Belarus edges Russia in shoot-out, wins Channel 1 Cup
Belarus won the 2022 Channel 1 Cup, defeating Russia in a shoot-out after an entertaining decisive game in Moscow on Sunday. Dinamo Minsk goalie Alexei Kolosov stopped all five Russian attempts in the shoot-out, while Shane Prince was the only player to convert his attempt.
Team Russia 4 Team Belarus 5 SO (1-1, 1-2, 2-1, 0-0, 0-1)
Both teams enjoyed comfortable wins over Kazakhstan, making this a de facto tournament final. As expected, Alexei Zhamnov reshuffled his lines following yesterday’s 6-2 victory, with only the top six forwards remaining unchanged. Alexander Kadeikin wore the ‘C’ for the first time at international level and went on to score twice in the game.
However, the opening goal went to Belarus. Maxim Sushko, who recently swapped Dynamo Moscow for Sibir, was the scorer. He struck against a line comprised of Avangard players: Sergei Tolchinsky, Kirill Semyonov and Arseny Gritsyuk. That continues his run of success against Omsk, with three of Sushko’s four KHL goals to date this season coming in games against Avangard.
However, the same player was partly responsible for Russia tying the game. He took the first penalty of the day and Maxim Mamin converted the power play to make it 1-1. When Ilya Safonov made it 2-1 to the home team midway through the second period, many in the Moscow crowd settled back and assumed that the remainder of the game would be something of a formality.
Belarus had other ideas. Late in the second session, Russia twice took penalties. The Belarusians converted both power plays, with Shane Prince and Roman Gorbunov finding the net. At the other end, Kolosov performed strongly to deny Russia’s attack and see Belarus take a slender lead into the third.
Captain Kadeikin led the rescue bid. He scored twice in the third, tying the game at three, then at four. In between a shorthanded goal from Vladislav Kodola had Belarus dreaming of victory, but Kadeikin’s second arrived in the 57th minute to send the game to overtime.
In the extras, Russia enjoyed a power play but could not find away to win the game. The shoot-out saw starting goalie Nikita Serebryakov replaced by Maxim Dorozhko. However, with both goalies in great form, Prince’s solitary successful attempt proved decisive. Belarus lifts the Channel 1 Cup for the first time after making its first appearance at the tournament this year.
