Defeats for high flyers. November 3 round-up
Thursday’s action saw losses for several teams riding high in the standings. CSKA’s 11-game winning streak came to an end at Neftekhimik, where an overtime win lifted the host off the foot of the Eastern Conference. Eastern leader Metallurg went down 1-4 at Lokomotiv, while Salavat Yulaev fell to Ak Bars in a shoot-out. There were also successes for Avangard over Sibir and Admiral at Barys, while Avtomobilist got a boost with two goals from Anatoly Golyshev sinking Amur.
Hawks edge another derby win
Avangard Omsk 3 Sibir Novosibirsk 2 OT (0-1, 1-1, 1-0, 1-0)
This year’s Siberian derby already brought two tight games, and the third instalment continued that theme. The Hawks ultimately edged a shoot-out verdict to post its second home win over Sibir this season.
That maintained Avangard’s improved form of late. The home team arrived with wins in its last two games on the road and a five-game sequence of taking at least one point. Head coach Mikhail Kravets was happy to continue with the same personnel here.
For Sibir, a painful loss in Astana last time out prompted a couple of changes. Forwards Alexander Sharov and Andrei Chesalin were scratched in favor of Anton Nazarevich and Alexei Yakovlev.
It did not take long for the visitor to grab the lead. After just 24 seconds, Sibir got the opening goal. Nikita Setdikov was the scorer and, as in the previous game between the teams in this arena, Andrei Martemyanov’s team had the early advantage. Sibir continued to look the better team: faster, stronger and better disciplined, it might have added to its lead if the home defense had been less impressive.
In the second period, the home team managed to generate more dangerous offense. Avangard began to play on the forecheck and forced more individual errors from the opposition. Midway through the session, that led to a tying goal. Trevor Murphy lost possession in his zone, Reid Boucher pounced on the puck and fired past Anton Krasotkin.
After tying the game, Avangard looked to build on that momentum. However, although the home team dominated play for a time, the next goal came at the other end. Sibir gradually played its way back into the game and restored its lead late in the second period thanks to Michal Cajkovsky’s marker.
Sibir defended sensibly in the third period, frustrating Avangard’s efforts to get back into the game for long spells. It took a power play to change things, with Alex Broadhurst needing just seven seconds to punish Denis Golubev’s foul on Vladimir Bryukvin.
That took the game to overtime, and Boucher turned out to be the key figure. First, he earned his team a power play. Then, he scored the winning goal on that power play, converting Vladimir Tkachyov’s second assist of the game to secure a 3-2 verdict.
Jelisejevs’ treble sets Admiral club record
Barys Astana 1 Admiral Vladivostok 4 (0-0, 1-2, 0-2)
After a long losing streak, Barys hoped that victory over Sibir would get its season back on track. However, Admiral had other ideas. The Sailors had taken at least a point from each of its last seven games and extended that sequence to set a new club record in Kazakhstan. Nikolajs Jelisejevs got his first KHL hat-trick to lead his team to victory.
The visitor welcomed back power forward Mark Verba after injury and goalie Nikita Serebryakov after illness. Barys, meanwhile, still has Nikita Mikhailis and Michael Chaput on the injured list.
The first period was goalless and there were few chances at either end. The opening goal finally arrived in the 26th minute. Yegor Petukhov was the scorer, reacting fastest after Serebryakov momentarily lost track of the puck. However, his effort was quickly cancelled out by two from Jelisejevs. The Latvian converted a feed from Libor Sulak to tie the game, then put Admiral ahead after Evgeny Grachyov got the puck to the slot.
Barys was close to tying the game early in the third period when Kirill Savitsky’s shot got through Serebryakov’s pads but did not quite have the strength to get over the line. Then Anton Sagadeyev hit the post with a shot from a similar position. While the home team cursed its luck, Jelisejevs celebrated his first hat-trick in the KHL before Alexander Gorshkov put the finishing touch to the scoreline with a power play goal five seconds from the end.
Golyshev’s double leads Avto to victory
Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 4 Amur Khabarovsk 2 (1-1, 1-1, 2-0)
There was good news for the Motormen ahead of this game with the return of Curtis Valk from injury. In recent weeks, Nikolai Zavarukhin’s sick list has assumed epic proportions; Valk’s return reduces it from ‘War & Peace’ to ‘Anna Karenina’, at least in terms of its size.
In the first minute, Amur’s Ivan Nikolishin set the tone for his team’s hard-working pressing game. It may have lacked finesse, but it did a good job of pushing Avto back. Thus it was no surprise when Yaroslav Likhachyov opened the scoring in the eighth minute. The home team then had to send its PK out to work, spending more than a minute with just three skaters but doing a fine job of neutralizing the Tigers’ power play.
Almost immediately after that, Anatoly Golyshev tied the game with an impressive solo effort. Golyshev bamboozled the Amur defense and found the net with a shot from behind the goal line, bouncing the puck into the net of Evgeny Alikin’s back.
The middle frame began at a slower tempo and there was little to report until Avto took the lead. Valk marked his return with an assist, producing a perfect face-off win and dishing off the puck for Brooks Macek to shoot home. Amur did not react immediately, but a power play chance late in the frame saw Nikolishin tie the scores.
