KHL press office
exclusive for khl.ru
Avtomobilist secures playoff spot, SKA extends lead. February 15 round-up
The Eastern playoff race was Thursday’s early focus. A shoot-out win for Sibir over Neftekhimik keeps the home team’s hopes alive, and also secured Avtomobilist’s place even before a 4-2 victory over Avangard. Elsewhere, it’s all about who will top the regular season standings. SKA increased its lead with a 2-0 win over Salavat Yulalev, while Eastern Conference leaders Metallurg and Avangard both lost. The chasers in the West, Dynamo Moscow and Lokomotiv, both won, defeating Dinamo Minsk and CSKA respectively. There was also a 3-1 win for Kunlun Red Star over Lada.
Vital victory for Sibir
Sibir Novosibirsk 2 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 1 SO (0-1, 0-0, 1-0, 0-0, 1-0)
By any reckoning, this was a huge game in the Eastern playoff race. For the visitor, a win would mean drawing level on points with eighth-placed Amur. For Sibir, defeat would almost end any hope of cracking the top eight.
In the event, both teams got something – and Sibir’s shoot-out win keeps its playoff prospects alive. There’s still a four-point gap to make up on Amur, and only four games to do it, but for the moment the task remains improbable rather than impossible.
In the first period, Sibir had three chances on the power play, including one following Ilya Pastukhov’s foul during the first shift. However, that did not translate into an opening goal, nor even an advantage in terms of scoring chances. Instead, Neftekhimik was the more threatening. German Tochilkin missed a good opportunity with a one-on-one break, but Jean-Sebastien Dea opened the scoring midway through the opening stanza.
Gradually, Sibir came back into the game and the second period brought good chances for Ivan Klimovich and Nikita Shashkov. However, it wasn’t until late in the third that the home team saved itself. It was the imports who came to the rescue, with Trevor Murphy putting away a rebound following a shot from Taylor Beck.
Subsequently, Sibir had the better of overtime before winning it in a shoot-out. Georgy Belousov, Beck and Mikhail Nazarov all found the net to secure two vital points for the home team.
Motormen secure playoff spot
Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 4 Avangard Omsk 2 (1-0, 0-2, 3-0)
Sibir's win over Neftekhimik meant that Avtomobilist was already booked into this year’s playoffs before it completed today’s win over Avangard. However, a strong third-period performance ensured that the Motormen secured their place in some style.
The Hawks, meanwhile, suffered a second successive loss. While today’s scoreline was better than the 2-7 reverse in Ufa last time, it does little to enhance Omsk’s chances of topping the table come the end of the regular season.
The visitor made the brighter start to the game, pressing hard to stop any home attacks before they started. At the other end, Avangard had the first real chances, but could not find a way past Vladimir Galkin. Gradually, Avtomobilist began to get its game together and the home team was rewarded with the opening goal thanks to Stepan Khripunov’s deft touch on Nikita Tryamkin’s slapshot.
That goal separated the teams at the intermission, but Avangard tied the game in the first shift of the second period. The top line combined neatly in front of Galkin’s net an Ryan Spooner finished off the play. At the other end, Avtomobilist had three chances on the power play without success. Then the Hawks converted their only numerical advantage of the session: Reid Boucher did a great job screening Galkin as Damir Sharipzyanov’s shot came in.
However, the host turned the game around in the third period. Khripunov set up Andrei Obidin for the tying goal, then Stephane Da Costa put Avtomobilist back in front. Avangard looked to fight back, but could not force a breakthrough despite giving Spooner’s productive line extra game time. Indeed, it was that top line that was on the ice when Avtomobilist made the result safe with a fourth goal: Da Costa’s line executed a flawless counterattack, finished off by Anatoly Golyshev.
Magnitka loses ground in race for Continental Cup
Ak Bars Kazan 2 Metallurg Magnitogorsk 1 (1-0, 0-1, 1-0)
Metallurg lost ground on SKA in the race to top the regular season standings after going down 1-2 at old foe Ak Bars. The Steelmen also failed to take advantage of Avangard’s loss and consolidate its position at the top of the Eastern Conference.
For Ak Bars, the win keeps the team in the top four ahead of Avtomobilist and thus on course to hold home ice advantage at the start of the playoffs.
The home team had to adapt to unfamiliar surroundings: the Tatneft Arena is unavailable until the end of the regular season, and Ak Bars is temporarily relocating to the old Palace of Sports. Initially, that didn’t seem to disconcert anyone: Dmitry Kagarlitsky was close to opening the scoring in the third minute when he went one-on-one against Ilya Nabokov, only to be denied by the visiting goalie. However, Magnitka also asked questions in a lively opening frame.
Yet, just as Metallurg seemed to be gaining the initiative, Ak Bars potted the opening goal. Semyon Koshelev fired against the crossbar. The attack continued and the former Metallurg forward found the net moments later when he redirected Slava Voynov’s point shot into the net.
The visitor was justifiably aggrieved to trail at the intermission and set about putting it right early in the second. After winning the puck in its own zone, Magnitka got on the counter thanks to Nikita Grebyonkin’s stretch pass for Nikita Mikhailis. The Kazakh international got clear of the home defense and wired a wrister past Timur Bilyalov to tie the scores.
However, Ak Bars ensured that nobody could build on that momentum and, despite some good chances, the game remained level at the second intermission.
Gradually, the game became more cautious. Both teams had power play chances in the third period, but neither was able to make much of the man advantage. However, when Danila Yurov went to the box in the 56th minute, that gave Ak Bars the edge it needed. It didn’t take long for Alexander Radulov to take the puck down the right and fire in from a negative angle. Amid a scramble on the crease, the puck bounced off a Metallurg stick and fell behind Nabokov into the net.
