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Big matchday before the pause!
The December pause is approaching and a tense matchday is scheduled for today, starting in the Far East with the rematch of the local derby between Admiral and Amur. Yesterday the Tigers achieved a 4:3, SO win as they won the fourth edition of the season. Today, the two teams will square off for the fifth time in the season.
Then, in Novosibirsk, Sibir welcomes Barys. The hosts have just fired their head coach David Nemirovsky, who will be replaced on the bench by his assistant Sergei Krivokrasov. The two sides will be at their fifth encounter this season, and both teams will need points. In Chelyabinsk, Traktor entertains SKA, with the St. Petersburg side having just got a loss on Tuesday against Avtomobilist after a long winning streak. In the meantime, the Motormen will host Salavat Yulaev – the Ufa team is on a five-win streak.
A team who is looking to return to victory is Metallurg. Magnitka is now stuck on an unusual three-game losing streak, including a 0:3 loss to CSKA in its last game. Today’s opponent will be Torpedo who, on the contrary, won its previous three matches. In the last game in the East, Lada hosts Neftekhimik.
The action then moves to the Western Conference. Lokomotiv hosts Ak Bars – who will be without its leader Dmitrij Jaskin – for the first time this season, while CSKA pays a visit to Vityaz following its win over Metallurg. Dynamo Moscow will also be seeking a return to victory after their incredible game against Spartak (7:8 OT) when the Blue-and-White visit Cherepovets.
Table-topping Spartak faces off against a struggling HC Sochi on today’s last game – it will be an exciting matchday before the pause. The KHL returns on Tuesday, Dec 19.
12:30: Admiral (11-18-8, 12th E) vs Amur (16-16-7, 9th E)
About the game
Admiral enters the third game of a four-match home series on a two-game losing streak.
Amur is in the middle of a five-game road trip and defeated Admiral yesterday (4:3 SO).
The teams have two wins each in the Far East Derbies this season (2:0, 3:2 SO, 1:2, 3:4 OT).
Injury list
Admiral: Pavel Makhanovsky.
Amur: Viktor Baldayev, Alex Broadhurst, Pyotr Khokhryakov, Evgeny Kulik.
Milestone alert
Admiral’s goalie Vasily Demchenko may reach 20 KHL shutouts.
15:30: Sibir (17-16-7, 8th E) vs Barys (12-20-7, 11th E)
About the game
Sibir ends an eight-game home series and lost its previous four matches.
Barys is in the middle of a five-game road trip and lost to Avangard on Tuesday (1:5).
Sibir has defeated Barys four times this season (5:4 OT, 1:0 SO, 4:2, 2:1).
Sibir’s forward Andy Andreoff is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (4+1) points over that span.
Injuyr list
Sibir: Trevor Murphy.
Barys: Alex Grant.
17:00: Traktor (21-14-4, 6th E) vs SKA (24-13-1, 5th E)
About the game
Traktor ends a five-game home series and won its previous couple of matches.
SKA, who has already defeated Traktor this season (4:3 OT), ends a three-game road trip and lost to Avtomobilist on Tuesday (2:3 SO).
Traktor’s most recent home win over SKA is dated back Aug 23, 2016 (2:1 OT).
SKA’s goalie Pavel Moisevich is on a 180:25 shutout streak.
SKA’s forward Sergei Tolchinsky is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that span.
Injury list
Traktor: Viktor Antipin, Andrei Chibisov.
SKA: Arseny Gritsyuk, Brendan Leipsic, Andrei Pedan.
Milestone alert
SKA’s forward Vadim Alistrov lines up for his 200th KHL game.
17:00: Avtomobilist (20-16-4, 7th E) vs Salavat Yulaev (24-13-1)
About the game
Avtomobilist is in the middle of a three-game home series and defeated SKA on Tuesday (3:2 SO).
Salavat Yulaev ends a two-game road trip and won its previous five matches.
Avtomobilist had two wins over Salavat Yulaev this season (2:1, 1:0), with one loss (1:4).
