Sibir beats Ak Bars, Barys ends losing streak. November 21 round-up
Two goals from Alexander Sharov put Sibir on the way to a 4-2 win over Ak Bars on a day of Eastern Conference action in the KHL. Barys, with just two wins in its previous 12 games, enjoyed a much-needed boost with a 4-1 win over Salavat Yulaev. Elsewhere, Traktor edged a 3-2 verdict over Amur and Neftekhimik took a 1-0 win over Admiral thanks to Andrei Tikhomirov’s shut-out.
Sharov’s double sinks Ak Bars
Sibir Novosibirsk 4 Ak Bars Kazan 2 (1-2, 1-0, 2-0)
Sibir handed Ak Bars a fifth loss in six games, coming from behind to defeat Oleg Znarok’s team. The visitor restored Danis Zaripov and Artyom Lukoyanov to the line-up for the trip to Siberia, with Alexander Burmistrov and Mikhail Glukhov making way. Sibir also had to make changes. Vyacheslav Osnovin missed out through illness, while Vyacheslav Litovchenko and Denis Alexandrov are both injured.
Initially, Ak Bars looked the more effective of the two teams. The visitor had the better of the opening minutes, and built a 2-0 lead on goals from youngster Maxim Bykov and a power play effort from Kirill Petrov.
However, no sooner had Ak Bars established that hard-earned lead than the away team began to erode its own advantage. There was little need for Kirill Adamchuk to tangle with Alexei Yakovlev, and less for Nikita Lyamkin and Alexander Radulov to get involved. Once all the penalties were handed out, Sibir had a 5-on-3 power play. Taylor Beck needed just 13 seconds to pull one back for Sibir and, in doing so, he tipped the momentum of the game. The home team continued to play cautiously for much of the second period, but it had the confidence to move forward when possible. That delivered a tying goal late in the middle frame when Denis Golubev battled away on the slot to force the puck into the net regardless of the efforts of Timur Bilyalov and his defensemen.
In the third period, it was time for Alexander Sharov. First, he gave Sibir the lead for the first time with a power play goal four minutes into the final session. Then, five minutes later, he struck again with a devastating wrister that gave Bilyalov no chance. With a two-goal lead and 10 minutes to play, Sibir reverted to its earlier defensive mindset and Ak Bars was unable to force a breakthrough.
Savitsky leads Barys to valuable win
Barys Astana 4 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 1 (1-0, 0-0, 3-1)
Kirill Savitsky scored twice to send Salavat Yulaev spinning to a fifth successive defeat. For Barys, this was a welcome boost after a disappointing recent run of form. Andrei Skabelka’s men had just one win in six prior to Monday’s game and remains outside the top eight despite today’s success.
Savitsky made an immediate impact, opening the scoring in the third minute with a power play goal. It was the sixth goal of the season for the forward, and it ushered in a first period dominated by the home team. Barys had 14 shots on goal compared with just six from Salavat Yulaev. However, the visitor did have rather more time on offense, and focused on generating high-quality scoring opportunities rather than firing pucks at the net whenever possible. Neither quality nor quantity managed to produce any further scoring, though.
The second period was also goalless, although in the later stages Ufa put some real pressure on the home net as it took advantage of the near bench and push Barys back into its own zone for long spells.
After the second intermission, Salavat Yulaev continued to enjoy the better of the game, only to fall behind to a power play goal. It started with a breakaway involving Alikhan Asetov and Dinmukhamed Kaiyrzhan. That attack did not produce a shot on goal, but angered Pavel Koledov to the point that he talked himself into a penalty. Jeremy Bracco then converted the power play to double the home lead. Ufa got a lifeline when Jesse Graham inadvertently steered the puck into his own net. Ivan Drozdov was formally credited with the goal. However, far from inspiring a fightback, Barys’ misfortune pushed the home team forward. Savitsky’s second of the game was followed by an empty net effort from Linden Vey to wrap up a convincing win.
Amur’s fightback falls short
Traktor Chelyabinsk 3 Amur Khabarovsk 2 (0-0, 2-1, 1-1)
This was the fourth meeting between these teams in the space of just three weeks. The previous games saw some cautious, thoughtful hockey from both teams, and this encounter began in similar fashion.
Traktor made the brighter start, only to find Amur goalie Evgeny Alikin in fantastic form. His efforts earned a helping hand from Lady Luck: at the moment when Nikita Tertyshny seemed poised to open the scoring, the Traktor forward’s stick snapped and the chance went begging.
In the middle frame, home pressure was finally rewarded. Two goals in a minute saw Sergei Telegin open the scoring on the power play before Teemu Pulkkinen doubled the advantage. However, it took just one more minute for Amur to pull one back with Sergei Lapin on target.
In the third period, Amur completed its fightback. Jan Drozg scored on the power play and extended his productive streak to four games. The Slovenian has 5 (3+2) points in that time and brought his team level here. However, Traktor grabbed a winner in the 53rd minute when Maxim Shabanov converted the rebound after Mikhail Goryunov-Rolgizer forced another save from Alikin.
Camara, Tikhomirov give Neftekhimik victory
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 1 Admiral Vladivostok 0 (1-0, 0-0, 0-0)
Admiral is the surprise package of this season’s Eastern Conference and it came into today’s game riding high in third place. However, the first of this week’s three encounters with lowly Neftekhimik saw the Sailors’ offense blunted as the home team shaded a tight verdict.
A first-period penalty on Nikolai Chebykin proved costly for the visitor as Anthony Camara got the opening goal in the 14th minute. Much of the play in the opening frame was even, but Neftekhimik’s two power plays saw it put some pressure on Pavel Khomchenko’s net and produced the only goal of the session.
Indeed, Camara’s tally proved to be the only goal of the game. The second period followed a similar pattern, with little to choose between the teams at equal strength and Neftekhimik gaining the initiative on the power play. The home team managed to stay out of the box until the third period, when Admiral finally managed to generate some significant offense in front of Andrei Tikhomirov. However, there was no way through for the visitor, and 24 saves secured a shut-out for the home goalie to seal the win for Neftekhimik.
