Traktor Chelyabinsk
CityChelyabinsk
LeagueKHL
2008–present
ConferenceEastern
DivisionKharlamov
Founded1947
Home arenaTraktor Ice Arena
(capacity: 7,500)
Colours   
General managerIvan Savin
Head coachAlexei Zavarukhin
CaptainSergey Kalinin
AffiliatesChelmet Chelyabinsk (VHL)
Belye Medvedi (MHL)
Websiteen.hctraktor.org
Franchise history
1948–1953Dzerzhinets
1954–58Avangard
1958–presentTraktor Chelyabinsk
Current season

Traktor Chelyabinsk, also known as Traktor (Russian: Трактор), is a professional ice hockey team based in Chelyabinsk, Russia. They are members of the Kharlamov Division of the Eastern Conference of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). From 1967 to 2009 the team played their home games at the Yunost Sport Palace. In 2009 the team moved to the arena now called Traktor Ice Arena named after Valery Belousov, their present home arena in Chelyabinsk.

History

Soviet Championship (1948–1992)

Founded in 1947 as a team of the Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, Traktor have played for the Soviet and Russian championships since 1948. In 1948-1953 the team was called Dzerzhinets and Avangard in 1954 - 1958. The current name was adopted starting with the 1958–59 season.[1]

Traktor played its first game in the top league on December 12, 1948 against CDKA Moscow. Viktor Shuvalov, a future star of Moscow clubs VVS and CSKA, led the team in scores during its first season in the championship. In 1955 Chelyabinsk reached the fourth place for the first time (back then a medal table still was dominated by the Moscow teams).

In 1965 - 1968, Traktor played in the second division of the Soviet hockey championships. The team returned to the first division in 1968. In 1973, Traktor played in the USSR Cup finals against the CSKA. Although Traktor led 2-0, they lost the game with a score of 2-5. In the 1976-77 season Traktor won bronze in the Soviet hockey championships, the team's highest achievement during the Soviet period of its history.

At that time, Traktor produced several players who achieved international prominence. One of the best Soviet forwards of all times, Sergei Makarov, was born in Chelyabinsk and began his career in Traktor. Along his teammate, defenseman Sergei Starikov, he regularly played on the Soviet national team from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s. Starikov and Makarov each won over 10 international tournaments with Team USSR.

International League and Russian Superleague years (1992–2008)

In the early 1990s, Traktor twice finished third in the International Hockey League under head coach Valery Belousov. A group of Traktor players, including Sergei Gomolyako, Valeri Karpov, Igor Varitsky, Ravil Gusmanov and others, appeared on Team Russia at several world championships.

During the late 1990s ice hockey in Chelyabinsk entered a period of decline. In 1998 Traktor was relegated to the Vysshaya Liga and was replaced in its role as the major hockey team of Chelyabinsk by Mechel. The team found its way back to the elite only in 2006. Coached by Gennady Tsygurov they won the second division championship earning promotion to the Russian Superleague.

After the 2006-07 season, Tsygurov resigned. He was replaced by Andrei Nazarov, a native of Chelyabinsk who had spent 13 seasons in the NHL as an enforcer. Although he succeeded at securing Traktor's place in the top league, Nazarov's coaching style led Traktor to a new world record in overall penalty minutes in a single game that was set after the mass brawl versus Ak Bars Kazan in January 2008.

First seasons in the KHL (2008–2010)

During 2008–09 KHL season Traktor was reinforced by its alumni Ravil Gusmanov and NHL star Oleg Kvasha. Despite a good start Chelyabinsk finished the regular season with disappointing results and eventually failed to advance in the playoffs further than the first round losing the series to Atlant Moscow Oblast with an overall score 13-2. Kvasha was named the team's MVP of the season. 2009 was also notable for the club's move to the Arena Traktor. The first game in the new arena, played against Metallurg Magnitogorsk, was won by 3-2. The first player to score a goal was defenceman Andre Lakos.

Before the 2009–10 season the team had to face budget cuts and lose its biggest stars including Oleg Kvasha and Evgenii Dadonov. After an unstable performance in the regular season the team advanced to the playoffs with the lowest seed ultimately losing to its natural rival Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the first round.

Return of Belousov (2010–present)

During the 2010 off-season Nazarov left to coach infamous Vityaz Chekhov and was replaced by Andrei Sidorenko who was fired off his job right after the disastrous start of the season. In October 2010 Valery Belousov returned as Traktor's head coach, but, nonetheless, during the 2010–11 the team failed to make the playoffs.

After the lackluster season the team finally fixing its financial issues seriously rearranged the roster with future stars such as Vladimir Antipov, Stanislav Chistov, Jan Bulis, Petri Kontiola and goaltender Michael Garnett. The results were immediate, Traktor became the best team of the 2011–12 regular season winning Continental Cup and taking bronze medals after losing to Avangard Omsk in Eastern Conference Finals. The biggest breakthrough of the season was a young winger Evgeny Kuznetsov who led the team in points. Another homegrown Chelyabinsk player, Konstantin Panov, who returned to Traktor after five seasons of absence, became the team's goal scoring leader.

