Loko stops CSKA, Ak Bars hits Vityaz with late show. December 23 round-up
Lokomotiv’s win over CSKA and Sibir’s success at Metallurg were the results that go furthest to shaping the Conference standings. However, the day’s most exciting game was in Balashikha, where Ak Bars scored twice in 19 seconds late in the third period to defeat Vityaz. Elsewhere, there were victories for Avangard over Amur, Salavat Yulaev at home to Admiral and Kunlun Red Star on the road in Sochi.
Hawks too strong for Tigers
Avangard Omsk 3 Amur Khabarovsk 1 (1-0, 1-1, 1-0)
After its 5-1 win in Ufa on Wednesday, Amur was looking for another notable scalp as it looks to secure a top-eight position in the Eastern Conference. Avangard, meanwhile, has won twice since the international break. The Hawks also added defenseman Bogdan Kiselevich and goalie Alexei Melnichuk to the roster. Melnichuk was signed to give some relief to the hard-working Vasily Demchenko, but once again did not get the start here.
Demchenko could at least reflect on a peaceful first period. Avangard had the advantage from the off but it took time for that dominance to deliver a goal. It wasn’t until 19:50 that Alexander Dergachyov put the host in front, neatly redirecting Semyon Chistyakov’s shot past Evgeny Alikin.
There had been little sign of the visiting offense, but at the start of the second period Sergei Dubakin drew Amur level. Rising star Yaroslav Likhachyov forced the turnover that created that chance.
The goal changed the pattern of play. Amur had far more to offer than before and Demchenko found himself with plenty to do in the middle frame. For long periods, Avangard struggled to create much at the other end, but ultimately the home team was able to restore its lead through Alex Broadhurst.
Neither team took a penalty in the first two periods, but Avangard enjoyed the first power play of the game early in the third. That PP brought a third goal, with Broadhurst setting up Vladimir Tkachyov. A 3-1 lead largely settled the outcome. The Hawks had little difficulty defending their lead in the closing stages and might have extended the advantage had Ivan Miroshnichenko not missed a couple of big chances to open his KHL account.
Sibir shocks Magnitka, underlines credentials in leadership race
Metallurg Magnitogorsk 2 Sibir Novosibirsk 3 SO (1-0, 0-0, 1-2, 0-0, 0-1)
After an impressive win at Conference leader Avtomobilist in its previous game, Sibir followed up by defeating second-placed Metallurg. This game was much closer, but Andrei Martemyanov’s team once again underlined its credentials for a battle at the top of the standings as it came from behind to take a shoot-out verdict.
There was plenty of incident in the first period. First, Nikita Yefremov’s big hit on Denis Zernov sparked a fight, with Nikita Korostelyov stepping up on his team-mate’s behalf. Everything unfolded according to the ‘rules’: gloves dropped, helmets removed. Korostelyov delighted the home crowd by dropping the Sibir man with a couple of well-placed blows.
Metallurg also continued to struggle with its power play, failing on two more attempts with a man advantage. Head coach Ilya Vorobyov has warned his players that he expects more from the PP, but there was little sign of progress here. The opening goal did go to the home team, but already back at equal strength. Nikolai Goldobin was the scorer.
In the second stanza, Metallurg’s video coaches were at their best. Yakov Palei and Sergei Melnikov quickly established an offside – albeit by a matter of millimeters – and successfully challenged a Sibir goal midway through the session. However, the visitor tied the scores with a legitimate goal early in the third period. Maxim Sushko, recently signed from Dynamo Moscow, got the redirect to steer a point shot past Eddie Pasquale.
Magnitka regained the lead with eight minutes to play when defenseman Kodie Curran took matters into his own hands. He advanced through the Sibir defense before beating Denis Kostin. It would have been a worthy winning goal, but Sibir had other ideas and Michal Cajkovsky tied the game in the 57th minute.
That sent the game into overtime, and then a shoot-out. The visitor took the verdict in those extras, with Valentin Pyanov and Taylor Beck on target with their attempts.
Kadeikin’s hat-trick inspires Ufa
Salavat Yulaev Ufa 5 Admiral Vladivostok 3 (2-0, 3-1, 0-2)
Ufa’s fans demanded much better after an embarrassing 1-5 loss at home to Amur last time out. With another visitor from the Far East rolling into town, they did not have long to wait. However, two impressive periods were somewhat undermined by a lapse in the third. It did not affect the outcome of the game, but possibly slowed Salavat Yulaev’s rehabilitation in the eyes of its fans.
The home coaching staff rearranged their offensive options after some uninspiring performances of late. Danil Bashkirov moved to Alexander Chmelevski’s line, with Nikolai Kulemin joining Alexander Kadeikin and Sergei Shmelyov. There were also two centers back in action after injury, with Danil Aimurzin and Artyom Pimenov back in action.
The first power play of the game saw Salavat go ahead: Shmelyov’s feed, Chmelevski’s shot, 1-0. Then came Kadeikin’s first of the game, doubling the lead before the intermission.
Admiral got a goal back early in the second, but Nikolai Chebykin’s effort got an instant response when Danil Alalykin made it 3-1. Yaroslav Tsulygin’s assist brought him his first point in the KHL. Subsequently, penalty trouble further undid Admiral’s hopes. Kadeikin scored twice more on the power play, potting his first KHL hat-trick. It’s been a big few days for Kadeikin, who captained team Russia at the Channel 1 Cup last weekend.
