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Magnitka against Avto and SKA tries to return to victory!
Metallurg and Avtomobilist always give out excellent games; in the KHL, the teams have met almost seventy times, and recently, the showdowns have been full of drama and unexpected outcomes. Take, for example, the seven-game series in the last playoffs or the first match of the season for both teams. The ending of the match on Sep 2 (Avto’s 3:2 win) was quite remarkable, with Jessie Blacker scoring in OT for the Motormen. On Monday, the two teams met again, with Magnitka taking the upper hand with a 4:2 win – will Avto get its revenge tonight?
In the meantime, Salavat Yulaev hosts Neftekhimik. The Tatarstan side had a bad start of the season, culminating in a 0:8 loss to Barys on Monday, while Salavat Yulaev won its previous couple of matches, including a Green Derby win on Thursday over Ak Bars (3:2). Moreover, the Ufa team has defeated Neftekhimik in their last five encounters at home, and goalie Alexander Samonov isn’t allowing any goal for almost 120 minutes.
The action then moves to the Western Conference. Dinamo Minsk has its home opener against Lokomotiv, and it will be an excellent chance for its numerous fans to cheer on an exciting event and hope for a win – the Belarusian franchise needs points to return on the correct side of the playoffs line, and there is hardly a better situation to achieve a much-needed win.
Then, two teams will have a chance to revert a losing streak on home soil. Torpedo returns to Nizhny Novgorod to face Vityaz and revenge two straight losses, to Ak Bars and Salavat Yulaev, respectively, while SKA is currently the tenth seed in the West, and suffered from five consecutive defeats, with only two goals scored in its last three matches. The St. Petersburg franchise will have to work hard to try and return to victory as Severstal comes to town.
17:00: Metallurg (6-1-1, 1st E) vs Avtomobilist (4-3-1, 6th E)
About the game
Metallurg ends a four-game home series following a win over Avtomobilist on Monday (4:2).
Avtomobilist enters the third game of a four-match road trip on a two-game losing streak.
The teams have already met twice this season, with one win each (4:2, 2:3 OT).
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Jesse Blacker, Nick Ebert, Anatoly Golyshev.
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (4-2-0, 7th E) vs Neftekhimik (1-5-1, 12th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev enters the fourth game of a five-math home series following two consecutive wins.
Neftekhimik ends a four-game road trip and lost its previous three matches.
Salavat Yulaev’s goalie Alexander Samonov is on a 112:53 shutout streak.
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Vyacheslav Leshchenko had at least a goal in each of his previous four games, totaling five tallies.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Daniil Alalykin.
Neftekhimik: Danila Popov.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Sergei Shmelyov may reach 300 KHL points (currently at 299).
19:10: Dinamo Minsk (2-3-1, 9th W) vs Lokomotiv (5-2-0, 4th W)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk starts an eight-game home series and lost four straight matches.
Lokomotiv ends a three-game road trip on a three-match winning streak.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Vitaly Pinchuk is on a five-game scoring streak, with 9 (4+5) points over that span.
Lokomotiv’s forward Maxim Shalunov had three assists in his three previous matches, while his teammate Yaroslav Likhachyov had three tallies.
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Alexander Suvorov.
19:30: Torpedo (5-1-1, 2nd W) vs Vityaz (1-6-1, 11th W)
About the game
Torpedo plays the lone home game of the series and lost its previous couple of matches.
Vityaz is in the middle of a three-game road trip and is on a five-match losing streak.
Injury list
Torpedo: Sergei Goncharuk, Alexei Kruchinin, Dennis Yan.
Vityaz: Vladimir Galuzin, Scott Wilson.
19:30: SKA (2-5-0, 10th W) vs Severstal (3-2-1, 7th W)
About the game
SKA ends a four-game home series and lost its previous five matches.
Severstal ends a three-game road trip and lost to HC Sochi on Monday (3:5). Its forward Dmitry Moiseyev is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (5+1) points over that span.
Injury list
SKA: Dmitry Nikolayev.
Severstal: Kirill Pilipenko.
