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Another Moscow Derby on Sunday!
The KHL matchday will start in Nizhny Novgorod, with Torpedo hosting Dinamo Minsk. The Igor Larionov’s young guns have already defeated the Belarusians twice this season, as they will seek a third win. However, the Bisons will also be on the hunt for points as they will need to finish strong to secure at least their eighth seed to qualify for the postseason. Moreover, Torpedo will most likely have to do without the top duo of Nikolai Kovalenko and Vasily Atanasov.
Then, in the East, Traktor welcomes Lokomotiv, while Salavat Yulaev hosts Barys. In the last game in the Eastern Conference, Ak Bars will try to build a new winning streak – the Kazan side won its previous two matches, and today will be seeking a third straight victory with Avtomobilist coming to town.
The action then moves back to the West, with Severstal hosting HC Sochi, and Vityaz welcoming Neftekhimik in two key encounters for the playoff hopes of the mentioned sides. Then, Dynamo Moscow and Spartak will battle for the fourth time this season. The Blue-and-Whites celebrated a big win over Kunlun Red Star yesterday, breaking a three-game skid, while Spartak is on a two-match losing streak. After yesterday’s loss to Dynamo Moscow, the Dragons will pay a visit to CSKA, while SKA welcomes Metallurg for an exciting game in St. Petersburg.
13:00: Torpedo (28-15-3, 5th W) vs Dinamo Minsk (19-21-5, 8th W)
About the game
Torpedo, who has defeated Dinamo Minsk twice this season (6:4, 4:3), ends a five-game home series following a victory over Kunlun Red Star on Thursday (4:3 OT).
Dinamo Minsk plays the lone road game of the series and lost to Amur on Friday (2:3 OT).
Torpedo’s forward Sergei Goncharuk and Dinamo Minsk’s defenseman Kodie Curran had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Sam Anas is on an eight-game scoring streak, with 11 (4+7) points over that span.
Injury list
Torpedo: Nikolai Kovalenko.
Dinamo Minsk: Vitaly Pinchuk, Brett Ritchie, Alexander Suvorov.
Milestone alert
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Roman Gorbunov lines up for his 200th KHL game.
14:30: Traktor (26-17-5, 6th E) vs Lokomotiv (31-11-4, 1st W)
About the game
Traktor enters the second game of a four-match home series following a win over Barys on Friday (5:1).
Lokomotiv, who has already defeated Traktor this season (3:2 OT), enters the second game of a four-match road trip and defeated SKA also on Friday (2:1).
Lokomotiv’s forward Alexander Polunin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points over that span.
Injury list
Traktor: Andrei Chibisov.
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin.
Milestone alert
Traktor’s forward Anton Burdasov may reach 200 KHL goals (currently at 198).
Lokomotiv’s defenseman Nikita Cherepanov lines up for his 500th KHL match.
Lokomotiv’s goalie Ivan Bocharov may record his 30th career shutout.
14:30: Salavat Yulaev (29-14-3, 3rd E) vs Barys (16-24-7, 11th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev, who has defeated Barys twice this season (3:2, 5:4), starts a two-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Barys enters the third game of a four-match road trip following a loss to Traktor on Friday (1:5).
Salavat Yulaev’s Alexander Chmelevski is on a seven-game scoring streak, with 9 (2+7) points over that span.
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Ivan Drozdov is on a five-game scoring streak, with 8 (5+3) points.
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Joshua Leivo is also on a five-game scoring streak, with 10 (4+6) points.
Barys’ defenseman David Sklenicka is on an eight-game scoring streak, with 9 (4+5) points.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Sergei Shmelyov.
Milestone alert
Barys’ forward Rudolf Cerveny lines up for his 200th KHL game, while Pontus Aberg may reach 100.
17:00: Ak Bars (26-18-2, 7th E) vs Avtomobilist (27-17-5, 4th E)
About the game
Ak Bars enters the fourth game of a five-match home series on a two-game winning streak.
Avtomobilist is in the middle of a three-game road trip and also won its previous couple of matches.
The teams have already defeated each other once this season (3:2, 1:2).
Avtomobilist’s forward Stephane Da Costa is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Avtomobilist’s forward Brooks Macek is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points.
Injury list
Ak Bars: Dmitrij Jaskin.
Avtomobilist: Semyon Kizimov, Denis Osipov, Kirill Vorobyov.
Milestone alert
Ak Bars’ forward Alexander Radulov may record his 450th assist in the KHL (currently at 448).
17:00: Severstal (22-18-7, 7th W) vs HC Sochi (14-28-6, 11th W)
About the game
Severstal is in the middle of a five-game home series and won its previous couple of matches.
HC Sochi starts a three-game road trip on a twelve-match losing streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-3 (6:3, 4:5 OT, 3:5, 3:4, 10:1).
Injury list
Severstal: Dmitry Moiseyev, Konstantin Shostak.
HC Sochi: Kirill Rasskazov, Anton Sagadeyev, Maxim Tretyak.
17:00: Vityaz (15-26-6, 10th W) vs Neftekhimik (19-20-9, 10th E)
About the game
Vityaz starts a two-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Neftekhimik, who has already defeated Vityaz this season (3:0), starts a two-game road trip on a four-match winning streak.
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Rafael Bikmullin, Emil Garipov, Ilya Khokhlov, Ruslan Petrishchev, Nail Yakupov.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s forward Scott Wilson lines up for his 100th league appearance.
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th KHL shutout.
17:00: Dynamo Moscow (30-13-4, 3rd W) vs Spartak (30-12-6, 2nd W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow is in the middle of a three-game home series and defeated Kunlun Red Star yesterday (7:1).
Spartak enters the fifth game of a six-match road trip following two straight losses.
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (6:3, 3:4 ОТ, 7:8 ОТ).
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Yegor Bryzgalov, Maxim Dzhioshvili.
Spartak: Ivan Morozov.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s forward Ilya Kovalchuk may record his 400th KHL point (currently at 398).
17:00: CSKA (24-18-4, 6th W) vs Kunlun Red Star (15-27-6, 10th W)
About the game
CSKA enters the fifth game of a seven-match home series on a two-game winning streak.
Kunlun Red Star enters the fifth game of a seven-match road trip on a seven-game losing streak.
The teams have already defeated each other this season (2:3 OT, 7:0).
Injury list.
Kunlun Red Star: Ryan Sproul, Zach Yuen.
17:00: SKA (31-15-1, 4th W) vs Metallurg (30-12-6, 1st E)
About the game
SKA, who has already defeated Metallurg this season (3:2 SO), ends a four-game home series following a loss to Lokomotiv on Friday (1:2).
Metallurg ends a three-game road trip and lost to Neftekhimik also on Friday (1:2 OT).
SKA’s goalie Nikita Serebryakov is on a 102:03 shutout streak.
SKA’s forward Arseny Gritsyuk is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Injury list
SKA: Vadim Alistrov, Andrei Pedan.
Metallurg: Nikita Kvartalnov.
Milestone alert
SKA’s forward Artyom Shvets-Rogovoi and Metallurg’s forward Arkhip Nekolenko line up for their 300th career game.
SKA’s defenseman Artyom Zemchyonok may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