Up to the second intermission, there could be few complaints from even the most demanding Salavat Yulaev fan. However, the third period saw Admiral respond strongly. Alexander Gorshkov and Dmitry Sidlyarov gave the visitor hope of a fightback, and made things relatively uncomfortable for the host, at least for a short while. Salavat Yulaev closed out the win, even if the third period failed to live up to the standards set earlier in the evening.
Loko enjoys important win
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 3 CSKA Moscow 1 (2-0, 1-1, 0-0)
The big game in the Western Conference saw second-placed Lokomotiv take on third-placed CSKA. At present, the Railwaymen separate SKA and CSKA, and games like this could be a good indicator as to whether Igor Nikitin can prevent those clubs from determining the West’s Gagarin Cup finalist once again.
Lokomotiv had much the better of the first period, outshooting CSKA 11-3. However, it wasn’t until late in the session that the Railwaymen got in front. First, Ivan Chekhovich ended his 12-game goal drought. The forward dropped deep to collect the puck on the blue line before advancing to wire a wrister past Alexander Sharychenkov in the 15th minute. The second goal was more controversial. Maxim Shalunov fired in a point shot, but the officials immediately called it back for interference on Sharychenkov. Loko’s bench challenged the call, and the review showed that Maxim Beryozkin legitimately stood his ground in front of the goalie, impeding his vision but not hampering his movement. The goal was good, and Loko led 2-0 at the break.
CSKA responded well and made a bright start to the second period. Maxim Mamin halved the deficit in the 26th minute and the visitor also managed to call back a Lokomotiv goal when Rushan Rafikov’s effort was whistled down for interference from Georgy Ivanov. However, the home team restored its two-goal advantage late in the game, when a Nikita Cherepanov one-timer bounced into Sharychenkov’s net. That was Cherepanov’s first of the season.
Unlucky 13 straight losses for Sochi
HC Sochi 0 Kunlun Red Star 3 (0-1, 0-0, 0-2)
Kunlun posted back-to-back wins for the first time since October, while goalie Jeremy Smith marked 101 games in the KHL with a shut-out. Red Star improves to three wins from its last four, hinting at a determination to keep its outside chance of a playoff spot alive for as long as possible. Sochi, meanwhile, remains rooted to the foot of the standings after a 13th straight loss.
The Dragons got off to a fast start in this one, with Cliff Pu opening the scoring in the second minute. It was a goal which, frankly, summed up Sochi’s season. The home team broke out of its own zone, but immediately lost possession when Garet Hunt delivered a crunching hit in center ice. Tyler Wong picked up the loose puck and returned to the danger zone, where the home defense was too slow to react. A feed to the back door invited Pu to make it 1-0.
The Leopards then spurned a couple of power play chances and struggled to generate offense in front of Jeremy Smith’s net. Red Star held its lead to the intermission, and the middle frame played out without any further scoring.
Midway through the third period, Kunlun extended its lead. Again, this was not a great goal from a defensive point of view, with Vasily Machulin caught flat-footed as Tomas Jurco stole the puck and set up Parker Foo for 2-0. Machulin, 20, is one of many youngsters learning their trade at Sochi right now. This was only his fourth appearance after joining the club from Dynamo Moscow early in December. Foo got his second of the game late on, scoring into an empty to seal back-to-back wins for Red Star.
Galiyev’s late show sinks Vityaz
Vityaz Moscow Region 3 Ak Bars Kazan 4 (2-1, 1-1, 0-2)
Penalty trouble robbed Vityaz of a memorable victory over Ak Bars. A 5-on-3 power play for the visitor saw Stanislav Galiyev scored twice in 19 seconds late in the third period. In doing so, he turned a 2-3 deficit into a 4-3 lead and put Kazan on the road to victory.
That win seemed unlikely earlier in the evening. Kirill Semyonovgave the visitor the lead midway through the first period, but Vityaz responded fast. Stanislav Yarovoi tied the scores within a minute and Scott Wilson made it 2-1 a couple of minutes after that. Early in the second, Wilson set up Yarovoi once again to make it 3-1. Given Ak Bars’ uneven form this season, observers could be forgiven for expecting the home team to go on and win from that point.
However, Ak Bars had other ideas. Dmitry Kagarlitsky got one back late in the middle frame. Then the visitor spent much of the third period on the front foot, albeit struggling to turn territorial advantage into much that resembled hard work for home goalie Dmitry Shikin.
That all changed on 54 minutes. First, Yaroslav Busygin was called for tripping, giving Ak Bars its first power play of the final stanza. Within 39 seconds, Roman Abrosimov followed him into the box. Galiyev took maximum advantage, firing home the equalizer after Vadim Shipachyov and Slava Voynov exchanged passes down the right-hand channel. Seconds later, Galiyev produced a similar finish, this time off Alexander Radulov’s feed, to give the visitor the lead.
Shellshocked, Vityaz was unable to save the game in the remaining four minutes. Ak Bars improves to five wins from seven games and, more importantly, opens an eight-point gap to ninth-placed Barys.
