Playoffs battle intensifies as Traktor and Barys meet tonight!
Traktor and Barys have a lot at stake with the Chelyabinsk side willing to defend its eighth place in the East and the Kazakhs trying to catch up. The showdown between Barys and Traktor is set to be a fierce battle as both teams are determined to secure a spot in the Eastern Conference’s top eight. The tension is palpable as two encounters ended in Barys’ favor. But Traktor is not one to back down easily and they will be looking to even the score and prove they are a force to be reckoned with.
The stakes are high as the winner of this match will have a significant advantage in securing a spot in the playoffs stage. The game promises to be a nail-biter as both teams are evenly matched and every goal will count.
But that’s certainly not the lone exciting match scheduled for tonight. Another team who will have to catch up is Severstal – the Andrei Razin’s men lost in Belarus on Tuesday, and today they pay a visit to St. Petersburg trying to revert their trend of three straight losses and looking for precious points to close the gap with Dinamo Minsk.
In the west, Lokomotiv and Torpedo clashes again – it’s the fourth time this season. The teams are built with opposite philosophy, and it will be exciting to see who will prevail after the Railwaymen took home two games to one, and the Igor Larionov’s young guys will be determined to return to victory.
A showdown between Dynamo Moscow and Avtomobilist closes the KHL matchday. Both teams seem to be in good shape of late, but the Motormen collected their most recent win in Moscow back on Sep 17, 2017.
17:00: Traktor (22-23-7, 8th E) vs Barys (22-27-4, 11th E)
About the game
Traktor starts a two-game home series after a loss to Vityaz on Sunday (4:3 SO).
Barys, who has defeated Traktor twice this season (3:1, 4:1), and lost its previous four matches.
Barys’ forward Anton Sagadeyev has scored a goal in each of his previous three games.
Injury list
Barys: Nelson Nogier, Kirill Savitsky.
19:30: Severstal (20-21-11, 9th W) vs SKA (40-9-4, 1st W)
About the game
Severstal starts a three-game home series coming off a three-match losing streak.
SKA is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost to CSKA on Tuesday (2:4).
SKA has already defeated Severstal three times this season (4:1, 2:1 SO, 4:3 OT). Its forward Nikita Gusev is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (4+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Severstal: Mikhail Tikhonov.
SKA: Evgeny Ketov, Danila Moiseyev, Roman Rukavishnikov, Artyom Shvets-Rogovoi, Vladislav Tsitsyura.
Milestone alert
SKA’s forward Nikolai Prokhorkin lines up for his 500th KHL game.
19:30: Torpedo (32-15-4, 4th W) vs Lokomotiv (31-15-7, 3rd W)
About the game
Torpedo enters the second game of a four-match home series after a loss to Dynamo Moscow on Tuesday (4:6).
Lokomotiv ends a two-game road trip after a win over Kunlun Red Star also on Tuesday (3:0).
Lokomotiv has defeated Torpedo twice this season (2:0, 4:0), and lost once (1:3).
Torpedo’s forward Alexei Kruchinin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points over that span.
Torpedo’s forward Nikolai Kovalenko is on a three-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points.
Torpedo’s forward Maxim Letunov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
Lokomotiv’s goalie Ivan Bocharov is on a 64:18 shutout streak.
Injury list
Torpedo: Kenny Agostino, Alexander Daryin.
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin, Yegor Korshkov.
Milestone alert
Torpedo’s forward Nikolai Kovalenko may reach 100 KHL points tonight (currently at 99).
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (30-14-8, 5th W) vs Avtomobilist (30-13-8, 1st E)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow starts a two-game home series coming off a two-match winning streak.
Avtomobilist ends a three-game road trip after a win over Spartak on Tuesday (7:4).
The Motormen had their most recent away win over Dynamo on Sep 17, 2017 (1:0). Their forward Sergei Shirokov has scored a goal in each of his previous three games.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Eric O’Dell.
Avtomobilist: Brooks Macek.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s defenseman Jesse Blacker lines up for his 300th KHL game tonight
