Belye Medveditsy

Belye Medveditsy Chelyabinsk
Белые Медведицы Челябинск
CityChelyabinsk, Russia
LeagueZhenskaya Hockey League
Founded1997 (1997)
Operated1997–2015
2021–present
Home arenaYunost Sport Palace
ColoursBlack, white
   
Owner(s)Traktor Chelyabinsk
Head coachIgor Znarok
Websitehctraktor.org/belye-medvedicy
Franchise history
1997–1998Metelitsa Chelyabinsk
1998–2000Nika Chelyabinsk
2000–2002Kazak Uralsky Chelyabinsk
2002–2014Fakel Chelyabinsk
2014–2015Belye Medveditsy Chelyabinsk
2021–Belye Medveditsy Chelyabinsk

Belye Medveditsy Chelyabinsk (Russian: Бе́лые Медве́дицы Челябинск, lit. 'Polar Bears Chelyabinsk') are an ice hockey team in the Zhenskaya Hockey League (ZhHL). They play in Chelyabinsk, Russia at the Yunost Sport Palace. The team has previously been known as Metelitsa Chelyabinsk, Nika Chelyabinsk, Kazak-Uralsky Chelyabinsk, and Fakel Chelyabinsk.

The team is a part of the Traktor Chelyabinsk hockey organization, which also operates Traktor Chelyabinsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), Chelmet Chelyabinsk of the VHL, Belye Medvedi Chelyabinsk of the MHL, and a number of youth and junior teams.

History

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Founded in Chelyabinsk in 1997 as Metelitsa (Russian: Метелица, lit. 'Blizzard'), the club made its debut in the second round of the 1997–98 Russian Women's Hockey League (RWHL) season. Yelena Tyushnyakova, an ice hockey defenceman better known as an Olympic speed skater, was the first captain of Metelitsa. The team struggled in their inaugural season, recording a -165 goal differential and finishing at the bottom of the league.

Prior to the 1998–99 season, the team was renamed as Nika (Russian: Ника). In 2000, the name was changed to Kazak-Uralsky (Russian: Казак-Уральский, lit. 'Cossack-Urals'). During 2002 to 2014, the team was called Fakel (Russian: Факел, lit. 'Torch').

On 5 March 2014, the team joined the HC Tractor organization and their name was changed to Belye Medveditsy.[1] On 8 March 2015, the team was dissolved for financial reasons.

Season-by-season results

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This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by Belye Medveditsy, known as Fakel Chelyabinsk during 2002 to 2014.

Note: Finish = Rank at end of regular season; GP = Games played, W = Wins (3 points), OTW = Overtime wins (2 points), OTL = Overtime losses (1 point), L = Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points, Top scorer: Points (Goals+Assists)

Season League Regular season
Finish GP W OTW OTL L GF GA Pts Top scorer
2010–11 RWHL 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 30 16 2 0 12 116 82 52 Russia A. Vafina 50 (25+25)
2011–12 RWHL 4th 30 11 1 1 17 74 149 36 Russia O. Afonina 31 (14+17)
2012–13 RWHL 4th 48 26 1 1 20 156 139 81 Russia O. Afonina 50 (27+23)
2013–14 RWHL 5th 40 20 0 0 20 168 114 60 Hungary A. Huszak 72 (41+31)
2014–15 RWHL 8th 32 9 1 0 22 106 133 29 Hungary F. Gasparics 46 (28+18)

