igor Grigorenko
Line 3: Sergei Anshakov – Alexei Kaigorodov – Nikolai Zherdev
Line 4: Yevgeniy Artyukhin – Dmitri Pestunov – Timofei Shishkanov
Comments: The Russian squad has four even lines, each capable of scoring many goals. The team doesn’t have an obvious checking line, though both the second and fourth lines can fulfill those duties. Yevgeniy Artyukhine will be the obvious choice to get the call during a physical game. Other guys who can play physical hockey and deliver a hit would be Taratukhin, Grigorenko and Pestunov. It will be very difficult for the opposition to slow down this offensive unit. Polushin – Trubachev – Ovechkin has been the most productive line in international U20 competition. Perezhogin and Grigorenko have spent the first four months of this season competing against adult players at the EuroTour international tournaments. Artyukhin and Shishkanov have spent the first four months getting used to the smaller North American ice surface. Overall the forwards have so much punch, it will be very interesting to see how their opponents hope to stop them.
Defensemen:
Defensive Pairing 1: Denis Grebeshkov – Fedor Tyutin
Defensive Pairing 2: Konstantin Korneev – Kiril Koltsov
Defensive Pairing 3: Denis Ezhov – Maxim Kondratiev
Defensive Pairing 4: Dmitri Fakhrutdinov – Mikhail Lyubushin
Comments: Russia’s defensive corps is strong but lacks the physical presence it would have had with Korsunov and Babchuk. Now Tyutin and Lyubushin will be Russia’s physical presence on the blue line and that is not as comforting as having guys like Babchuk or Korsunov delivering bruising hits. Ezhov and Fakhrutdinov are unproven and new to the U20 National Team and it remains to be seen whether they can develop chemistry with their defensive partners. Offensively, Russia will be blistering with weapons. With the exceptions of Lyubushin and Fakhrutdinov, all of Russi a’s defensemen are offensive threats.
Goalies:
Starting Goalie: Andrei Medvedev
Backup Goaltender: Konstantin Barulin
Comments: Andrei Medvedev appears to have secured the starting spot on the U20 Russian squad, despite getting pulled half way through the second game against the Soviet Wings. He has a good track record in the past, but it remains to be seen if he can remain consistent throughout the tournament. With a capable back up like Konstantin Barulin – it is likely that Ishmatov will have a much more sensitive trigger finger to pull Medvedev at an early sign of a falter.
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-Eugene Belashchenko |
