Avangard wins big battle, Sibir hits Ak Bars for six. November 30 round-up
The day’s top game saw Avangard edge a 3-2 verdict at CSKA thanks to two goals from Sergei Tolchinsky. In Kazan, Sibir scored six on Ak Bars, with four points from Taylor Beck leading the way and Oleg Znarok lamenting his team’s poor defense. There was overtime in Moscow twice, with Dynamo edging Vityaz 3-2 and Spartak beating Dinamo Minsk in a shoot-out. Earlier in the day, there were big wins for Amur and Barys as the race for the top eight in the East gets ever tighter. Torpedo ended Admiral long winning streak on home ice with a 2-1 verdict in Vladivostok.
Revenge win for Tigers
Amur Khabarovsk 5 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 1 (1-0, 3-0, 1-1)
There was swift revenge for Amur as it bounced back from its loss at home to Neftekhimik two days. Vadim Yepanchintsev’s team learned from that 1-2 reverse and, with some changes to the roster, romped to an emphatic victory.
Yepanchintsev’s adjustments saw Sergei Lapin replace Vyacheslav Gretsky on the top line. There was a new-look fourth line and defensemen Yelisei Minayev and Rafael Batyrshin got new roles. Neftekhimik also switched things up, although the absence of Vladislav Leontyev meant that the visitor had just three defensive pairs. Forwards Ansel Galimov and Rafael Bikmullin also missed out, with Andrei Belozyorov added to the second line.
The Tigers made the better start and deservedly got in front. Alexander Sharov’s physical presence in front of the net unsettled the visiting D. He dished off the puck to Artyom Alyayev on the blue line and the defenseman spun away from his opponent and fired the puck to the slot, where Pavel Makhanovsky got a stick to it and steered out of the goalie’s reach.
In the second period, Amur took complete control with three unanswered goals. Jan Drozg created the first, forcing a turnover then delivering a beautiful feed to the back door where Denis Vikharev was waiting to apply the finishing touch. Late in the frame, Sergei Dubakin scored twice in three minutes to give the home team a commanding 4-0 lead.
The visitor got on the scoreboard at last in the 46th minute. Bulat Shafigullin was the scorer, taking advantage of indecision between goalie Evgeny Alikin and defenseman Ruslan Pedan. However, Amur had the final word when Drozg scored into an empty net. The home team moves off the foot of the Eastern Conference and just two points now separate the bottom four in the section.
Admiral suffers first home loss in eight
Admiral Vladivostok 1 Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod 2 (1-1, 0-1, 0-0)
This season’s championship has seen Admiral and Torpedo emerge as the surprise packages in their respective conferences. Both teams are battling for top four finishes, to the delight of fans more accustomed to anxious fight for a top eight spot. However, their meeting in Vladivostok promised a clash of styles. While Admiral plays a disciplined, structured game, Igor Larionov’s Torpedo puts its faith in attacking flair.
In the early stages, Admiral got in front. Dinar Khamidullin abandoned his usual defensive duties and appeared in a forward position. He galloped in from the corner and beat visiting goalie Ivan Kulbakov from close range. The goal may have gone to the disciplined Admiral team, but its manner suggested a victory for individual improvisation.
The replay came in the first period, and might have jumped out of an elementary playbook. Igor Larionov Jr won the faceoff, the puck went back to the blue line and Maxim Fedotov was in the right place in front of the net to steer it home.
Torpedo had more time with the puck but in the second period it struggled to get good looks at Nikita Serebryakov’s net. Now, though, a spot of ex tempore play sprang the home D. Maxim Letunov’s no-look pass behind his back found Yegor Vinogradov in space and he fired home.
In the third period Torpedo continued to push for more goals but could not extend its lead. The final stages saw Admiral launch one last storm at the visitor’s net but this time Leonids Tambijevs and his team could not extend their run of home victories.
Barys moves into top eight
Traktor Chelyabinsk 1 Barys Astana 4 (0-1, 1-2, 0-1)
This was the fifth and final game of Traktor’s latest home stand, but fans in Chelyabinsk had cause for concern. With four points from the previous four games, their favorites had failed to cement a position in the top eight. Indeed, defeat to Barys would see the Kazakhs overtake Traktor and move into the playoff picture.
