Battle for top spot, battle for the playoffs

As the regular season enters its final week, 15 out of 16 playoff contenders are known. But there’s a race for the final spot in the east, plus a battle for the overall KHL leadership to settle. In addition, two of Sergei Mozyakin’s scoring records are under threat in the closing days of the campaign.

Continental Cup race goes to final week

SKA is looking well placed to top the regular season standings for the second year in a row. Last season, Roman Rotenberg’s men led the way with 105 points, weighing in 243 goals in the process. There was a convincing 11-point advantage over CSKA, second in the overall standings on its way to successfully defending its Gagarin Cup. This year, the margin is less comprehensive. With three games left to play, SKA has 93 points, three more than its closest rival Dynamo Moscow. However, the Muscovites have a game in hand, which could tip the balance their way. More importantly, the relative lack of dominance from any one team this season augurs well for greater competitiveness in the KHL as the salary cap continues to force teams to compete on a more equal footing.

Avangard on top in the East

While SKA looks to be closing on top spot in the overall KHL standings, Avangard is heading to summit in the Eastern Conference. Saturday’s showdown against long-time leader Metallurg ended in a decisive 3-0 victory for the Hawks. That sent Mikhail Kravets’ team one point clear at the top of the standings with four games to play. Salavat Yulaev, two points further back in third, could still have a say in the race but needs the current leaders to slip.

Hawks fly to Eastern summit. February 17 round-up

Amur one win from the playoffs

It's almost a two-horse race at the top of the East, and it’s certainly a two-horse race for the last vacant playoff spot this season. Sunday’s results saw Amur win at Barys while Neftekhimik lost to Severstal in OT. As a result, Lada’s post season appearance is assured, while Sibir can no longer crack the top eight. Which leaves a showdown between the Tigers and the Wolves for the last remaining spot. It’s advantage Amur, with a four-point lead and three games each to play. However, the Tigers finish with three tough road games at Metallurg, Ak Bars and Traktor and needs to secure at least two points from them. Neftekhimik needs three wins – plus help from Amur’s opponents – as it has a home game with Lokomotiv sandwiched between trips to Minsk and Sochi.

Amur closes on playoff place. February 18 round-up

Sibir’s appeal dismissed

Earlier in the week, the joint KHL and Russian Hockey Federation disciplinary panel reviewed Sibir’s appeal against its four-point deduction. The club was contesting the decision to award four forfeits in games where it used four imports, and argued that a lack of clarity over the status of Fyodor Gordeyev – a Russian citizen, but not currently eligible to play hockey for Russia – rendered the punishment unfair. The panel ruled against Sibir, and the punishment remained in force. Subsequently it emerged that Gordeyev himself had cancelled his contract and was intending to finish the season in North America.

Western playoff contenders complete

In the west, it’s a different story. Dinamo Minsk became the eighth and final team to secure its playoff place this week. The Belarusians cannot finish higher than eighth and will therefore face the conference leader in the opening round, but otherwise little is clear. It seems likely that Spartak and Severstal will remain in fourth and fifth respectively before meeting in the first round, but the other placings are very much up for grabs. And there’s something of a wildcard in the pack: defending champion CSKA is likely to finish sixth or seventh, posing a potentially tricky test for one of the top four when post season gets underway on Feb. 29.

Gusev closes on Mozyakin’s record

Nikita Gusev’s three-point game in Dynamo’s 6-3 win at Vityaz moved him to 84 (22+62) points for the season. That’s his best regular season haul, and it’s close to the KHL’s all-time record. That mark, like so many others, was set by Sergei Mozyakin with 85 points in 2016-2017. Gusev is one point away from matching that, and two from breaking new ground. Another Mozyakin milestone, his record of 48 goals in a regular season, could be taken by Reid Boucher if Avangard’s forward can snap his four-game drought and add to his current tally of 44.

Goldobin writes more history

Spartak’s Nikolai Goldobin continues to rewrite his club’s history. Last week he set an all-time points record, eclipsing Alexander Kozhevnikov’s Soviet-era 71-point haul. This week, he moved to 39 assists, matching another Soviet record set by Alexander Orlov in 1981-1982.