Five points from Mikhailis settles thriller in Moscow. February 5 round-up
Nikita Mikhailis produced the individual performance of the day in Sunday’s most absorbing game. The Barys forward had 5 (2+3) points as his team won 6-5 in OT at CSKA. Moreover, Mikhailis’ two goals tied the game in the third and then won it 17 seconds into the extras. There was overtime elsewhere, with Sibir edging past Admiral and Metallurg snapping its skid at home to Traktor. Elsewhere, Ak Bars and Lokomotiv enjoyed comfortable victories over struggling Kunlun and Sochi respectively, while Vityaz edged a 1-0 victory against Neftekhimik.
Beck back at the head of the scoring race
Sibir Novosibirsk 2 Admiral Vladivostok 1 OT (0-0, 1-0, 0-1, 1-0)
Taylor Beck joined Alexei Kruchinin at the head of the KHL scoring race with the opening goal in Sibir’s clash with Admiral. The Canadian struck early in the second period, converting the fast power play of the game, to move to 52 points for the season.
Beck might have scored in the first period, but he was denied by the post as Sibir came close to breaking the deadlock. However, he did find the net in the 24th minute with an unstoppable wrist shot to secure a first power play goal in three games for Novosibirsk.
At the other end, Admiral tied the game on its first power play of the afternoon. That came midway through the third period when Nikita Shashkov sat for tripping. Nikolai Chebykin was the scorer, and it was no surprise that Libor Sulak had a hand in the build up as the Czech defenseman continues to increase his club record scoring tally for a defenseman at Admiral.
Admiral had a great chance to win the game in overtime when Alexander Gorshkov went one-on-one but could not beat Anton Krasotkin in the home net. At the other end, Alexei Yakovlev converted his chance on Pavel Khomchenko to give Sibir the verdict.
Kara’s early goal gives Vityaz the edge
Vityaz Moscow Region 1 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 0 (1-0, 0-0, 0-0)
Vityaz collected a fifth successive victory, tightening its grip on a playoff spot in the West. For Neftekhimik, though, this defeat keeps the Wolves outside of the top eight in the East, two points adrift of Amur after the Tigers won yesterday.
The game was decided by a single goal: it’s the fourth time this season that Vityaz has finished a game with a 1-0 scoreline, and the third time Vyacheslav Butsayev’s team has won by that margin. Today, the solitary score came early: with 92 seconds played, Vladislav Kara converted a swift counterattack. That stretched Kara’s productive streak to five games, matched by Stepan Starkov, who had the assist on the play.
That early goal ushered in an entertaining first period with plenty of chances at both ends. However, there was no further scoring and the second stanza lacked some of the competitive edge of the first. Vityaz was much more attack-minded, outshooting Neftekhimik 19-4, and Kara had four more attempts to beat Andrei Tikhomirov again.
In the final frame, Neftekhimik tried to get its offense into the picture. The Wolves had more of the game, but could not find a way past Maxim Dorozhko as Vityaz secured another valuable victory.
Dronov’s OT strike snaps Magnitka’s losing run
Metallurg Magnitogorsk 3 Traktor Chelyabinsk 2 OT (1-1, 1-1, 0-0, 1-0)
This edition of the South Ural derby saw both teams arrive under a cloud. Metallurg, beaten in its last four games, parted company with coach Dmitry Ryabykin on the eve of the game. Traktor, meanwhile, moved off the foot of the Eastern Conference thanks to back-to-back wins. However, Chelyabinsk still found itself adrift of the playoff places with time running out in the regular season.
Metallurg dictated the play for much of the opening frame, yet was unable to take a lead to the intermission. Philippe Maillet gave Magnitka the perfect start with a goal inside 90 seconds but subsequently the home team failed to add to its lead. Late in the frame, Traktor tied it up when Pyotr Khokhryakov converted a rare spell of pressure on the Metallurg net.
This game was the sixth and final regular season meeting between these teams this term, and each of the previous five featured a goal from Traktor’s Teemu Pulkkinen. The Finn completed his set midway through the second period, redirecting Ilya Karpukhin’s shot past Vasily Koshechkin to give the visitor the lead. However, the teams were level before the second intermission when Denis Zernov tied the scores.
