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Metallurg back on top, Dynamo stays in the hunt. February 19 round-up
In the Eastern Conference, Metallurg won the game’s big day against Ak Bars to reclaim top spot from Avangard. In the West, Dynamo’s last-minute equalizer against Salavat Yulaev set up an overtime win that puts the Blue-and-Whites just a point behind table-topping SKA. Defending champion CSKA had a surprise 1-2 loss at home to Vityaz.
Magnitka heads back to the top
Metallurg Magnitogorsk 2 Ak Bars Kazan 1 (1-0, 0-0, 1-1)
This Eastern Conference heavyweight clash was prefaced by a tribute to Danis Zaripov, a Gagarin Cup winner in the colors of both teams. Zaripov retired from playing at the end of last season, and today his jersey was hoisted to the rafters of Metallurg’s arena.
The teams met last week in Kazan, with Ak Bars claiming a 2-1 victory. Today, Metallurg welcomed back defenseman Makar Khabarov after injury and favored Nikita Podskrebalin as the starting goalie. Ak Bars had Amir Miftakhov in goal following an injury to first choice Timur Bilyalov, and the visiting netminder found himself under pressure early in the game. Magnitka took the early initiative and it was no surprise that the home team opened the lead after eight minutes when Alexander Petunin touched a Robin Press point shot into the net. A few shifts later, the home team had the first power play of the game, but the man advantage evaporated as Ak Bars produced more danger on the counterattack.
Scoring has been something of an issue for Metallurg lately, and it was blanked by Avangard in its most recent game. Despite getting in front here, there was no rush of goals. Although the first two periods saw the home team have more shots and more puck possession, there was no addition to Petunin’s marker through 40 minutes.
In the third period, Ak Bars began to produce more going forward. Podskrebalin found himself with more work to do and allowed a tying goal midway through the stanza when Riley Barber won a battle on the slot and found the target. Pegged back, Metallurg had to begin again but did so effectively. In the 56th minute, Roman Kantserov grabbed the winner. Danila Yurov had two good chances to put the game out of reach, but Miftakhov saved them. However, the visitor could not find a tying goal in the closing minutes and the final score sent Magnitka back to the top of the East in front of Avangard.
Vityaz gets rare win at CSKA
CSKA Moscow 1 Vityaz Moscow Region 2 (0-2, 0-0, 1-0)
Vityaz sprang a surprise at CSKA, picking up a rare win in a season that has not gone well for Dmitry Ryabykin’s men. Victory at the defending champion snapped a three-game skid and means there is still a chance that Vityaz can avoid finishing bottom of the Western Conference.
CSKA, meanwhile, continues to labor as post season approaches. This was a second successive loss, and a fifth in seven games for Sergei Fedorov’s team. More concerning, perhaps, is that it was no freak outcome: Vityaz outshot CSKA, and in particular dominated the first two periods. The opening 40 minutes saw the home team held to just 12 shots at Dmitry Shikin while the visitor built a 2-0 lead.
The teams traded penalties early on, and CSKA got a five-on-three power play for more than a minute. However, that yielded no reward, and shortly after returning to full strength Vityaz opened the scoring through Ivan Vorobyov. Vladislav Tsitsyura, who left the box 12 seconds earlier, had an assist on that one.
In the 15th minute, Derek Barach doubled the lead off a Scott Wilson assist. That import combination has begun to look more dangerous for Vityaz late in the season, and had Wilson enjoyed better fitness this term things could have been very different for the club.
CSKA’s hopes took another hit midway through the second period when Yaroslav Dyblenko was ejected from the game. The defenseman picked up a major for cross-checking and a slashing minor to put his team on the PK for seven minutes. Vityaz could not add to its lead, but took a big chunk of time out of the second period.
It wasn’t until the final stanza that the home team began to seriously press on Shikin’s net. However, the visitor held firm until the final seconds. A late Maxim Mamin goal offered some hope of unlikely salvation, but with just 24 seconds left on the clock, CSKA did not have time to finish the fightback.
Late rush gives Dynamo the win
Dynamo Moscow 2 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 1 OT (0-0, 0-0, 1-1, 1-0)
A lively conclusion in Moscow saw Dynamo move to within a point of SKA at the top of the standings. Just one point separates the league’s top two clubs, and both have three games to play.
It took a long time to break the deadlock in this game. The first period produced few big moments, even though both teams got a chance on the power play. The visiting defense worked well, blocking 10 shots and only allowing two to reach Alexander Samonov. However, after failing to score in its previous two games, a shot-shy Ufa offense seldom troubled Ilya Konovalov at the other end.
The pattern of play reversed in the second period, with Dynamo blocking 12 shots and giving Samonov more work to do. Once again, though, the opening goal was elusive.
By the time Salavat Yulaev found the net on 57:02, the visitor was just 50 seconds away from an unwanted record for goalless play since the end of its 7-2 win over Avangard on Feb. 13. Matvei Guskov won a battle on the boards and sent the puck back to Gleb Kuzmin on the slot for the opening goal.
Given the lack of scoring, that felt like the winner. However, Dynamo needs points to stay in touch with SKA at the top of the KHL standings and dug deep to save the game. Konovalov went to the bench and, with 31 seconds left to play, Brennan Menell’s shot was padded back in front of the net for Yegor Petukhov to score from the rebound.
In overtime, Samonov went to the Ufa bench as Viktor Kozlov continued his strategy of playing four-on-three in the extras. However, his bold gamble failed on this occasion. Daniil Pylenkov had already seen one long-range effort denied by Nicolas Meloche; in the 64th minute he had another sight at goal and squeezed a shot between two opponents to score from center ice.
