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Traktor hosts Metallurg for the revenge match!
Tonight’s game between Traktor and Metallurg marks another thrilling installment of the Southern Urals derby. Even though Metallurg currently leads the Eastern Conference standings, Traktor has proven to be a formidable adversary, securing victory against them twice earlier this year, with the most recent triumph just two days ago.
The clash promises to be a tense battle as both teams vie for supremacy. Metallurg, despite its leading position, is currently grappling with a three-game losing streak, making this matchup even more significant. They will be eager to break this slump and reassert their dominance, while Traktor will look to capitalize on their recent success and secure a hat-trick of wins against their local rivals.
The KHL matchday however starts with a clash between Barys and Dinamo Minsk. The Belarusians have already defeated the Kazakhs earlier this season, and they will try to repeat the trick as they lack points to stay in the top-eight and resist Severstal’s attack – the Cherepovets franchise will travel to Yaroslavl as they try to make it a five-loss streak for Lokomotiv – a rare feat.
Another interesting matchup is Lada and Ak Bars. The Togliatti side is one of the sensations of the season, but Ak Bars is always a tough opponent. In the last Eastern game of the day, Neftekhimik hosts Kunlun Red Star. The Wolves won their previous five games.
In the West, Torpedo welcomes Avtomobilist, while HC Sochi entertains SKA as Borna Rendulic returns to Sochi after the trade that saw him moving north to St. Petersburg.
Six games are on tap today as twelve teams hit the ice on an exciting KHL Friday!
16:30: Barys (7-10-6, 11th E) vs Dinamo Minsk (9-7-3, 8th W)
About the game
Barys starts a two-game home series following a loss to Avtomobilist on Thursday (2:5).
Dinamo Minsk, who has already defeated Barys this season (3:0), starts a two-game road trip and defeated Salavat Yulaev on Sunday (3:2 OT).
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Alexander Volkov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Nick Merkley is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
Injury list
Barys: Samat Daniyar, Alex Grant, Roman Starchenko.
Dinamo Minsk: Roman Gorbunov, Oleg Pozhigan, Nikita Pyshkailo, Ivan Sekerin, Alexander Suvorov.
17:00: Traktor (11-10-2, 7th E) vs Metallurg (14-6-4, 1st E)
About the game
Traktor, who has defeated Metallurg twice this season (2:1, 4:2), starts a four-game home series fresh off a win over Metallurg on Wednesday (4:2).
Metallurg starts a two-game road trip on a three-game losing streak.
Traktor’s forward Maxim Shabanov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that span.
Injury list
Traktor: Andrei Chibisov, Vladimir Zharkov.
Metallurg: Jean-Sebastian Dea, Vladislav Yeryomenko.
18:00: Lada (12-7-5, 3rd E) vs Ak Bars (15-4-2, 2nd E)
About the game
Lada starts a four-game home series fresh off a win over Severstal on Wednesday (4:3 SO).
Ak Bars starts a four-game road trip on a two-match winning streak.
Lada’s forward Andrei Altybarmakyan is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points over that span.
Injury list
Lada: Pavel Koltygin, Nikita Popugayev, Nikolai Vladimirov.
Ak Bars: Amir Miftakhov, Evgeny Svechnikov.
Milestone alert
Ak Bars’ forward Damir Zhafyarov may reach 600 KHL games.
Ak Bars’ forward Vadim Shipachyov may score his 900th point in the KHL (currently at 896).
19:00: Neftekhimik (9-8-4, 10th E) vs Kunlun Red Star (7-15-3, 10th W)
About the game
Neftekhimik, who has already defeated Kunlun this season (4:3 OT), enters the fourth game of a five-match home series on a five-game winning streak.
Kunlun Red Star starts a three-game road trip on a two-match losing streak.
Neftekhimik’s forward Bulat Shafigullin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Neftekhimik’s forward Dmitry Sokolov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points.
Kunlun Red Star’s defenseman Ryan Merkley is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points.
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Emil Garipov.
Kunlun Red Star: Corey Kane, Alexander Lazushin, Austin Wong.
19:00: Lokomotiv (14-7-1, 3rd W) vs Severstal (8-8-4, 9th W)
About the game
Lokomotiv, who has already defeated Severstal this season (5:0), enters the second game of a four-match home series on a four-game losing streak.
Severstal plays the lone road game of the series and lost its previous three matches.
Severstal’s forward Kirill Pilipenko is on a five-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points over that span.
Severstal’s forward Timur Mukhanov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.
Injury list
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin.
Severstal: Nikita Guslistov, Yegor Stepanov, Daniil Vovchenko, Alexander Zhabreyev.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s forward Denis Alexeyev lines up for his 400th league appearance and may score his 200th KHL point (currently at 198).
Lokomotiv’s forward Sergei Andronov may net his 100th league tally (currently at 99).
Lokomotiv’s goalie Ivan Bocharov may reach 30 KHL shutouts.
Severstal’s forward Adam Liska celebrates 300 KHL games, while defenseman Mark Barberio is at his 100th league appearance.
19:30: Torpedo (13-7-2, 4th W) vs Avtomobilist (13-8-2, 4th E)
About the game
Torpedo ends a six-game home series following a loss to Salavat Yualev on Tuesday (0:1).
Avtomobilist starts a two-game road trip fresh off a win over Barys also on Tuesday (5:2).
Injury list
Torpedo: Sergei Goncharuk, Nikolai Kovalenko, Igor Larionov.
Avtomobilist: Denis Barantsev, Maxim Denezhkin, Nick Ebert, Semyon Kizimov.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s forward Denis Romantsev may reach 100 KHL points (currently at 99).
Avtomobilist’s goalie Evgeny Alikin may record his 20th league shutout.
19:30: HC Sochi (11-9-1, 7th W) vs SKA (12-9-0, 6th W)
About the game
HC Sochi, who has already defeated SKA this season (5:4), enters the fourth game of an eight-match home series on a four-game losing streak.
SKA ends a four-game road trip and won its previous couple of matches.
Injury list
SKA: Stepan Falkovsky, Marat Khairullin, Brendan Leipsic, Andrei Pedan.
Milestone alert
HC Sochi’s goalie Mikhail Berdin may line up for his 50th KHL game.
