VLADIMIR PLYUSHCHEV behind the bench for silver medalist Russia at last winter's U-18 World Championships.

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The two big names on the Russian roster would be left wing NIKITA FILATOV, the leading goal-scorer at last year’s World Junior Championships who was recently sent on loan to CSKA Moscow for the remainder of the season by the Columbus Blue Jackets, and defenseman DMITRI KULIKOV, last summer’s # 1 pick of the Florida Panthers who has immediately claimed a regular place in the team’s NHL line-up this fall and is averaging sixteen minutes per game.

The Russians have a new coach this year. Former USSR national team player and Stanley Cup winner SERGEI NEMCHINOV has been replaced by VLADIMIR PLYUSHCHEV. Plyushchev, who ended his Soviet Elite League career at age 24 and worked for many years in the KGB before going into coaching in 1995, was the boss of the senior Russian squad at the 2003 IIHF World Championships.

Russia lost a 6-5 heart-breaker to eventual champion Canada at the semi-final stage before beating Slovakia 5-2 for the bronze medal at the 2009 WJC tournament.

• 18 – gk – Igor BOBKOV — Metallurg Magnitogorsk
• 18 – gk – Ramis SADIKOV — Erie (OHL jrs)
• 19 – gk – Alexander ZALIVIN — Dynamo Moscow
• 19 – def – Maxim CHUDINOV — Severstal Cherepovets
• 17 – def – Ildar ISANGULOV — Tolpar Ufa
• 19 – def – Anton KLEMENTYEV — Bridgeport (AHL)
• 19 – def – Dmitri KOSTROMITIN — Rouyn-Noranda (QMJHL jrs)
• 19 – def – Dmitri KULIKOV — FLORIDA PANTHERS
• 18 – def – Dmitri ORLOV — Metallurg Novokuznetsk
• 18 – def – Nikita PIVTSAKIN — Avangard Omsk
• 19 – def – Konstantin PLASKIN — Traktor Chelyabinsk
• 19 – def – Alexander TARASOV — HC MVD Balashikha
• 19 – def – Vyacheslav VOINOV — Manchester (AHL)
• 18 – def – Kiril YURIEV — Lada Togliatti
• 18 – def – Nikita ZAYTSEV — Sibir Novosibirsk
• 18 – for – Alexander BURMISTROV — Barrie (OHL jrs)
• 19 – for – Pavel DEDUNOV — Amur Khabarovsk
• 19 – for – Egor DUGIN — Traktor Chelyabinsk
• 19 - for – Nikita FILATOV — CSKA Moscow
• 19 – for – Magomed GIMBATOV — SKA St. Petersburg
• 19 - for – Evgeny GRACHEV — Hartford (AHL)
• 19 – for – Petr KHOKHRYAKOV — Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk
• 18 – for – Maxim KITSYN — Metallurg Novokuznetsk
• 19 - for – Dmitri KUGRYSHEV — Quebec (QMJHL jrs)
• 19 – for – Vyacheslav KULEMIN — CSKA Moscow  
• 17 – for – Evgeny KUZNETSOV — Traktor Chelyabinsk
• 19 - for – Kiril PETROV — Ak Bars Kazan
• 19 – for – Sergei PLOTNIKOV — Amur Khabarovsk
• 18 – for – Alexander TARASENKO — Sibir Novosibirsk
• 17 – for – Ivan TELEGIN — Saginaw (OHL jrs)
• 19 – for – Evgeny TIMKIN — Avangard Omsk
• 19 – for – Maxim TRUNEV — Severstal Cherepovets

2009 WJC : Filatov (7 ga, 8 go 3 as), Grachev (7 ga, 2 go 3 as), Chudinov (7 ga, 0 go 5 as), Voinov (7 ga, 1 go 3 as), Kulikov (7 ga, 0 go 4 as), Kugryshev (7 ga, 1 go 1 as), Petrov (7 ga, 0 go 0 as)