The home team had some significant alterations. Adam Almquist and Anton Burdasov returned, while Robert Hamilton made his KHL debut in the first defensive pairing alongside Albert Yarullin. For Barys the only change was Julius Hudacek’s return in goal.
It didn’t take long for Barys to make the breakthrough, with the first goal coming from Mikhail Rakhmanov in the fourth minute. That was the first of the season for the 30-year-old. After that, there were plenty more opportunities at both ends, but Hudacek and his opposite number Sergei Mylnikov kept the scoreline to 1-0 at the intermission.
At the start of the second period, Barys again got a quick goal. This time, the visitor scored on the power play with Adil Beketayev’s deflected shot. A couple of minutes later, Alex Grant got his first goal following his arrival from SKA. Admittedly, the Canadian defenseman had some help from a deflection, but it gave the visitor a commanding 3-0 lead. Traktor kept battling and pulled a goal back through Mikhail Goryunov-Rolgizer after Hudacek’s error behind his own net.
In the third, Chelyabinsk continued to look for a way back. In response, Barys resorted to a counterattacking game. That delivered a further goal in the 53rd minute when Nikita Mikhailis got his fourth of the season on the power play. That put an end to any meaningful hopes of a Traktor recovery, and the closing stages played out calmly.
Beck and Sibir punish sloppy Ak Bars
Ak Bars Kazan 3 Sibir Novosibirsk 6 (1-1, 0-2, 2-3)
Four points from Taylor Beck led Sibir to an entertaining victory in Kazan, although home head coach Oleg Znarok was not impressed with what he saw. Znarok blamed poor defending for the first three goals his team allowed. With that unintended assistance, Sibir grabbed an instant lead and opened a 3-1 advantage by the midpoint of the game.
Ak Bars was without Alexander Radulov, replaced by Artyom Lukoyanov. Youngster Ilya Safonov again captained the home team while Timur Bilyalov continued in goal. The visitor, impressive so far this season, made just one change to a line-up that climbed to third place in the conference with Anton Krasotkin replacing Denis Kostin in goal.
Sibir got in front almost immediately thanks to Nikita Shashkov’s goal. There wasn’t much obvious danger from his shot, but Bilyalov failed to deal with it. After that, Ak Bars got into the game and tied the scores late in the opening session thanks Dmitry Voronkov.
The second period saw everything go wrong for Ak Bars. Beck restored the visitor’s lead when he got on a two-and-one rush with Nikita Setdikov. Although a recovering defenseman put some pressure on Beck, his finish was masterful. Next came a second penalty of the game for Kirill Adamchuk and this time Sibir took full advantage. Vladimir Butuzov got to the back door to make it 3-1 and send the unhappy Bilyalov to the bench.
Ak Bars needed a quick response in the third period and Stanislav Galiyev provided just that. The home team even had chances to tie the game, but Krasotkin came up big when needed. Then came a Sibir counterattack and Dmitry Ovchinnikov’s backhand shot restored the two-goal lead. Michal Cajkovsky added a fifth to settle the outcome, although there was still time for the teams to exchange two more goals. Voronkov’s second of the game offered some consolation for Ak Bars before Setdikov had the final say with an empty-netter.
Rashevsky at the double for Dynamo
Dynamo Moscow 3 Vityaz Moscow Region 2 OT (0-1, 2-0, 0-1, 1-0)
Both these teams were looking to bounce back after defeats in their previous two games. Moreover, after losing by a single goal, both followed up by allowing six in the next game.
For Vityaz, that second game was a 4-6 loss at CSKA. Scott Wilson got a hat-trick for his team that day and he kept up his goal form with the opener here. Dynamo replied within 20 seconds, but at the instant Jakob Lilja scored on Maxim Dorozhko, the officials were whistling for Jordan Weal’s foul. Vityaz could not take advantage of its power play, though, as Alexei Kudashov’s team looked far stronger on the PK than during its struggles against Minsk.
