Dmitri Upper

3.1. Club Career

Upper began his professional club career with Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk in 1997, where he played 76 games, scoring 26 goals and providing 23 assists. During this period, he also participated in the 1998 IIHF Continental Cup. In 1999, he transitioned to the Russian Superleague (RSL), joining Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod. In his first RSL season with Nizhny Novgorod (1999-2000), he recorded 14 goals and 5 assists for 19 points, alongside 48 penalty minutes. He was subsequently selected by the New York Islanders in the 5th round (136th overall) of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.

Midway through the 2000-01 season, Upper was traded to Ak Bars Kazan, where he played 31 games, scoring 7 goals and 4 assists. The following year, in 2001, he joined Spartak Moscow. His first season with Spartak Moscow in 2001-02 saw him achieve a career high of 16 goals, alongside 9 assists, for 25 points, and accumulate 76 penalty minutes in 51 games. He continued with Spartak Moscow until 2003, playing a total of 94 games for the club, contributing 23 goals and 22 assists during this initial tenure.

From 2003 to 2007, Upper played for CSKA Moscow. Over these four seasons, he appeared in 204 games, scoring 41 goals and providing 33 assists, for a total of 74 points. His best offensive season with CSKA Moscow was in 2005-06, when he tallied 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points.

In late 2007, ahead of the launch of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), Upper returned to Spartak Moscow. He played for Spartak until 2010 and was named team captain in 2009, recording 14 goals and 16 assists for 30 points that season. In the 2010 offseason, he was traded to Atlant Moscow Oblast. Although injuries limited his productivity in his first season with Atlant (2010-11), he played a crucial role in the team's run to the Gagarin Cup Finals, where they ultimately lost to Salavat Yulaev Ufa.

In May 2012, Upper signed with Barys Astana, a team based in Kazakhstan. Upon joining, he was named the team's captain. He played for Barys Astana until 2015, concluding his club career there.

3.2. International Career

Dmitri Upper had a distinguished international career representing his native Kazakhstan at various levels.

His junior international career included participation in the IIHF World U20 Championship. He played in the 1996 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship C Pool in Slovenia, helping Kazakhstan win the tournament and earn promotion to the B Pool. In 1997, he again represented Kazakhstan at the World Junior Ice Hockey Championship B Pool in Ukraine, where the team remained undefeated and secured promotion to the A Pool. He also competed in the 1998 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship in Finland, playing 7 games and scoring 1 goal as Kazakhstan finished 7th, ensuring their retention in the top division.

Upper made his debut for the senior national team in February 1999 at the 1999 Asian Winter Games held in Gangwon, South Korea, where Kazakhstan secured a gold medal. In April of the same year, he participated in the 1999 World Ice Hockey Championship B Group in Denmark, scoring 6 goals in 7 games. He also played in the 2000 World Ice Hockey Championship B Group in France.

He continued to represent Kazakhstan at the Ice Hockey World Championships, participating in the 2004 tournament in the Czech Republic and the 2005 tournament in Austria. In 2006, Upper served as deputy captain for the Kazakhstani national team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. He appeared in 5 games, recording 1 assist against the Swedish national team.

After a period away from the national team, Upper returned to compete in the 2011 Asian Winter Games, held in Astana and Almaty, Kazakhstan. He contributed to his country's gold medal victory. In April 2011, he played in the World Championship Division I B Group in Ukraine, helping Kazakhstan achieve promotion. In May 2012, he captained the national team at the World Championship in Finland and Sweden; however, the team finished last and was relegated back to Division I.

In 2013, Upper participated in the qualification tournament for the 2014 Winter Olympics and the World Championship Division I A Group in Hungary, which Kazakhstan won. His final major international appearance was as deputy captain at the 2014 World Championship in Belarus in May, where Kazakhstan finished 16th.

6.1. Club Statistics

6.2. International Statistics