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Eight games scheduled for today with Metallurg hosting Avangard!
It will be a tense KHL Friday, with sixteen teams hitting the ice and Severstal with a chance to become the seventh team to book a playoff spot in the Western Conference. The top match will be perhaps the battle at the top of the East, with Metallurg welcoming Avangard as the two sides clash for the fourth time this season. The two sides have slightly pulled away from their pursuers in the conference standings and are currently the main contenders for the top spot in the East. The game will also feature an exciting struggle for the scoring title. Avangard’s Reid Boucher has already set a couple of records for Avangard and is chasing Dynamo Moscow’s Nikita Gusev in the race. Meanwhile, Metallurg is experiencing a truly breakthrough year with Danila Yurov. The previous game in Magnitogorsk ended in a 3:3 tie in regulation, with Boucher sealing the deal for the Hawks in OT.
Earlier on, another exciting battle will be taking place in Novosibirsk, with Sibir facing Amur as the struggle for the eighth spot in the East is getting more and more interesting.
The action then moves to the West. Severstal will be hosting Dinamo Minsk today, and the Cherepovets side will have a chance not only to increase its gap over the Belarusians in the standings, but even to clinch a playoff spot. To achieve that, they need a regulation win over Dinamo Minsk or an OT win or loss but then it will be tied to the results of the game between Vityaz and Lokomotiv. The Railwaymen are leading the pack in the West, but Vityaz has defeated them twice this season already.
Another interesting clash is Torpedo facing Dynamo Moscow. The two sides, as it is known, met in the Gagarin Cup playoffs last year, with Torpedo emerging as victorious, and they are up in the regular-season series as well this season, with three victories for the Igor Larionov’s young guns opposed to two Dynamo triumphs. Who will emerge in the sixth encounter?
Another hot game is expected to be played in Moscow, with SKA paying a visit to CSKA. The Muscovites are incredibly yet to get a win over their St. Petersburg rivals this season, with five straight wins for SKA, including a 5:1 victory in their most recent game. Will CSKA manage to get their first win this season over their archrivals?
A second game in Moscow is scheduled between Spartak and Avtomobilist, while a showdown between Kunlun Red Star and Admiral will close an exciting and action-packed KHL Friday, with plenty of excitation in both conferences.
15:30: Sibir (22-27-9, 10th E) vs Amur (22-24-11, 9th E)
About the game
Sibir ends a two-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
Amur starts a four-game road trip fresh off a win over Metallurg on Monday (7:6).
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (1:2 SO, 0:4, 4:1).
Injury list
Amur: Pyotr Khokhryakov, Cameron Lee, Yakov Rylov.
17:00: Metallurg (38-15-6, 1st E) vs Avangard (39-15-3, 2nd E)
About the game
Metallurg starts a three-game home series following its loss to Amur on Monday (6:7).
Avangard ends a two-game road trip after an away win over Barys on Tuesday (3:1).
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (1:4, 3:4 ОТ, 3:2)
Metallurg’s forward Maxim Karpov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Metallurg’s defenseman Robin Press had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Injury list
Metallurg: Yegor Korobkin.
Milestone alert
Avangard’s forward Mark Verba may line up for his 100th KHL appearance.
19:00: Severstal (28-21-7, 7th W) vs Dinamo Minsk (26-26-5, 8th W)
About the game
Severstal, who has already defeated Dinamo Minsk this season (2:1), ends a four-game home series after a loss to CSKA on Sunday (2:6).
Dinamo Minsk ends a two-game road trip and has also lost its most recent game, to HC Sochi, on Tuesday (2:3).
Severstal’s forward Nikita Korostelyov had an assist in each of his previous three games, while Adam Liska is on a four-game scoring streak, with four helpers.
Injury list
Severstal: Timofei Davydov, Konstantin Shostak, Dmitry Shugayev.
Dinamo Minsk: Dmitry Deryabin, Roman Gorbunov, Vitaly Pinchuk, Brett Ritchie, Ivan Sekerin, Nikita Smirnov, Alexander Suvorov.
