Playoffs intrigue abounds in tonight’s clashes!
CSKA and Lokomotiv are both having a strong campaign, and this is confirmed by the fact that they can confirm their spot in the postseason with about a month to go in the regular season. In any case, to get there they have to win their matches first – in Moscow, CSKA will face Severstal, who will play on a “do-or-die” mode after losing to Salavat Yulaev on Friday and following Dinamo Minsk’s win over Kunlun Red Star. On their hand, the Railwaymen face Avtomobilist tonight. Lokomotiv is currently the second seed in the West, while the Motormen lost 13 out of their latest 16 games – the pressure to win is on the hosts.
The matchday starts in Kazakhstan, with Barys hosting Dynamo Moscow. The Kazakhs don’t record a home win over Dynamo for more than six years, but they need to break the tradition if they don’t want to lose ground on the hunt for the East’s eighth seed. Tied with Barys in points is Neftekhimik, who travels to Ufa tonight after a win in Yekaterinburg on Friday. Another team who is trying to get to the top eight is Traktor, who will most likely have the hardest task tonight as they visit Kazan to face Ak Bars.
In the remaining game of the matchday, Vityaz hosts Metallurg. The hosts have a good chance to secure a playoff spot as they are eight points above the qualification line, yet they still need points, but so does Metallurg as the Eastern leadership is just four points away.
14:00: Barys (25-27-6, 9th E) vs Dynamo Moscow (32-15-9, 5th W)
About the game
Barys ends a three-game home series and defeated Traktor on Friday (4:3).
Dynamo Moscow enters the third game of a four-match road trip coming off a two-game losing streak.
Barys lost its previous home game to Dynamo Moscow, with the most recent win dated Oct 18, 2016 (1:0).
Injury list
Barys: Kirill Savitsky, Linden Vey.
Dynamo Moscow: Jakub Lilja, Alexei Potapov.
Milestone alert
Barys’ goalie Julius Hudacek may line up for his 250th game.
14:30: Salavat Yulaev (29-18-9, 6th E) vs Neftekhimik (26-26-4, 8th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev ends a three-game home series and won its previous couple of matches.
Neftekhimik ends a two-game road trip and defeated Avtomobilist on Friday (2:1).
Salavat Yulaev has defeated Neftekhimik twice this season (4:0, 3:2), and lost once (2:5).
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Ivan Drozdov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Salavat Yulaev’s defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Josh Ho-Sang.
Neftekhimik: Emil Garipov, Bulat Shafigullin.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s goalie Ilya Ezhov may record his 30th KHL shutout.
17:00: Ak Bars (31-16-9, 2nd E) vs Traktor (23-25-8, 11th E)
About the game
Ak Bars starts a two-game home series fresh off a win over Metallurg on Friday (3:2 OT).
Traktor ends a three-game road trip and lost to Barys on Friday (3:4).
Ak Bars has defeated Traktor twice this season (3:2, 4:1), and lost once (2:5).
Traktor’s forward Nikita Soshnikov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Milestone alert
Ak Bars’ forward Kirill Semyonov may reach 100 goals in the KHL (currently at 99).
17:00: Lokomotiv (34-15-6, 2nd W) vs Avtomobilist (31-16-8, 3rd E)
About the game
Lokomotiv ends a four-game home series coming off three wins in a row.
Avtomobilist, who has already defeated Lokomotiv this season (4:2), starts a two-game road trip after a loss to Neftekhimik on Friday (1:2).
Lokomotiv lost its eight previous matches against the Motormen, with the latest home win dated back Sep 11, 2017 (3:2). Moreover, the Motormen may clinch a playoffs spot if they win tonight in regulation.
Lokomotiv’s forward Alexander Polunin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
Lokomotiv’s goalie Daniil Isayev is on a 62:53 shutout streak.
Injury list
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin, Yegor Korshkov, Mikhail Varnakov.
Avtomobilist: Arsen Khisamutdinov.
17:00: Vityaz (28-20-8, 6th W) vs Metallurg (30-16-9, 4th E)
About the game
Vityaz starts a three-game home series coming off a two-match winning streak.
Metallurg starts a three-game road trip after a loss to Ak Bars on Friday (2:3 OT).
Vityaz’s goalie Maxim Dorozhko is on a 100:04 shutout streak.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s forward Vladimir Galuzin may reach 100 KHL goals (currently at 99).
17:00: CSKA (35-14-6, 3rd W) vs Severstal (22-22-12, 9th W)
About the game
CSKA enters the second game of a five-match home series after a win over Amur on Friday (3:1).
Severstal ends a three-game road trip and lost to Salavat Yulaev also on Friday (1:4).
The teams have equally traded wins this season so far (4:2, 1:4).
CSKA may clinch a playoffs spot if they defeat Severstal in regulation.
CSKA’s forward Mikhail Grigorenko is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Injury list
CSKA: Danil Yurtaikin.
Severstal: Yegor Morozov, Danil Pylenkov, Mikhail Tikhonov.
Milestone alert
CSKA’s forward Maxim Sorkin lines up for his 200th KHL game.
