Last matchday of 2023!
The KHL matchday will start with a rematch between Admiral and Neftekhimik. Yesterday, the two sides faced in the lone’s game of the day, with the Wolves claiming a 4:3 win with a third-period double by Andrei Belozyorov after the Sailors started the closing frame up by one.
In Kazakhstan, Barys will try to build on its recent sensational win over Avangard – the Kazakhs are now on a two-game winning streak, and they will seek a third one as Traktor comes to town. The Chelyabinsk side is also in a good moment, with Zach Fucale making the storylines with a 21-save shutout in Traktor’s 3:0 blanking of Sibir on Thursday.
While Metallurg hosts Kunlun Red Star – the Dragons have never achieved a victory in Magnitogorsk – in Kazan, Ak Bars and Salavat Yulaev face off for the fifth time this season. Salavat Yulaev has won three Green Derbies this year, with Kazan grabbing a single victory. In today’s last Eastern match, Lada hosts Avangard with the Hawks willing to rebound back after their loss in Kazakhstan.
The action moves to the West, with Vityaz hosting Spartak. In the teams’ previous two encounters, the Red-and-Whites had it easy with two sound victories. Then, Dynamo Moscow will be trying to return to victory when paying a visit to Yaroslavl – conversely, the Railwaymen won their previous four encounters, and are on a hot streak. With a victory in today’s match, Lokomotiv may surpass the Blue-and-Whites on the Western Conference standings.
Another three games are on tap, either of them with its impact on the tournament’s standings. First, HC Sochi welcomes Dinamo Minsk. Both sides have been losing games lately, and they will be looking to rebound back – especially the Bisons, who need points to keep their playoff qualification hopes alive.
Another team willing to rebound is CSKA. The Gagarin Cup champion is stuck on a rare losing streak, with Sergei Fedorov’s squad losing its previous five matches – including a loss to archrivals SKA. Tonight, the opposition will be Severstal. The Muscovites should avoid underrating the Cherepovets side, who has already defeated them this season and has proven to be a difficult client to deal with. In the closing game of an exciting KHL Saturday – the last matchday of 2023 – SKA hosts Avtomobilist. Both teams are on active winning streaks, and they will be on the lookout for another victory.
The KHL returns on Jan 3 with seven games, including an exciting showdown between Avangard and Salavat Yulaev in Omsk.
10:00: Admiral (14-20-9, 11th E) vs Neftekhimik (16-19-9, 10th E)
About the game
Admiral ends a two-game home series following yesterday’s loss to Neftekhimik (3:4).
Neftekhimik ends a four-game road trip and has defeated Admiral twice this season, both times with a 4:3 score.
Injury list
Admiral: Pavel Makhanovsky.
Neftekhimik: Emil Garipov, Ilya Khokhlov, Nikita Petrishchev, Nail Yakupov.
11:00: Barys (14-23-7, 12th E) vs Traktor (25-15-5, 5th E)
About the game
Barys ends a three-game home series and won its previous couple of matches.
Traktor enters the sixth game of a seven-match road trip on a three-match winning streak.
The teams have already defeated each other this season (2:1, 0:2).
Barys’ defenseman David Sklenicka is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points over that span.
Barys’ forward Anthony Camara tallied five goals in his previous five matches.
Traktor’s goalie Zach Fucale is on a 61:01 shutout streak.
Traktor’s forward Maxim Shabanov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (3+4) points over that span.
Traktor’s forward Vitaly Kravtsov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points.
Injury list
Barys: Alex Grant.
Traktor: Andrei Chibisov.
Milestone alert
Barys’ forward Dmitri Gurkov may line up for his 200th KHL game.
Traktor’s forward Anton Burdasov can become the 12th player in the KHL history to reach the 200-goal mark (currently at 198).
12:30: Metallurg (28-12-5, 1st E) vs Kunlun Red Star (15-25-5, 9th W)
About the game
Metallurg plays the lone home game of the series following a win over Ak Bars on Thursday (4:1).
Kunlun Red Star, who has already defeated Metallurg this season (3:2 SO), enters the second game of a seven-match road trip on a four-match losing streak.
Injury list
Metallurg: Nikita Kvartalnov.
Kunlun Red Star: Ryan Sproul, Zach Yuen.
Milestone alert
Kunlun Red Star’s defenseman Doyle Somerby lines up for his 100th KHL game.
13:00: Ak Bars (24-18-2, 7th E) vs Salavat Yulaev (27-13-3, 3rd E)
About the game
Ak Bars enters the second game of a five-match home series on a three-game losing streak.
