KHL press office
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Metallurg hosts Ak Bars, Salavat Yulaev visits Dynamo Moscow!
The game will thus have a further layer of emotions, as Zaripov lined up and won the Gagarin Cup with both teams, with the fans having a chance to salute one of the best players in the league’s history. However, the game won’t be only about emotions, but Magnitka has a good chance to return to the top of the Conference’s standings, while Ak Bars will try not to lose points to retain its spot in the top four. Not enough? Forward Danila Yurov has another chance to beat Vladimir Tarasenko’s record for the most points by a under-21 player in the regular season as they are both tied with 47 points. Moreover, Magnitka will seek a return to victory after three straight losses.
The action then moves to Moscow, with CSKA hosting Vityaz and Dynamo Moscow welcoming Salavat Yulaev. It will be the fourth meeting between CSKA and Vityaz, with the Gagarin Cup champion sweeping its rivals in the previous three games.
The other Moscow game looks more unpredictable, with both sides entering the game in a good place in the standings and with a solid lineup, but while Salavat Yulaev has lost its previous couple of games, the Blue-and-Whites are on a five-game run, and it looks like they don’t want to stop. Moreover, Nikita Gusev is hunting Sergei Mozyakin’s record of 85 points in a single regular season, established back in 2016-2017. Gusev has 84 points so far and appeared on the scoresheet in his previous six games.
17:00: Metallurg (40-17-7, 2nd E) vs Ak Bars (39-23-2, 4th E)
About the game
Metallurg starts a four-game home series on a three-game losing streak.
Ak Bars plays the lone road game of the series – its last for this year’s regular season – and won its previous three matches.
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (3:0, 4:1, 1:2).
Ak Bars’ goalie Amir Miftakhov is on a 68:10 shutout streak.
Ak Bars’ forward Kirill Semyonov had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Ak Bars’ forward Semyon Koshelev had at least a goal in each of his previous three games, totaling four tallies.
Injury list
Metallurg: Yegor Korobkin.
Ak Bars: Dmitrij Jaskin.
Milestone alert
Metallurg’s forward Denis Zernov lines up for his 500th KHL game.
19:30: CSKA (32-25-7, 7th W) vs Vityaz (19-38-7, 11th W)
About the game
CSKA starts a two-game home series following a loss to Lokomotiv on Thursday (4:5 OT).
Vityaz starts a four-game road trip on a three-match losing streak.
CSKA defeated Vityaz three times this season (9:1, 4:1, 5:1).
CSKA’s forward Mikhail Grigorenko is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that span.
CSKA’s forward Andrei Svetlakov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
CSKA’s defenseman Nikita Nesterov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points.
Vityaz’s forward Vladimir Galuzin is on a three-game scoring streak, with three assists.
Injury list
CSKA: Marsel Ibragimov.
Vityaz: Ilya Arkalov.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (42-16-5, 2nd W) vs Salavat Yulaev (40-19-5, 3rd E)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow, who has already defeated Salavat Yulaev this season (2:1), starts a four-game home series on a five-match scoring streak.
Salavat Yulaev ends a three-game road trip following two straight losses. It’s the last road game for the Ufa team.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev is on a six-game scoring streak, with 11 (3+8) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s defenseman Daniil Pylenkov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Cedric Paquette, Artyom Volchenkov.
Salavat Yulaev: Nikolai Kulemin, Joshua Leivo, Alexei Pustozyorov.