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Alexander Chmelevsky is on a four-game scoring streak, with 8 (3+5) points over that span.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Semyon Kizimov, Denis Osipov.
Salavat Yulaev: Artyom Pimenov, Alexei Pustozyorov.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s defenseman Kirill Vorobyov lines up for his 400th KHL game.
17:00: Metallurg (25-10-5, 1st E) vs Torpedo (23-13-3, 4th W)
About the game
Metallurg enters the third game of a four-match home series on a three-game losing streak.
Torpedo ends a two-game road trip and won its latest couple of matches.
Torpedo’s forward Vasily Atanasov is on an eight-game scoring streak, with 11 (5+6) points over that span.
Torpedo’s forward Maxim Letunov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points.
Injury list
Metallurg: Danila Kvartalnov.
Torpedo: Sergei Goncharuk, Kirill Kirsanov, Igor Larionov, Bobby Lynch.
18:00: Lada (20-12-8, 5th E) vs Neftekhimik (14-17-8, 10th E)
About the game
Lada enters the second game of an eight-match home series following a loss to Torpedo on Tuesday (2:4).
Neftekhimik, who has already defeated Lada this season (4:0), ends a four-game road trip and lost its previous six matches.
Injury list
Lada: Scott Kosmachuk, Danila Moiseyev, Nikita Popugayev, Nikolai Vladimirov.
Neftekhimik: Emil Garipov, Dmitry Sokolov.
19:00: Lokomotiv (24-10-3, 3rd W) vs Ak Bars (23-14-2, 4th E)
About the game
Lokomotiv starts a four-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Ak Bars enters the second game of a five-match road trip following a loss to Severstal on Tuesday (1:5).
Lokomotiv’s goalie Sergei Murashov is on a 76:43 shutout streak.
Ak Bars’ forward Dmitry Kagarlitsky is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin.
Ak Bars: Maxim Bykov, Dmitrij Jaskin, Semyon Terekhov, Nikita Yevseyev.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s goalie Ivan Bocharov may reach 30 KHL shutouts.
Lokomotiv’s forward Pavel Kraskovsky lines up for his 500th KHL game.
Lokomotiv’s forward Georgy Ivanov may score his 100th league point (currently at 99).
19:00: Vityaz (13-21-5, 11th W) vs CSKA (21-15-2, 6th W)
About the game
Vityaz ends a two-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
CSKA, who has already defeated Vityaz this season (9:1), enters the third game of a six-match road trip following a win over Metallurg on Tuesday (3:0).
Vityaz’s defenseman Ruslan Pedan had an assist in each of his previous three games.
CSKA’s goalie Ivan Fedotov is on an 81:26 shutout streak.
CSKA’s goalie Dmitry Gamzin is on a 67:15 shutout streak.
Injury list
CSKA: Darren Dietz.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th career shutout.
19:30: Severstal (17-15-6, 7th W) vs Dynamo Moscow (25-10-4, 2nd W)
About the game
Severstal ends a three-game home series and defeated Ak Bars on Tuesday (5:1).
Dynamo Moscow, who has defeated Severstal twice this season (1:0 OT, 3:2 SO), ends a six-game road trip on a two-match losing streak.
Severstal’s forward Daniil Aimurzin had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Severstal’s forward Adam Liska is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev is on a seven-game scoring streak, with 10 (1+9) points over that span.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Yegor Bryzgalov, Maxim Dzhioshvili, Yegor Martynov.
Milestone alert
Severstal’s forward Nikita Korostelyov may reach 100 league points (currently at 99).
19:30: Spartak (25-11-4, 1st W) vs HC Sochi (14-21-4, 9th W)
About the game
Spartak ends a two-game home series following a win over Dynamo Moscow on Tuesday (8:7 OT).
HC Sochi enters the second game of a five-match road trip on a three-game losing streak.
Spartak has defeated Sochi twice this season (5:2, 3:1), and lost once (2:3).
Injury list
Spartak: Ivan Morozov, Shane Prince.
