Busy finish as KHL heads into All-Star break. December 8 round-up
On the last game day before the December break, there were nine KHL games to enjoy. And underdogs Kunlun Red Star and Neftekhimik certainly enjoyed themselves, grabbing shock wins against Lokomotiv and Metallurg, second in the West and East respectively. Salavat Yulaev and Vityaz both scored six, Avtomobilist and SKA increased their leads at the top of their conferences, and there were derby successes for Admiral and Dynamo Moscow.
Third time lucky for Admiral
Amur Khabarovsk 1 Admiral Vladivostok 3 (1-1, 0-1, 0-1)
This was the third meeting of these teams in four days. Amur took the first two, but it proved to be third time lucky for Admiral. The host made just one change to the team which edged an overtime verdict yesterday, bringing back defenseman Pavel Turbin. Admiral, meanwhile, reshuffled every line and moved Alexander Gorshkov and Nikolai Chebykin to the top line.
This was a true derby game from the opening moments. The teams played fast, aggressive hockey, although neither side was willing to throw caution to the winds and abandon its defensive duties. It was starting to look as if the opening frame would finish goalless when a penalty for Admiral opened up the game. Unexpectedly, the visitor snatched a power play goal to take the lead thanks to Alexander Shevchenko. However, within a minute Amur converted the power play as Stanislav Bocharov scored for the second time in two days.
After the break, there were fewer scoring chances at either end. Once again, the deadlock was broken by a penalty, but this time on Amur. Leonids Tambijevs’ team produced a great power play, taking the lead on a Chebykin goal in the 32nd minute. The Tigers fought back strongly in the latter stages of the period, but could not beat Nikita Serebryakov even as they peppered him with shots.
The home team made a lively start to the third period, while the Sailors responded with some pacy counterattacks. Both Serebryakov and his opposite number Evgeny Alikin pulled off some big saves to keep the game at 1-2. As the game wore on, Amur poured everything into its quest for a tying goal. However, second before the hooter Rudolf Cerveny sealed the win with an empty-net goal for Admiral.
Ufa wins lively clash at Sibir
Sibir Novosibirsk 3 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 6 (1-1, 1-3, 1-2)
Two goals apiece from Daniil Skorikov and Mikhail Naumenkov outstripped a double from Vladimir Butuzov as Salavat Yulaev won an entertaining game in Novosibirsk. The result moves Viktor Kozlov’s team to within two points of its host, although Sibir remains in third place ahead of the December pause.
Sibir, beaten by Traktor last time out, looked to make a fast start. However, in the second minute it fell behind when Skorikov opened the scoring. It was Ufa’s first meaningful attack of the game, and Skorikov’s first goal in the KHL. However, the home team finished the first period on level terms after a kind deflection off a visiting defenseman gifted Denis Golubev with a tying goal. The host also killed three penalties to keep the score at 1-1.
The second period was full of incident. It started when Sibir was reduced to three players. The power play absolutely suited Naumenkov, who scored twice to give his team a 3-1 lead. Then, just 27 seconds after the box finally cleared, Grigory Panin’s powerful shot was tipped past Denis Kostin by Skorikov. That was the end of Kostin’s game as Anton Krasotkin came in to replace him. Sibir kept its hopes alive with a power play tally from Butuzov, which whipped up great encouragement from the home crowd.
Early in the third, Butuzov struck again and the fightback was very much on. However, Salavat Yulaev needed just 18 seconds to restore the two-goal advantage with Sergei Shmelyov calming any nerves among the visiting players. That was the knock-out blow. Sibir’s efforts to score again came to nothing and Nikolai Kulemin’s empty net effort sealed the win.
Ak Bars rallies to shoot down Hawks
Avangard Omsk 2 Ak Bars Kazan 3 OT (2-0, 0-2, 0-0, 0-1)
Ak Bars battled back from 0-2 to grab an OT victory in Omsk, going into the All-Star break on a high. Dmitry Yudin’s goal separated the teams in the extras after the visitor dug deep to overturn a first-period deficit.
Avangard head coach Mikhail Kravets continued to shuffle his lines. Ivan Miroshnichenko and Nikita Mikhailov were promoted to the third line, while Fyodor Malykhin replaced Semyon Astashevsky on the fourth.
Kravets was rewarded with a fast start from his team. Right from the off, the host assumed control of the puck and established a good territorial advantage. Miroshnichenko looked particularly effective early on, forming a dangerous partnership with Ivan Telegin. It perhaps was no coincidence that the opening goal came from the veteran 2018 Olympic champion, converting a penalty that his young colleague had earned.
Ak Bars responded by kickstarting its offense. Yudin hit the piping, Nikita Dynyak fired in a dangerous shot. But another power play for Avangard saw the Hawks extend the lead when Arseny Gritsyuk demonstrated why his team has the most effective PP in the KHL this season.