However, that was as good as it got for the visitor. Golyshev got his second of the game at the start of the third period, redirecting Nick Ebert’s shot into the Tigers’ net. After that, the home team diligently closed down the play, denying Amur the chance to establish any position in the Avtomobilist zone. Patrice Cormier wrapped up the win with an empty net goal.
CSKA sunk by former prospect
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 4 CSKA Moscow 3 OT (1-2, 2-1, 0-0, 1-0)
CSKA’s 11-game winning streak came to an end at Neftekhimik. The home team pulled off a shock victory, lifting itself off the foot of the Eastern Conference thanks to Kirill Vorobyov’s overtime goal.
At the start of the season, CSKA edged a 5-4 overtime verdict at home to Neftekhimik. After that close encounter, the teams’ paths diverged. Neftekhimik suffered a long losing streak and has found itself bumping around the foot of the table. The Muscovites took time to hit form, but the defending champion’s long winning run lifted it to second in the standings.
The teams played at high intensity throughout the entire game. Midway through the first period, Sergei Plotnikov gave the visitor the lead, but Rafael Bikmullin responded 16 seconds later with his first goal of the season. Nonetheless, CSKA went into the intermission with a 2-1 lead after Prokhor Poltapov converted a great pass from Danil Yurtaikin.
After trading quickfire goals in the first period, the teams did it again at the start of the second. Twenty seconds after the restart, Evgeny Mityakin tied it up. However, it took just 25 more seconds for Vladislav Kamenev to restore CSKA’s lead. This time, the goals kept coming: Yegor Popov tied the game at three on 22:49.
That was the end of the scoring in regulation: after six goals in 23 minutes, the teams were silent for the remaining 37. CSKA had the better of the game at equal strength, but Neftekhimik had decent chances on its three power plays.
Overtime did not last long. Sergei Fedorov, as usual, was quick to remove his goaltender in favor of a fourth skater. This time, though, his players lost possession and Vorobyov, once a junior at CSKA, put the puck into the empty net to end the visitor’s winning run.
Vital victory for Ak Bars
Ak Bars Kazan 2 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 1 SO (0-0, 0-1, 1-0, 0-0, 1-0)
Ak Bars dropped out of the playoff places in the build-up to the third edition of this season’s Green Derby. As such, there was even more pressure on the home team around this game as Oleg Znarok’s men looked to recover their form.
There were several changes to the home roster. Mikhail Glukhov and Dinar Khafizullin missed out with injury, replaced by Nikita Dynyak and Vasily Tokranov. Danis Zaripov was on the team for the first time since Oct. 16. As Znarok continues to look for a way to unlock the talents of his players, his put together a blockbuster trio with Alexander Radulov on the same line as Vadim Shipachyov and Stanislav Galiyev.
Salavat Yulaev arrived as favorite to win the game, despite suffering a surprise loss at home to lowly Amur last time out. That prompted some changes to Viktor Kozlov’s roster, with power forward Evgeny Timkin dropping out.
The game began at a fast tempo and the puck rarely spent time in center ice. Ak Bars was first to create a goal threat, but Salavat Yulaev had greater puck possession and launched some dangerous counterattacks. The visitor also got the game’s first power play – a double minor for Kirill Adamchuk – late in the opening session but could not turn it into a goal.
It took until the 35th minute to bring the opening goal, and Danil Alalykin claimed it for the visitor. Salavat Yulaev’s youngsters combined well to beat Timur Bilyalov in the home net. However, there was little to separate the teams in terms of balance of play.
However, after Ufa’s youngsters opened the scoring, Ak Bars’ prospects responded with an equalizer. Artyom Galimov produced a superb pass, leaving Nikita Yevseyev with the simple task of putting the puck into an open net. That was a fourth goal of the season for the young defenseman.
In the closing stages, Ak Bars pushed for a winner and only Ilya Ezhov’s goaltending took the game into overtime. In the extras, Salavat Yulaev had the better of the play but could not find a winner. In the end, Radulov and Galiyev converted their attempts in the shoot-out to give the home team a much-needed win.
Polunin’s double downs Metallurg
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 4 Metallurg Magnitogorsk 1 (1-0, 2-0, 1-1)
Eastern Conference leader Metallurg had no answers on its trip to Lokomotiv. The Railwaymen posted a third successive victory, consolidating its grip on fourth place in the standings.
Ilya Vorobyov opted not to use former Lokomotiv goalie Eddie Pasquale, preferring Vasily Koshechkin between the piping. However, the veteran netminder did not have one of his best games, allowing three goals as Magnitka slipped to a heavy loss.
In the opening exchanges the teams were evenly matched. Both sides created chances but Loko got ahead with a power play effort. Koshechkin was screened and could not react to a point shot from Rushan Rafikov in the ninth minute. Another power play goal extended the home lead early in the middle frame, with Yegor Korshkov beating Koshechkin at the second attempt. Subsequently, Metallurg had more shots and more possession, but could not find a way past Daniil Isayev. Instead, Alexander Polunin extended Loko’s lead when the home team caught Metallurg on the change.
Vorobyov reshuffled his lines in the third period, but to little avail. True, his team managed some dangerous attacks and pulled back one goal through Andrei Chibisov. However, that was not enough. Polunin sealed the verdict with an empty net goal; Magnitka suffered a second successive loss.