Traktor kept all of its leaders for the 2012–13 season. Unlike many other clubs in the league Chelyabinsk did not sign any NHL players who were returning to Europe during the NHL lockout. Facing much stronger competition this time Traktor finished the regular season in the third place of the Eastern Conference. Kuznetsov continued his successful career leading the team in points, goals and assists. 17 years old forward Valeri Nichushkin became that season's major breakthrough for Chelyabinsk, later in 2013 he won the Cherepanov Trophy as the KHL's Rookie of the Year and was picked in the top 10 of the NHL Entry Draft by the Dallas Stars.

On its way to the Gagarin Cup Finals Traktor had to endure three seven game series against Barys Astana, Avangard Omsk and Ak Bars Kazan, all three of those rounds were won back by the team from the position of 3-1 down in the series. One of the main components of the success was goaltender Michael Garnett who had 5 shutouts during the post-season and GAA of 1.86. However, the team was less fortunate in the final games played versus the defending champions Dynamo Moscow. Failing to take the lead in the series Traktor ultimately lost it 4-2.

Season-by-season KHL record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, OTW = Overtime/shootout wins, OTL = Overtime/shootout losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

SeasonGPWOTWLOTLPtsGFGAFinishTop ScorerPlayoffs
2008–0956242228841421664th, TarasovAndrei Nikolishin (39 points: 10 G, 29 A; 48 GP)Lost in preliminary round, 0–3 (Atlant Moscow Oblast)
2009–1056183315641371924th, KharlamovEvgeny Skachkov (36 points: 22 G, 11 A; 51 GP)Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 1–3 (Metallurg Magnitogorsk)
2010–1154148266641421665th, KharlamovDeron Quint (32 points: 21 G, 11 A; 53 GP)Did not qualify
2011–12543271141141631161st, KharlamovEvgeny Kuznetsov (41 points: 19 G, 22 A; 49 GP)Lost in Conference Finals, 1–4 (Avangard Omsk)
2012–1352283138981521202nd, KharlamovEvgeny Kuznetsov (44 points: 19 G, 25 A; 51 GP)Lost in Gagarin Cup Finals, 2–4 (Dynamo Moscow)
2013–1454187227751261485th, KharlamovPetri Kontiola (37 points: 15 G, 22 A; 53 GP)Did not qualify
2014–1560218247861441543rd, KharlamovAnton Glinkin (38 points: 13 G, 25 A; 54 GP)Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 2–4 (Sibir Novosibirsk)
2015–16601712238831321515th, KharlamovAlexander Rybakov (27 points: 9 G, 18 A; 55 GP)Did not qualify
2016–17602732010971301203rd, KharlamovPaul Szczechura (41 points: 14 G, 27 A; 60 GP)Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 2–4 (Barys Astana)
2017–1856267194961291212nd, KharlamovPaul Szczechura (42 points: 20 G, 22 A; 55 GP)Lost in Conference Finals, 0–4 (Ak Bars Kazan)
2018–1962189314581021515th, KharlamovRyan Stoa (27 points: 11 G, 16 A; 59 GP)Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 0–4 (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg)
2019–2062205316561321616th, KharlamovLukáš Sedlák (40 points: 23 G, 17 A; 57 GP)Did not qualify
2020–2160277206741571433rd, KharlamovTomáš Hyka (49 points: 14 G, 35 A; 59 GP)Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 1–4 (Salavat Yulaev Ufa)
2021–22492212123711521192nd, KharlamovLukáš Sedlák (43 points: 18 G, 25 A; 49 GP)Lost in Conference Finals, 1–4 (Metallurg Magnitogorsk)
2022–23682382710721691905th, KharlamovAnton Burdasov (46 points: 19 G, 27 A; 48 GP)Did not qualify

Players

Current roster

Updated 4 October 2023.[2]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
9 Russia Viktor Antipin D L 31 2023 Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan
81 Russia Artyom Blazhiyevsky D L 29 2021 Moscow, Russia
22 Canada Madison Bowey D R 28 2023 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
71 Russia Anton Burdasov (A) RW L 32 2022 Chelyabinsk, Russian SFSR
76 Russia Andrei Chibisov LW L 30 2023 Prokopyevsk, Russia
85 Russia Semyon Der-Arguchintsev C R 23 2023 Moscow, Russia
8 Russia Yegor Fateyev C L 26 2019 Chelyabinsk, Russia
30 Canada Zach Fucale G L 28 2023 Laval, Quebec, Canada
45 Russia Mikhail Goryunov-Rolgizer F L 21 2020 Chelyabinsk, Russia
40 Russia Sergey Kalinin (C) C L 32 2020 Omsk, Soviet Union
89 Russia Ilya Karpukhin D L 25 2018 Chelyabinsk, Russia
53 Russia Mikhail Kotlyarevsky LW R 26 2022 Chita, Russia
74 Russia Vitali Kravtsov RW L 24 2023 Vladivostok, Russia
18 Russia Maxim Marushev C R 24 2023 Saratov, Russia
20 Russia Sergei Mylnikov G L 24 2020 Chelyabinsk, Russia
44 Russia Ilya Nikolayev D L 22 2023 Chelyabinsk, Russia
11 Russia Egor Popov C L 26 2023 Tyumen, Russia
10 United States Buddy Robinson RW R 32 2023 Bellmawr, New Jersey, United States
49 Russia Maxim Shabanov F L 23 2021 Chelyabinsk, Russia
24 Russia Alexander Sharov C L 28 2023 Chelyabinsk, Russia
94 Russia Artyom Shchuchinov D L 18 2022 Nizhny Tagil, Russia
16 Russia Alexander Shepelev D L 25 2022 Chelyabinsk, Russia
90 Russia Nikita Soshnikov LW L 30 2022 Nizhny Tagil, Russia
72 Russia Sergei Telegin D L 23 2020 Chelyabinsk, Russia
88 Russia Nikita Tertyshny F R 25 2021 Chelyabinsk, Russia
55 Russia Vladimir Tkachyov (A) F R 30 2021 Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine
33 Russia Albert Yarullin (A) D R 30 2021 Kazan, Russia
25 Russia Vladimir Zharkov (A) RW L 35 2023 Pavlovskiy Posad, Russian SFSR

