Traktor in the KHL 3×3 Championship: Outrageous Mosharov and Iron Borodkin

This article provides a look at one of the teams participating in the KHL 3×3 Championship Superfinal: Traktor.

Right from the start, Traktor stood out as one of the more intriguing teams in the KHL 3×3 Championship tournament. They reached the supergame in the very first round, and although they suffered a heavy 4:12 defeat against Metallurg, it was clear the Chelyabinsk team would make an impact throughout the season. A key factor in this was the play of Denis Mosharov. The Traktor captain grabbed attention in the early matches not just with his on-ice performance but also with his outspoken media appearances.

Traktor had a solid run throughout the KHL 3×3 regular season, finishing third overall across key metrics: points (80), goals scored (318), and goals conceded (292). In essence, Traktor performed well across the board. Their only challenge was the supergames. Traktor reached the game for the million five times but managed to win only once, defeating Ak Bars 4:3 in a shootout during the 12th round. Sergei Shumakov, who joined the team in January and soon took over the captaincy from Mosharov (who transitioned to a role in Traktor`s sports department), scored twice and netted the winning shootout attempt in that match.

Traktor secured their spot in the Superfinal early, but the final tour of the regular season yielded mixed results for the Chelyabinsk side. On one hand, two losses to Avangard prevented them from participating in the supergame. On the other hand, they secured a victory against Ak Bars in the very last regular season match.

Coach

Before the season started, Denis Kozyrev was appointed as Traktor`s coach for the 3×3 format. Denis Vitalyevich is a product of the Mechel hockey school. He played for his hometown team in the Russian elite championship, accumulated over 350 games in the Higher League, and won the Kazakhstan championship with Arlan. Kozyrev ended his playing career in 2015 and moved into coaching. His most recent position before `Traktor 3×3` was with the student team `Politekhnik`. In the early 2000s, Kozyrev himself played for this team, and as a coach, he led them to two gold medals in the Student Hockey League.

Top Players

Grigory Nesvetaev

Grigory Nesvetaev finished as Traktor`s leading scorer in the KHL 3×3 Championship, accumulating 104 points. The Traktor 3×3 forward also led the team in faceoff wins with 192. Nesvetaev`s faceoff win percentage was also outstanding at 59.4%, the best figure among players with over 200 draws in the season.

Artyom Borodkin

When discussing the KHL 3×3 Championship, the focus is often on high scorers. Defender Artyom Borodkin, with 572 KHL games under his belt, ranked only sixth in scoring for Traktor 3×3 this season. However, he led the league in other crucial statistics. Borodkin was the top player in blocked shots (137) and takeaways (40). Artyom also averaged the most ice time among all skaters at 11:59.

Sergei Shumakov

Sergei Shumakov, who joined Traktor 3×3 during the season, became the team`s second-highest goal scorer. He narrowly missed achieving elite `goal-per-game` statistics by just one goal. Nevertheless, Shumakov was magnificent, highlighted by his four-goal performance in the 15th round match against Barys!