Saves and points to help their teams. Second round top imports
Fucale and Gernat will face in the second round of the playoffs, while Brennan Menell’s strong production didn’t help Dynamo Moscow going past the second round. KHL.ru presents the best players from each country.
Canada
G, Traktor, 4 G, 4 W, 92.21%, 2.84 GAA
The Quebecoise netminder had a strong showing in the first-round series against Salavat Yulaev, and was just as good against Dynamo Moscow in the second. Fucale lost no time against the Blue-and-Whites, winning all four games, and was instrumental for Traktor in most of the games, posting excellent numbers throughout the series, with the fourth game that skewed his stats a bit despite his 30 saves. Fucale’s top performance was in game two, when he faced 50 shots as Traktor captured a strong-willed 5:4, OT win with Alexander Sharov netting the game-winner after more than 73 minutes of play. The goalie stopped 10 saves in extra time for the Black-and-Whites. Strong play from Fucale between the piping will be key for Traktor in the semis.
Slovakia
D, Lokomotiv, 7 G, 3 (2+1) points, +3
The lone import player in the Lokomotiv’s lineup, Gernat had a good showing against Avangard, especially in the first games of the series. In game two, which the Railwaymen won with an impressive 7:0 score, Gernat posted a goal and an assist. His numbers also included a goal in Lokomotiv’s losing effort in game six, when he opened the score with just one second to go in the first period. The Slovak also collected a plus-1 rating in the seventh game of the series – another testament of his strong and consistent play in the second round.
Sweden
D, Metallurg, 6 G, 3 (0+3) points, even
The Swedish blueliners’ numbers were less impressive than in the first round, nevertheless he kept on being a key player for Magnitka on the blue line. In particular, the Swede had a two-assist performance in Metallurg’s key victory in game five – including a helper in Daniil Vovchenko game-winning tally and a plus-1 rating for the game. Metallurg’s alternate captain trailed only Yegor Yakovlev among defensemen for the most time on ice and had a strong showing throughout the night, posting his seventh and eighth assist in this year’s Gagarin Cup playoffs. Press’ strong play on the blue line will be key for Magnitka in the semis against Avtomobilist.
United States
D, Dynamo Moscow, 4 G, 6 (0+6) points, +2
Despite the win, it can be said that it was an excellent series for the American-born d-man. Menell had points in all games but the first, and even had a hat-trick of assists in Dynamo Moscow’s losing effort in game four. The blueliner, who is at his third year in the league, also had two assists in game two and another one in the third encounter. The Blue-and-Whites lost the series 0-4 to Traktor, but Menell was nothing short of excellent for his team, especially in the offensive zone. His production will be key for Dynamo in the next season as well.
