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SKA hosts Ak Bars in a battle on the top!
Tonight, the ice will be electrified as two of the top teams in the league, SKA and Ak Bars, face off for the second time this season. The first game was dominated by Ak Bars, who claimed a 5:2 victory. However, this time around, SKA is determined to turn the tables and come out on top. Despite losing its previous three games, SKA is still leading the Conference and has already secured a spot in the playoffs. A win tonight could solidify their position in the West’s top four, but they will also need Dynamo Moscow to lose to Barys in regulation. On the other hand, Ak Bars is in top shape, with recent changes to the team’s leadership and strategy under the guidance of Zinetula Bilyaletdinov. The puck drops at 7.30 PM in St. Petersburg, and the arena is expected to be packed with fans eagerly awaiting this key showdown.
Earlier on, in the Far East, Amur hosts Avangard. The Eastern Conference is a real roller coaster, and Amur is currently outside of the top eight – but everything may change, and will most likely change, several times before the end of the regular season. In the second game in the East, Avtomobilist faces Traktor, with Chelyabinsk in a do-or-die moment as they currently sit at the bottom of the standings.
The action then moves to the West, where the battle to reach the top eight is just as fierce. Severstal welcomes Lokomotiv, while Spartak hosts Neftekhimik with three teams fighting for two playoffs spot. Finally, in Moscow, two other games are on tap with CSKA welcoming Salavat Yulaev and Dynamo Moscow entertaining Barys. All the games tonight will have implications on the playoffs’ qualifications and such an event packed KHL matchday is one to be not missed.
12:00: Amur (26-24-7, 9th E) vs Avangard (33-19-5, 4th E)
About the game
Amur enters the third game of a four-match home series following a win over Sibir on Wednesday (3:0).
Avangard, who has defeated Amur twice this season (4:1, 3:1), plays the third game of a four-match road trip after defeating Admiral also on Wednesday (2:3 SO).
Amur’s goalie Janis Kalnins is on a 59:51 shutout streak.
Avangard’s defenseman Damir Sharipzyanov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Amur: Evgeny Kulik.
Avangard: Stanislav Galimov, Nail Yakupov.
Milestone alert
Amur’s forward Igor Rudenkov lines up for his 300th KHL game, while his teammate Artur Gizdatullin will play his 100th.
17:00: Avtomobilist (32-16-9, 3rd E) vs Traktor (24-26-8, 11th E)
About the game
Avtomobilist starts a four-game home series coming off a loss to Neftekhimik on Tuesday (3:4 OT).
Traktor starts a three-game road trip fresh off a win over Dynamo Moscow, also on Tuesday (2:1).
The teams have equally traded wins this season so far (3:2 OT, 2:1, 3:4 OT, 3:4 SO).
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Arsen Khisamutdinov.
Traktor: Anton Burdasov.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s defenseman Nick Ebert lines up for his 100th KHL game.
19:00: Severstal (24-22-12, 7th W) vs Lokomotiv (35-16-8, 3rd W)
About the game
Severstal enters the second game of a six-match home series coming off a two-game winning streak.
Lokomotiv ends a two-game road trip and defeated SKA on Wednesday (2:1).
Lokomotiv has defeated Severstal three times this season (5:3, 4:3 OT, 6:2), and lost once (2:3 OT).
Injury list
Severstal: Yegor Morozov, Alexander Petunin, Daniil Pylenkov.
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin, Yegor Korshkov, Mikhail Varnakov.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (33-16-9, 5th W) vs Barys (25-28-7, 10th E)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow, who has already defeated Barys this season (2:1 OT), starts a two-game home series after losing to Traktor on Tuesday (1:2).
Barys is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost its previous couple of matches.
Dynamo Moscow may clinch a playoffs spot tonight if they win tonight and Spartak loses to Neftekhimik in regulation.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Sergei Boikov, Jakub Lilja, Alexei Potapov.
Barys: Yefim Gurkov, Linden Vey.
19:30: SKA (43-11-5, 1st W) vs Ak Bars (33-16-9, 1st E)
About the game
SKA ends a three-game road trip and lost its previous couple of matches.
Ak Bars, who has already defeated SKA this season (5:2), starts a three-game road trip coming off a three-match winning streak.
SKA may clinch a top-four spot in the Western Conference if they defeat Ak Bars tonight and Dynamo Moscow lose to Barys in regulation.
Ak Bars’ forward Ilya Safonov had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Injury list
SKA: Evgeny Ketov, Nikita Komarov, Danila Moiseyev, Nikolai Prokhorkin, Roman Rukavishnikov, Artyom Shvets-Rogovoi.
Ak Bars: Nikita Yevseyev.
Milestone alert
Ak Bars’ forward Dmitry Voronkov lines up for his 200th KHL game.
Ak Bars’ forward Kirill Semyonov may reach 100 goals in the KHL (currently at 99).
19:30: Spartak (25-25-8, 9th W) vs Neftekhimik (27-26-5, 8th E)
About the game
Spartak ends a two-game home series and lost its previous three matches.
Neftekhimik, who has already defeated Spartak this season (3:2), starts a two-game road trip fresh off a win over Avtomobilist on Tuesday (4:3 OT).
Spartak’s most recent home loss to Neftekhimik is dated Dec 04, 2015 (3:5).
Neftekhimik’s forward Andrei Belozyorov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that span.
Injury list
Spartak: Danila Kvartalnov, German Rubtsov.
Neftekhimik: Emil Garipov, Bulat Shafigullin.
Disqualifications
Spartak’s goalie Alexei Krasikov serves a one-game ban.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s defenseman Maxim Chudinov lines up for his 700th KHL game tonight.
19:30: CSKA (36-15-6, 4th W) vs Salavat Yulaev (30-19-9, 6th W)
About the game
CSKA enters the fourth game of a five-match home series following a victory over Kunlun Red Star on Wednesday (7:4).
Salavat Yulaev ends a two-game road trip and lost to Torpedo also on Wednesday (1:5).
Referee Alexei Radovin celebrates his 1,000th game in the Russian leagues.
Injury list
CSKA: Danil Yurtaikin.
Salavat Yulaev: Josh Ho-Sang.