Ak Bars’ road back got that little bit longer when it started the second period with another penalty. This time, though, the visitor’s PK did its job. Gradually, the visitor got back into the game and made better use of the long bench in the middle stanza. However, it took an error from home D-man Ziyat Paigin to produce the tying goal. He gifted the puck to Vadim Shipachyov, then failed to cover Dmitry Kagarlitsky as he fired home from the slot. Inspired, Kazan continued to press. An Ak Bars power play brought two minutes of intense pressure on Vasily Demchenko’s net. Avangard survived, but not for long. Dynyak made up for his near miss in the first period by firing through a crowd of players from an attacking face-off to tie the game at the second intermission.
Both teams had chances to get in front early in the third. Kirill Semyonov found space on the slot but couldn’t beat Demchenko. Then, at the other end, Corban Knight was left in solitary splendor but his effort came back off both posts. Gradually, though, both teams reverted to a more defensive game and regulation finished with the game deadlocked.
In the extras, Yudin took the initiative to settle the outcome. The Ak Bars defenseman was a long way out when he tried his luck with a slap shot, and Demchenko was taken by surprise at the puck went past him.
Motormen move further clear
Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 2 Traktor Chelyabinsk 1
Victory for Avtomobilist increased its advantage at the top of the Eastern Conference, while defeat saw Traktor slip to the foot of the table. The home team was lifted by back-to-back wins over Metallurg ahead of this game, but Traktor also arrived with its confidence boosted after victory in Novosibirsk.
The home team made a bright start and earned the first power play of the evening. However, Avto could not punish Adam Almquist’s penalty. Although we saw relatively little of Traktor in the early exchanges, the visitor got back into the game after the Swedish defenseman returned to action. The opening goal came in the 10th minute when Traktor’s second line passed its way through the home defense and presented Alexei Byvaltsev with a great chance to put the puck in the open corner of the net. Soon after that, Vladimir Tkachyov’s line almost produced a repeat, but the finish was lacking on that occasion.
The tying goal came in the last minute of the frame. Brooks Macek spurned a great chance, but Jesse Blacker found the net after a great solo rush brought him to Sergei Mylnikov’s doorstep.
Traktor failed to take advantage of a power play early in the second, and Avtomobilist responded by taking the lead once back to full strength. Yefim Gurkin got the goal after another extended spell of pressure on Mylnikov’s net. Subsequently, the home defense worked hard to shut down Traktor and there were few dangerous moments for Igor Bobkov to deal with.
That pattern continued into the third period, with the Motormen deploying the center ice trap and stifling the game. It wasn’t always pretty, but it was effective. Traktor struggled to create chances and Avto held on for a 2-1 verdict.
Jurusik’s heroics deny Loko
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 0 Kunlun Red Star 1 (0-1, 0-0, 0-0)
Until this season, Kunlun had never won a game in Yaroslavl. Now, the Dragons have two wins in the Volga city in the space of just three weeks.
Thursday’s game brought a return to action for Red Star goalie Matt Jurusik, absent injured since Oct. 19. And the man they call Jurassic Puck enjoyed a Hollywood comeback, blanking an opponent that stood second in the Western Conference to snap his team’s four-game losing streak.
Jurusik made 47 saves to complete a real smash-and-grab raid from the visitor. Lokomotiv dominated the game from start to finish, with 82 goal attempts in total. The Railwaymen spent more than 21 minutes on the attack, compared with just 6:21 for Kunlun. The visitor’s cause was not helped when influential defenseman Zac Leslie was ejected from the game late in the second period after he clashed with Daniil Tesanov in front of his own net. The initial confrontation might have been overlooked, but Leslie’s second shove, knocking the home forward down as he tried to get up from the ice, sealed the Canadian’s fate.
By that time, though, Red Star was a goal up. The visitor had just one power play in the game, but converted it into the evening’s only goal. Jack Rodewald did it all by himself, forcing a turnover out on the boards and heading to the slot before rounding Daniil Isayev and stretching to steer the puck into an empty net.
The goal came late in the first period, at a time when Loko had yet to take complete control of the play. After that, though, the home team dominated for the rest of the game. However, there was no way past Jurusik as Red Star claimed an unlikely win.
Shock win moves Neftekhimik off the bottom
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 3 Metallurg Magnitogorsk 2 (0-1, 3-0, 0-1)
KRS was not the only team to pull off an unexpected victory. Neftekhimik, which started the day dead last in the East, defeated second-placed Metallurg.
There was little sign of that outcome in the early stages. Metallurg was eager to get back on track after back-to-back losses against Avtomobilist saw it lose ground at the top of the table. The visitor withstood a bright start from Neftekhimik and went in front on the game’s first power play. Philippe Maillet’s pass released Brendan Leipsic, whose well-placed shot was at an awkward height for the goalie.
Neftekhimik started the second frame on the power play. Although Magnitka held out, it wasn’t long before Ivan Fedotov pounced on a rebound to tie the scores. That lifted the home team, and after a spell of evenly-contested hockey, Neftekhimik scored twice in four minutes late in the frame. Grigory Dronov’s error helped Bulat Shafigullin put the host in front, then Fedotov got his second of the night on the counterattack.
