Kunlun trying to cement Western lead!

Kunlun Red Star is sensationally leading the Western Conference standings following an unexpected win over CSKA on Sunday – the Sergei Fedorov’s squad tried pulling its goalie in OT, but lucked out as Jake Radewald netted the game winner on the empty net. Tonight, the Dragons will have a chance to stretch their winning streak as they travel to Yaroslavl. But it won’t be that easy – the Railwaymen won their previous couple of matches, including defeating SKA on Friday, before yesterday’s debacle to HC Sochi, so they will want to recover and forget the loss as soon as possible.

Should Kunlun lose its game to Yaroslavl, Torpedo may fully benefit in the standings. Iron Larionov’s young guns won all their games so far and they are on the lookout to make it four in a row as Admiral visits Nizhny Novgorod.

The last game in the Western Conference sees SKA welcoming Spartak. Both teams sit with four points in the standings as they had two wins and two losses – the temperature promises to be a high one at the St. Petersburg arena. The teams faced 64 times in the KHL history, and SKA had 44 wins, but it won’t matter right now, and several Red-and-White leaders had a great start of the season.

In the East, Traktor hosts Lada, who has just won its first KHL game since its return when they downed Amur on Saturday. They may however have to renounce to offensive leader Maxim Shumakov – it won’t be easy for the newcomers to get points from Chelyabinsk.

In Kazan, Ak Bars entertains Dinamo Minsk. The Tatarstan side had a good start, with just a sensational defeat to HC Sochi last week, while the Belarusians lacked consistency in their start of the new campaign. However, one of the most intriguing stories of the night is Dmitry Kvartalnov visiting his former team – the coach led Ak Bars for three seasons, between 2019-2022. Moreover, Vadim Shipachyov may become the new KHL all-time top scorer in the regular season, as he has accumulated 755 points so far, against Sergei Mozyakin’s 756.

17:00 Traktor (2-1-1) vs Lada (1-3-0)

About the game

Traktor, who has already defeated Lada this season (2:1), starts a four-game home series fresh off a win over Vityaz on Friday (3:2).

Lada starts a four-game road trip following a win over Amur on Saturday (5:1).

Traktor’s forward Anton Burdasov is on an eight-game scoring streak, with 11 (5+6) points over that span.

Injury list

Traktor: Andrei Chibisov, Maxim Marushev.

Lada: Artyom Ivanyuzhenkov.

Milestone alert

Traktor’s forward Vitaly Kravtsov may reach 100 points in the KHL (currently at 99).

19:00 Ak Bars (3-1-0) vs Dinamo Minsk (2-2-0)

About the game

Ak Bars ends a four-game home series and defeated Kunlun Red Star on Friday (5:1).

Dinamo Minsk enters the fourth game of a five-match road trip and lost its previous couple of games.

Ak Bars’ Vadim Shipachyov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points over that span.

Ak Bars’ defenseman Kirill Lyamin had at least an assist in his previous four games, totaling six assists.

Dinamo Minsk’s forward Vitaly Pinchuk is on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (3+4) points.

Injury list

Ak Bars: Artyom Galimov, Vyacheslav Voynov.

Dinamo Minsk: Vladislav Kodola, Alexander Suvorov.

Milestone alert

Ak Bars’ forward Kirill Semyonov may reach 250 league points (currently at 249).

19:00 Lokomotiv (2-2-0) vs Kunlun Red Star (4-1-0)

About the game

Lokomotiv ends a five-game home series and lost to HC Sochi yesterday (0:5).

Kunlun Red Star starts a two-game road trip fresh off a win over CSKA on Monday (3:2).

Injury list

Kunlun Red Star: Parker Foo, Corey Kane, Alexander Lazushin.

19:30 Torpedo (3-0-0) vs Admiral (1-1-1)

About the game

Torpedo enters the third game of a four-match home series on a three-game winning streak.

Admiral enters the fourth game of a six-man road trip following a win over Spartak on Friday (6:2).

Torpedo’s forward Vitaly Atanasov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 8 (5+3) points over that span.

Torpedo’s forward Nikolai Kovalenko is also on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points.

Torpedo’s forward Kirill Voronin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.

Torpedo’s forward Vladislav Firstov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points.

Injury list

Torpedo: Sergei Goncharuk.

Admiral: Evgeny Lisovets.

19:30 SKA (2-2-0) vs Spartak (2-2-0)

About the game

SKA starts a four-game home series and lost its previous couple of matches.

Spartak starts a four-game road trip following a loss to Admiral on Friday (2:6).

SKA’s defenseman Alexander Nikishin and Spartak’s defenseman Michal Cajkovsky are on an identical four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that span.

Spartak’s forward Nikolai Goldobin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (6+1) points.

Spartak’s forward Alexander Burmistrov had an assist in each of his previous three games.

Injury list

SKA: Dmitry Nikolayev.