Salavat Yulaev is in the middle of a five-game road trip and won its previous couple of matches.
The season series between the two teams is 1-3 (2:3, 4:2, 1:3, 0:1).
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Alexander Chmelevsky is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points over that span.
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Alexander Sharov is on a six-game scoring streak, with 11 (5+6) points.
Salavat Yulaev’s defenseman Nicholas Meloche is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.
Injury list
Ak Bars: Dmitrij Jaskin.
14:00: Vityaz (14-24-6, 11th W) vs Spartak (30-11-5, 1st W)
About the game
Vityaz ends a three-game home series following a loss to Avtomobilist on Thursday (2:3 SO).
Spartak, who has defeated Vityaz twice this season (4:1, 5:1), enters the third game of a six-match road trip after a win against Dinamo Minsk also on Thursday (4:1).
Vityaz’s forward Ivan Vorobyov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points over that span.
Spartak’s forward Andrei Loktionov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points.
Injury list
Spartak: Ivan Morozov.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s forward Ilya Kovalchuk may reach 400 KHL points (currently at 398).
Spartak’s goalie Patrik Rybar may line up for his 100th league appearance.
15:00: Lada (24-13-9, 4th E) vs Avangard (28-12-5, 2nd E)
About the game
Lada, who has already defeated Avangard this season (5:3), ends an eight-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Avangard ends a three-game road trip following a loss to Barys on Thursday (5:1).
Lada’s goalie Vladislav Podyapolsky is on a 60:12 shutout streak.
Lada’s forward Sergei Shumakov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points over that span.
Injury list
Lada: Scott Kosmachuk, Danila Moiseyev, Alexei Ozhgikhin, Nikita Popugayev, Nikolai Vladimirov.
Avangard: Roman Abrosimov.
Milestone alert
Lada’s defenseman Vladislav Syomin lines up for his 100th KHL match.
17:00: Lokomotiv (29-11-3, 3rd W) vs Dynamo Moscow (29-12-4, 2nd W)
About the game
Lokomotiv starts a two-game home series on a four-match winning streak.
Dynamo Moscow ends a two-game road trip on a two-match losing streak.
The teams have already defeated each other this season (5:2, 0:3).
Injury list
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin.
Dynamo Moscow: Yegor Bryzgalov, Maxim Dzhioshvili.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s goalie Ivan Bocharov may record his 30th KHL shutout.
17:00: HC Sochi (14-26-5, 10th W) vs Dinamo Minsk (18-21-4, 8th W)
About the game
HC Sochi is in the middle of a five-game home series and lost its previous nine matches.
Dinamo Minsk, who has defeated HC Sochi twice this season (2:1, 6:2), plays the lone road game of the series and lost its previous four matches.
HC Sochi’s forward Kirill Rasskazov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (4+1) points over that span.
HC Sochi’s forward Timur Khafizov had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Sam Anas is on a six-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points.
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Dmitry Deryabin, Vitaly Pinchuk, Brett Ritchie, Alexander Suvorov.
17:00: CSKA (22-18-4, 6th W) vs Severstal (20-17-7, 7th W)
About the game
CSKA enters the third game of a seven-match road trip on a five-match losing streak.
Severstal plays the lone road game of the series following a win over Kunlun Red Star on Thursday (3:1).
The teams have already defeated each other once this season (1:2, 3:2).
Severstal’s forward Danil Aimurzin is on a six-game scoring streak, with 7 (1+6) points over that span.
Severstal’s forward Alexander Skorenov had at least a goal in each of his previous three games, totaling four tallies.
Injury list
CSKA: Maxim Sorkin.
Severstal: Konstantin Shostak.
Milestone alert
CSKA’s forward Mikhail Grigorenko may reach 300 league points (currently at 298), while Severstal’s forward Nikita Korostelyov may get to 100 (currently at 99).
17:30: SKA (29-14-4, 4th W) vs Avtomobilist (25-16-5, 7th E)
About the game
SKA starts a four-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Avtomobilist, who has already defeated SKA this season (3:2 SO), ends a four-game road trip on a four-match winning streak.
SKA’s goalie Nikita Serebryakov is on a 62:03 shutout streak.
Injury list
SKA: Vadim Alistrov, Andrei Pedan.
Avtomobilist: Denis Barantsev, Semyon Kizimov, Denis Osipov.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s defenseman Nikita Tryamkin lines up for his 600th KHL match, while forward Brooks Macek reaches 200.