Veteran goalie Vasily Koshechkin may not have been unduly responsible for either of those goals, but he was the fall guy for Metallurg. Eddie Pasquale replaced him between the piping for the third period as Ilya Vorobyov’s team looked to get back into the game. Neftekhimik, though, threw up a ring of steel around the slot and made it almost impossible for the visitor to get good looks at Alexander Sudnitsin. By the time a Metallurg power play saw Maillet score in a passage of 6-on-4 play, it was already too late to save the game. Victory lifts Neftekhimik off the foot of the Conference.
Sochi slumps at Vityaz
Vityaz Moscow Region 6 HC Sochi 2 (1-1, 3-0, 2-1)
Vityaz matched Salavat Yulaev’s six-goal show, helping Vyacheslav Butsayev’s team consolidate its spot in the top eight with a convincing success over rock-bottom Sochi. The visitor was competitive in the first period, where the two teams produced two goals from just 13 shots between them. After that, though, it was largely one-way traffic. For the second game in a row, Vityaz goalie Dmitry Shikin celebrated victory against one of his former clubs.
Vityaz got ahead in this one after eight minutes when Vladislav Kara converted the first power play of the game. However, Sochi kept battling and deservedly tied the scores thanks to Kirill Petkov’s 13th minute marker.
In the second frame, the home team took control. Stanislav Yarovoi restored the lead shortly after the intermission. Then, two goals in quick succession at the midway point put the outcome beyond doubt. Kara got his second of the game, then Stepan Starkov made it 4-1. Sochi replaced young starting goalie Artemy Pleshkov with Maxim Tretyak, which at least halted the flow of goals until the third period.
That final stanza saw Yarovoi get his second of the night before Dmitry Kugryshev scored his first since arriving from Spartak. Dmitry Zavgorodny got a consolation on the power play, but there was little for Sochi to celebrate here.
Gusev keeps up hot streak, SKA wins again
Dinamo Minsk 3 SKA St. Petersburg 5 (1-0, 0-3, 2-2)
SKA did not have things all its own win in Belarus, but skated to victory thanks to a couple of goals from Nikita Gusev.
Gusev’s blistering form since rejoining SKA continues. His current productive streak extends to six games, in which time he has 13 (7+6) points. He has scored two goals in each of his last two games, and has 25 (13+12) points from 16 appearances this season. SKA, meanwhile, is on a six-game winning streak.
Dinamo was not about to role over for its high-flying visitor. On the contrary, Craig Woodcroft’s team was looking to make it four wins from six. An early goal from Vadim Moroz put the Bison in front, and that lead lasted until midway through the second period. It was no fluke, either. Minsk matched SKA all over the ice in an even and absorbing opening frame.
In the second period, though, SKA discovered its goal touch. Gusev tied the goal in the 33rd minute, and by the 36th it was 3-1 to the visitor. Gusev got his second of the game, then Damir Zhafyarov added a third.
However, nobody told Dinamo that this one was done. The final frame saw the home crowd thrilled as Minsk grabbed two quick goals. Joseph Duszak struck on the power play, then Igor Martynov tied it up on 42:22.
SKA regained the lead thanks to Dmitrij Jaskin with 10 minutes to play. But the knock-out blow was cruel on Minsk, at least in the manner in which it was delivered. Alexander Volkov believed that he had forced the puck into the net, but the on-ice officials disagreed. However, the video team initiated a review and found that Volkov’s effort did indeed cross the line. That made it 5-3, a gap too big for Dinamo to bridge.
Derby delight for Dynamo
Spartak Moscow 1 Dynamo Moscow 2 SO (0-0, 0-0, 1-1, 0-0, 0-1)
Dynamo bounced back after losing two in a row, edging a derby verdict against Spartak. The home team suffered back-to-back losses for the first time since Igor Grishin took over as head coach after failing to hold the lead that it won in the third period.
For a long time, this Moscow derby was a tense affair. Although both teams had time on the power play, the first period ended goalless. Spartak could claim the moral victory after outshooting its rival, but there were few clear cut chances at either end.
Dynamo started the second stanza on the power play and the game was more even from that point on. However, too much time was spent battling for possession on the boards and neither goalie was unduly troubled.
It wasn’t until the 49th minute that the deadlock was broken. There was an element of fortune about Spartak’s opener, although goalscorer Timur Khairullin will surely argue he was playing for a billiard-style ricochet. He went behind the net after Maxim Tsyplakov was unable to get his shot off. From beyond the goalline, Khairullin looked to shoot the puck back to the slot and bounced it off the back of the goalie into the net.
Dynamo responded almost immediately. Ilya Kablukov needed a few swings at it, but eventually forced home the rebound after Maxim Dzhioshvili blazed a trail through the home defense.
As abruptly as the game erupted into goals, it fell back into its earlier pattern. Neither team could win it in regulation, nor in overtime. Even the shoot-out saw just one successful attempt, converted by Dmitry Rashevsky to give Dynamo the verdict.