That wasn’t the end of the drama. A late Metallurg power play offered a chance of salvation, but the home team held on. Indeed, there was almost a third goal but a late shot at the empty net rebounded off the post.
Railwaymen edge a thriller over CSKA
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 5 CSKA Moscow 4 OT (2-2, 1-1, 1-1, 1-0)
The final meeting between these teams for the season was a lively affair. After a 4-4 tie in regulation, Lokomotiv got the OT verdict to finish with four wins from six games against CSKA. That could be relevant in terms of the playoffs, with the two potentially facing off in the first round depending on results in the final 10 days of play.
There was little sign of the goal rush to come in a quiet start. For a couple of minutes, neither team showed much and the opening goal, scored by Alexander Polunin was something of a surprise. For visiting goalie Dmitry Gamzin it was a particularly unwelcome one as he allowed a goal on the first shot he faced in the game. Then came a double power play after Maxim Mamin was called for high sticking. Rushan Rafikov converted that chance and the Railwaymen were cruising at 2-0.
However, CSKA turned the game around in the closing moments of the first period. Mikhail Grigorenko scored on the power play then, with 17 seconds left, Nikita Nesterov tied the game.
The visitor was buoyed, and put Daniil Isayev under pressure at the start of the second period. At one point the home goalie even lost his stick, but managed to keep his goal intact. At the other end, Artur Kayumov had one good chance denied by Gamzin, but went on to score after a great combination from the home team. However, CSKA was never out of this game and in the last minute of the session, Darren Dietz tied it up once again.
In the third period the players were more cautious. But there was still time for a dramatic finish. Vladislav Kamenev got a power play goal to put CSKA in front for the first time, and when home forward Sergei Andronov went to the box late on it seemed to spell the end for Loko’s hopes. However, even as home fans began to drift out of the arena, Rafikov got his second of the night – shorthanded – with 28 seconds to play.
That was enough to send us to overtime. Once again, there was plenty of action before a fantastic solo effort from Denis Alexeyev.
Moscow edges Dynamic derby
Dynamo Moscow 2 Dinamo Minsk 1 (2-1, 0-0, 0-0)
Dynamo moved into second in the overall KHL standings with this win, going a point ahead of Metallurg and maintaining its advantage over Lokomotiv. Alexei Kudashov’s team posted a fourth straight victory – and its fifth in six games – as Minsk continues to alternate wins and losses.
All the scoring here came in the first period, and was compressed into a five-minute spell. The Muscovites took the lead on the second power play of the game: Daniil Pylenkov took advantage of Brett Richie’s indiscretion to open the scoring in the 14th minute. Minsk responded through an unassisted goal from Roman Gorbunov, but within a minute the home team had the lead once again. Andrei Pribylsky was on target, while Nikita Gusev’s assist stretches his productive streak to five games and moves him to 81 points for the season. His best-ever return is 82 points for SKA in 2018-2019.
After that, there was no more scoring. Both defenses tightened up in the remainder of the game. However, a 48th-minute incident saw Dynamo get the puck in the net once more. The on-ice officials were happy enough with the play, but the Belarusian bench challenged the call and the video showed an offside in the build-up.
Strong finish for Red Star
Kunlun Red Star 3 Lada Togliatti 1 (1-0, 0-1, 2-0)
Kunlun can no longer make the playoffs, but the Dragons are still determined to finish as high as possible in the Western Conference. Hopes of taking ninth place were enhanced with today’s home victory over Lada, sealed by two goals in the closing stages in Mytishchi.
The first period saw Lada have the better of the play, outshooting the host 14-7. However, the only goal went to Spencer Foo late in the session, punishing the opposition’s wayward finishing.
In the middle frame, Lada tied the scores on the power play. Sergei Shumakov was on target, but the session saw far more even play than the first.
The third period saw Red Star again absorb some pressure. The home team had to kill an early penalty and generally found that Lada had more shots on target. However, Kunlun broke the tie in the 55th minute through captain Brandon Yip and settled the outcome with an empty-net goal from Colin Campbell in the final second.
Serebryakov denies Salavat Yulaev
SKA St. Petersburg 2 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 0 (0-0, 1-0, 1-0)
Table-topping SKA remains three points clear of Dynamo in the Western Conference, but also extended its lead over Eastern leader Metallurg. Roman Rotenburg’s team looks well set to finish the season on top of the overall standings, bringing the Contintental Cup to its new home.
This was SKA’s third game at its impressive new arena and, for the third time, more than 21,000 fans came to watch. They saw a third home win here, and the first shut-out in the building. Nikita Serebryakov claimed that honor, stopping 36 shots in a game where Salavat Yulaev played a full part despite its loss.
The opening frame, in particular, was very much a goalie duel. Serebryakov stopped 13 shots while his opposite number Ilya Ezhov made 14 saves. Frustration for forwards continued until the 35th minute, when Borna Rendulic struck on the power play to put SKA up. Mikhail Vorobyov feinted a shot before dishing off the puck for the Croatian forward to score from the slot.
Midway through the third period, SKA gained some breathing space. Arseny Gritsyuk picked out Zakhar Bardakov at the left-hand post. He could not get his own shot away, but instead sent the puck across the face of the net for Stepan Starkov to double the lead.
Salavat Yulaev kept pressing for a way back into the game, firing in twice as many shots on goal in the final frame. However, Serebryakov held firm to secure the win for SKA.