There were also signs of progress for the Dynamo power play. The second numerical advantage of the game for the home team saw Dmitry Rashevsky tie the game in the second period. Soon after, Nikita Novikov made it 2-1. Alexander Skorenov and Weal assisted on both to extend their individual productive streaks. Skorenov is now a four-game series, while Weal’s tear is up to seven games.
Once in front, Dynamo seized the initiative. Dorozhko found himself under intense pressure as the even battle of the early stages vanished without trace. However, there was a warning for the home team when Kirill Rasskazov got clear of the defense in the final minute of the second period and almost tied the game.
In the third period, Vityaz got the goal it threatened on that play. Tyler Graovac, forced to play in a protective mask after suffering a facial injury, got the goal. Once again, Dynamo thought it had the puck in the Vityaz net almost immediately, and once again the officials called it back after a video review showed that it did not fully cross the line.
The game remained even in the final frame and it was no surprise that the teams went into overtime. In those extras Rashevsky quickly got the winning goal to give Dynamo a much-needed boost.
Red-and-Whites maintain winning streak
Spartak Moscow 2 Dinamo Minsk 1 SO (0-1, 0-0, 1-0, 0-0, 1-0)
In-form Spartak secured a seventh win from eight games under Igor Grishin. However, Dinamo had reasons for optimism after back-to-back wins over Dynamo Moscow.
The home team made a promising start but was unable to convert an early power play. Gradually, Dinamo got back into contention and then opened the scoring when Nick Merkley calmly got to the net and beat Patrik Rybar, who played for Minsk last season.
The second period was goalless, with Dinamo starting brightly before Spartak came into the game and created some good chances. Unusually, Dinamo defenseman Mark Barberio managed to take three consecutive minor penalties from the same play, two of them for cross checking and another for slashing. However, Spartak could not take advantage of that long power play on either side of the intermission.
It wasn’t until the 52nd minute that Andrei Loktionov managed to level the scores. That was the highlight of a third period that saw Spartak outshot Dinamo 25-6. Had Igor Martynov found the target with a great chance, the game might have been done inside 60 minutes. Instead, though, the result was decided in a shoot-out with Shane Prince delivering the decisive blow.
Tolchinsky shoots down former club
CSKA Moscow 2 Avangard Omsk 3 (0-0, 2-2, 0-1)
Avangard snatched victory at CSKA with Sergei Tolchinsky returning to haunt his former club. Tolchinsky, who played for the Muscovites from 2018 to 2020, scored twice including the decisive goal in the third period.
Both teams had reasons to be happy with their first period performances, even though neither could open the scoring. Avangard could point to the shot count 14-7 in its favor, and a sense that it had the more dangerous chances. CSKA, in response, had greater puck possession and the potential to ask more questions of the visitor’s defense as the game progressed.
After waiting for a goal, two arrived in quick succession. Christian Jaros, who tested Alexander Sharychenkov early in the game, gave Avangard a 21st-minute lead. The Slovak unleashed a point shot into the top corner off a feed from Ivan Telegin, another former CSKA man in the Omsk ranks. However, the home team responded immediately when Vladislav Provolnev set up Maxim Sorkin to make it 1-1.
Avangard had two more good chances, with Tolchinsky denied right after the equalizer then Pavel Dedunov failing to convert an opportunity for a shorthanded goal. Midway through the middle frame, CSKA got ahead thanks to a power play goal from Maxim Mamin, but Tolchinsky responded with a PP effort of his own to keep the teams deadlocked at the second intermission.
The winning goal arrived in the 45th minute. Avangard engineered a two-on-two break and Alex Broadhurst fed Tolchinsky. He advanced to fire a shot that deflected inside the post and give Avangard the lead. After that, CSKA piled on the pressure but could not find a way past Vasily Demchenko. Fredrik Claesson went close, but his shot through traffic could not find a gap in Demchenko’s defenses. Moments later, the post saved the visitor when Prokhor Poltapov battled away on the slot and almost found the tying goal.
However, that was the closest CSKA got to an equalizer as Avangard halted the home team’s two-game winning run.
