Russian men’s hockey team expects a ‘gold medal, nothing else’ at Olympics

BEIJING (AP) — Vadim Shipachyov was pleased to carry the Russian Olympic Committee flag at the opening ceremony.

It’s quite possible he will have to carry the Russians on the ice, too.

The Russians are the defending champions and favored to win gold again at another Olympics without NHL players. But they don’t have Kirill Kaprizov, Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk or any of their goaltenders back from 2018, so Shipachyov will be expected to lead the way for a team that does not lack confidence.

“We’re here to get the gold medal — nothing else,” longtime NHL forward Artem Anisimov said.

The roster is so deep with KHL talent that Anisimov is in the mix but arrived late to Beijing and may not start the tournament on the 25-man roster. That group is led this time by Shipachyov, who has come a long way from a very brief, ill-fated move to the NHL and the Olympics four years ago when he was a nonfactor.

Now 34, Shipachyov is the KHL’s leading scorer and the Russians’ captain.

“Right now I think he is growing up, and he is playing more consistently every season,” coach Alexei Zhamnov said. “I think he is the leader of the national team right now. This Olympic Games is big opportunity for him to be the leader on our team.”

No one was following Shipachyov as recently as a few years ago.

In 2017, he signed a $9 million, three-year contract with the Vegas Golden Knights and scored one goal in three games before he was sent to the minors. Shipachyov refused the assignment to the American Hockey League’s Chicago Wolves, had his contract terminated and returned to Russia.

Months later, he made the roster for the Olympic Athletes from Russia and should have played a prominent role. Instead, he was a healthy scratch for all but one game