Milestone alert
Severstal’s forward Dmitry Moiseyev lines up for his 300th game in the KHL.
19:00: Vityaz (18-32-7, 11th W) vs Lokomotiv (37-16-4, 2nd W)
About the game
Vityaz starts a seven-game home series following an away loss to Kunlun Red Star on Tuesday (0:2).
Lokomotiv enters the third game of a four-match road trip after a win over Spartak also on Tuesday (2:1).
The season series between the two sides is 2-1 (2:1, 2:5, 2:1).
Injury list
Vityaz: Ilya Arkalov, Ivan Yezhov, Ivan Vorobyov.
Lokomotiv: Yegor Averin.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s forward Vladimir Galuzin lines up for his 700 KHL game, while forward Scott Wilson may reach 100.
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th league shutout, while Lokomotiv’s Ivan Bocharov may reach 30.
19:30: Torpedo (32-21-4, 5th W) vs Dynamo Moscow (36-16-5, 3rd W)
About the game
Torpedo starts a five-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
Dynamo Moscow plays the lone road game of the series after suffering two consecutive losses.
The season series between the two teams is 3-2 (7:1, 3:1, 2:3, 4:1, 1:6).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Eric O’Dell is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points over that span.
Injury list
Torpedo: Vasily Atanasov.
Dynamo Moscow: Artyom Volchenkov, Maxim Dzhioshvili.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s goalie Ilya Konovalov may celebrate his 100th KHL win.
19:30: Kunlun Red Star (20-33-6, 10th W) vs Admiral (17-29-11, 12th E)
About the game
Kunlun Red Star ends a two-game home series on a three-match winning streak.
Admiral, who has already defeated Kunlun Red Star this season (3:1), starts a four-game road trip following a loss to Salavat Yulaev on Monday (1:2).
Kunlun Red Star’s goalie Matt Jurusik is on a 64:24 shutout streak.
Kunlun Red Star’s forward Devin Brosseau is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
Kunlun Red Star’s forward Brandon McMillan had at least an assist in his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Injury list
Admiral: Evgeny Lisovets, Pavel Shen.
Milestone alert
Kunlun Red Star’s forward Spencer Foo lines up for his 200th KHL game, while Admiral’s Cliff Pu reaches 100 league appearances.
19:30: CSKA (30-22-5, 6th W) vs SKA (38-16-3, 1st W)
About the game
CSKA is in the middle of a three-game home series and won its previous couple of matches.
SKA starts a four-game road trip on a three-match winning streak.
SKA has achieved five victories over CSKA this season (3:2, 2:1, 6:2, 2:0, 5:1).
CSKA’s forward Andrei Svetlakov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
SKA’s goalie Nikita Serebryakov is on a 79:29 shutout streak.
SKA’s forward Alex Galchenyuk is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points.
SKA’s forward Marat Khairullin also had 6 (2+4) points, but in three games.
SKA’s forward Valentin Zykov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points.
Injury list
CSKA: Yaroslav Dyblenko, Marsel Ibragimov.
SKA: Vadim Alistrov, Andrei Pedan.
Milestone alert
CSKA’s forward Sergei Plotnikov is looking to score his 500th KHL point (currently at 499).
19:30: Spartak (34-17-8, 4th W) vs Avtomobilist (32-20-7, 6th E)
About the game
Spartak, who has already defeated Avtomobilist this season (4:1), ends a four-game home series after a loss to Lokomotiv on Tuesday (1:2).
Avtomobilist enters the second game of a four-match road trip following a loss to Traktor also on Tuesday (1:2 SO).
Spartak’s forward Nikolai Goldobin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points over that span.
Spartak’s forward Ivan Morozov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points.
Injury list
Spartak: Yegor Filin, Joey Keane, Timur Khairullin, Andrei Loktionov, Mikhail Maltsev, Patrik Rybar.
Avtomobilist: Semyon Kizimov, Kirill Vorobyov.