The third period produced no further scoring, but did bring the first and only penalty of the game when Grigory Dronov sat for holding in the 55th minute. However, Traktor could not take advantage of the extra man and Dronov delivered the winner 30 seconds into overtime.
Loko grinds down stubborn Sochi
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 4 HC Sochi 0 (1-0, 0-0, 3-0)
Ultimately, this was as comfortable victory as Lokomotiv might have expected against the league’s basement team. However, Sochi can take consolation from keeping this game alive deep into the third period. It took a 52nd-minute power play goal to give the host a two-goal lead and finally put the result out of the Leopards’ reach.
And make no mistake. This was more than merely a goaltending masterclass to keep Sochi in contention. Although Lokomotiv had more of the first-period play, a combination of committed defense and a willingness to shoot wherever possibility meant that Sochi led the shot count in the opening frame. However, that wasn’t enough to prevent Loko from taking a 1-0 lead to the intermission, with Artur Kayumov breaking the deadlock in the 17th minute.
Even after that, Sochi hung around. There were few clear chances in the second period and the score remained at 1-0, a precarious lead for any team. However, the game-breaking moment went to the Railwaymen when Kayumov picked out a great pass for Maxim Beryozkin to double the lead in the third.
After that, Lokomotiv quickly put the game to bed. Daniil But added a third goal within 90 seconds and Alexander Polunin completed the scoring in the 57th minute. At the other end, Ivan Bocharov claimed the shut-out.
Kazan in cruise control
Kunlun Red Star 1 Ak Bars Kazan 5 (0-3, 1-1, 0-1)
Ak Bars maintained its position at the top of the Eastern Conference with an emphatic victory at Kunlun Red Star.
The visitor took control of this game in the first period with three unanswered goals. Alexander Radulov started it off with a power play tally in the ninth minute, then he had an assist as Ilya Safonov doubled the lead midway through the session. Another PP saw Dmitry Voronkov make it 3-0 before the intermission.
After that powerful start, things slowed down a touch in the middle frame. Kirill Semyonov added to the lead before German Tochilkin potted a consolation effort for Red Star.
The Dragons are all but eliminated from playoff contention and decided to use their remaining games this season to give game time to players who can help China at the upcoming World Championship Division IB tournament in Tallinn, Estonia. That meant a handful of homegrown players on today’s roster, including back-up goalie Sun Zehao. He got a look at the game in the third period, coming into the action shortly after Kirill Petrov made it 5-1, and got through the closing stages without allowing any more goals.
Five points for Mikhailis as Barys stuns CSKA
CSKA Moscow 5 Barys Astana 6 OT (2-1, 2-1, 1-3, 0-1)
Two late goals from Nikita Mikhailis secured a spectacular victory for Barys in a roller-coaster battle in Moscow. The result moves the Kazakhs off the foot of the Eastern Conference, but Andrei Skabelka’s team is still under pressure in the playoff race. It is currently four points behind eighth-placed Amur, having played three games more than the Tigers.
The visitor never led in regulation. Vladislav Kamenev put CSKA in front during the first power play of the game midway through the first period. After that, the home team allowed Barys to tie the scores more than once, blowing 3-1 and 4-2 leads, but the Eastern Conference side was always chasing the game. Anton Sagadeyev had a big say in the final outcome, scoring twice at the start of the third period to peg the scores back to 4-4 and rob the Muscovites of a seemingly straightforward victory.
Kamenev also scored twice, and his second made it 5-4 on 50:28. However, Mikhailis, who had three assists earlier in the game, tied it up again within 30 seconds. That was the end of the scoring in regulation, but come the extras Mikhailis delivered the killer blow. Overtime lasted just 17 seconds, not even long enough for CSKA to pull its traditional stunt of replacing goalie Alexander Sharychenkov with a fourth skater. However, not even the goaltender’s presence on his crease could deny Mikhailis a dramatic deciding goal at the end of a pulsating battle.