Players and personnel

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2021–22 roster

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As of 22 October 2021[2][3]
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
72 Russia Polina Andreyeva G L 19 2021 Apatity, Murmansk Oblast, Russia
41 Russia Yulia Artyomova G L 25 2021 Sarov, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia
89 Russia Varvara Boriskova F L 22 2021 Odintsovo, Moscow Oblast, Russia
30 Russia Sofiya Boichenko G L 18 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
47 Russia Viktoria Fyodorova F L 19 2021 Kamensk-Uralsky, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia
15 Russia Valeria Gorbunova D L 23 2021 Kramatorsk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine
21 Russia Viktoria Kiselyova F L 19 2021
11 Russia Yana Krasheninina F R 20 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
77 Russia Alisa Kudelina D L 21 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
18 Russia Kamilla Mukhametdinova F L 21 2021
35 Russia Milana Nachyotova D L 19 2021
33 Russia Alina Narudinova F L 23 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
22 Russia Alina Orlova D L 24 2021 Stupino, Moscow Oblast, Russia
19 Russia Yekaterina Osminova D L 20 2021 Korkino, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
74 Russia Yekaterina Prozorova D R 30 2021
68 Russia Maria Pushkar F L 23 2021 Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia
42 Russia Anastasia Shabalina F L 20 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
17 Russia Tatyana Shatalova F L 25 2021 Minsk, Belarus
28 Russia Kristina Smirnova D L 20 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
27 Russia Ilmira Taipova F L 25 2021 Kamsky Lespromkhoz, Mamadyshsky District, Tatarstan, Russia
1 Russia Milena Tretyak G L 24 2021 Moscow, Russia
37 Russia Berta Valeyeva F L 19 2021 Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan, Russia
23 Russia Zlata Vavilova F R 18 2021 Satka, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
7 Russia Natalya Vorontsova D L 29 2021 Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia
5 Russia Valeria Zaika F L 19 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
94 Russia Yekaterina Zakharova F L 30 2021 Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia
99 Russia Tamara Zhordochkina D L 18 2021 Chelyabinsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia

Coaching staff and team personnel

  • Head coach: Igor Znarok[4]
  • Assistant coach: Pyotr Pankov
  • Assistant coach: Pavel Shiryayev
  • Conditioning coach: Yelena Tyushnyakova

Team captaincy history

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  • Yelena Tyushnyakova, 1997–98
  • Viktoria Tavakova, 1998–2004
  • Yekaterina Vainberger, 2004–05
  • Alexandra Vafina, 2008–2011
  • Anastasia Vedernikova, 2011–2013
  • Alexandra Vafina, 2013–14
  • Anastasia Vedernikova, 2014–15

Head coaches

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  • Alexander Degtyaryov, 1997–98
  • Vladimir Borodulin, 1998–2005
  • Arkadi Belousov, 2008–2015
  • Igor Znarok, 2021–

Team honours

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Russian Championship

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  • Bronze Third Place (1): 2010–11

All-time scoring leaders

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The top-ten point-scorers in club history.

Note: Nat = Nationality; Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game;   = 2021–22 Belye Medveditsy player

Scoring leaders
Nat Player Pos GP G A Pts P/G
Russia Yekaterina Lebedeva F 138 62 82 144 1.043
Russia Alexandra Vafina F 78 76 63 139 1.782
Russia Oxana Afonina F 146 68 70 138 0.945
Hungary Alexandra Huszak F 72 65 45 110 1.528
Hungary Fanni Gasparics F 72 56 54 110 1.528
Russia Yekaterina Anisimova F 123 48 47 95 0.772
Russia Anastasia Vedernikova F 121 39 55 94 0.777
Russia Yelena Timofeyeva D 173 23 70 93 0.538
Russia Yekaterina Skorodumova F 190 41 48 89 0.468
Kazakhstan Lyubov Vafina F 202 37 45 82 0.406

Source(s): [5]

Notable alumni

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Years active with Belye Medveditsy listed alongside player name.[5]

International players

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References

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  1. ^ "В структуру "Трактора" войдет женская команда "Белая Медведица"". AllHockey.ru (in Russian). 5 March 2013. Archived from the original on 14 September 2021. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  2. ^ "Игроки - ХК «Белые медведицы»". HC Traktor (in Russian). Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Belye Medveditsy, Russia (W) – 2021-2022 Roster". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  4. ^ Дыбин, Александр (29 April 2021). "Женскую хоккейную команду «Белые медведицы» возглавит брат Олега Знарка" [Women's hockey team "Belye Medveditsy" will be headed by Oleg Znarok's brother]. Znak.com (in Russian). Archived from the original on 20 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Overall Totals Player Stats for Belye Medveditsy, 1997–98 to 2014–15". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
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