Head coaches

  • Soviet Union Viktor Vasiliev, 1948–52
  • Soviet Union Vasily Karelin, 1952–54
  • Soviet Union Sergei Zakhvatov, 1954–62
  • Soviet Union Nikolai Sidorenko, 1962–64
  • Soviet Union Aleksandr Novokreshchenov, 1964
  • Soviet Union Viktor Stolyarov, 1964–65
  • Soviet Union Vladislav Smirnov, 1965
  • Soviet Union Albert Danilov, 1965–66
  • Soviet Union Viktor Stolyarov, 1968–73
  • Soviet Union Albert Danilov, 1973–74
  • Soviet Union Anatoly Kostryukov, 1974–78
  • Soviet Union Gennadi Tsygurov, 1978–84
  • Soviet Union Anatoly Shustov, 1984–87
  • Soviet Union Gennadi Tsygurov, 1987–90
  • Russia Valery Belousov, 1990–95
  • Russia Anatoly Kartaev, 1995
  • Russia Sergei Grigorkin, 1995–99
  • Russia Anatoly Timofeev, 2000–01
  • Russia Sergei Paramonov, 2001
  • Russia Aleksandr Glazkov, 2001–02
  • Russia Nikolai Makarov, 2002–03
  • Russia Anatoly Timofeev, 2003–05
  • Ukraine Anatoly Bogdanov, 2005
  • Russia Gennadi Tsygurov, 2005–07
  • Russia Andrei Nazarov, 2007–10
  • Belarus Andrei Sidorenko, April 2010 - October 2010
  • Russia Valery Belousov, 2010–2014
  • Finland Karri Kivi, May 2014 - October 2014
  • Russia Andrei Nikolishin, October 2014 – November 2015
  • Russia Anvar Gatiyatulin, November 2015 – April 2018
  • Russia German Titov, June 2018 – October 2018
  • Russia Alexei Tertyshny, October 2018 – April 2019
  • Latvia Pēteris Skudra, April 2019 – November 2019
  • Russia Vladimir Yurzinov, November 2019 – April 2020
  • Russia Anvar Gatiyatulin, April 2020 –

Honored members

Traktor Chelyabinsk hangs on the rafters of the Traktor Arena jerseys of all the Traktor players who have ever won the World Championship title, including the players who are currently active.

Traktor Chelyabinsk honored members
No Player Position Career
1Sergei MylnikovG1976–89
4Sergei BabinovD1972–75
7Dmitri KalininD1995–98
8Viktor ShuvalovLW1947–49
9Igor VaritskyF1988–95, 2004–05
11Evgeny DavydovRW1984–86
12Sergei StarikovD1976–79
24Sergei MakarovRW1976–78
24Valeri KarpovRW1988–95, 2005–06
25Konstantin AstrakhantsevRW1988–94
25Andrei SapozhnikovD1990–95, 1997–98
27Vyacheslav BykovC1980–82
28Alexander SeminRW2001–02
30Andrei ZuyevG1991–99, 2002–04
92Evgeny KuznetsovRW2009–

Franchise records and leaders

All-time KHL scoring leaders

These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed KHL regular season.[3]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game   = current Traktor player

Honors

Champions

1st place, gold medalist(s) KHL Continental Cup (1): 2012
1st place, gold medalist(s) Vysshaya Liga Championship (1): 2006

Runners-up

2nd place, silver medalist(s) Gagarin Cup (1): 2013
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Gagarin Cup (3): 2012, 2018, 2022
2nd place, silver medalist(s) USSR Cup (1): 1973
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Soviet League Championship: 1977
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) IHL Championship (2): 1993, 1994
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Spengler Cup (1): 1973

References

  1. "History - HC Traktor official website". Archived from the original on 2014-03-25. Retrieved 2014-07-27.
  2. "Traktor Chelyabinsk team roster". eng.hctraktor.org. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  3. "Traktor Chelyabinsk All-Time KHL leaders". quanthockey.com. 2023-02-24. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
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