While the NHL allows its players some time off around Christmas and lets them eat turkey in peace on the day, the KHL does not, meaning that the Montreal Canadiens' first-round pick and second-round pick at the 2025 draft, Alexander Zharovsky, was in action yesterday.
Ufa’s Salavat Yualev was taking on Amur Khabarovsk, and Zharovsky put on quite a performance to lead his team to a 4-2 win. He put up two assists, one at even strength and one on the power play, before scoring what would turn out to be the game-winning goal 49 minutes into the game. It was the 18-year-old’s third game-winner of the campaign.
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While his team is far from a powerhouse, with only 35 points in 39 games, which puts them eighth in the East Conference, Zharovsky is having a great season, with 28 points in 31 games, averaging just 14 minutes and 24 seconds of ice time. He’s currently the team’s highest scorer, three points ahead of Jack Rodewald, despite missing eight games at the start of the season because of an injury.
Salavat Yulaev will be back in action on December 28, when it takes on Cherepovets Severstal. This team has 53 points in 39 contests and is second to the Yaroslav Lokomotiv in the West conference and third in the league’s standings. It should be a challenging game, to say the least.
With 29 games left to play in the season, Zharovsky is on pace to put up 54 points this season in 60 games, which would be a fantastic result. For comparison, last season Ivan Demidov put up 49 points in 65 games. Don’t get too excited just yet, though. Zharovsky is still under contract with Ufa until May 31, 2027. Will the Russian side be open to letting him move on earlier than that? It remains to be seen, but at just 18, there is no rush for the prospect to cross the pond; he could still benefit from an extra season in the KHL under former NHLer Viktor Kozlov’s tutelage.
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