Dynamo Moscow seeking return to victory, Amur travels to Nizhnekamsk

Three games are on tap on a light KHL Sunday, with two games in the Western Conference and one in the East.

The matchday will start in the Moscow Region, with Vityaz hosting Dynamo Moscow. The Blue-and-Whites keep on struggling – they’ve accumulated another two straight losses, against CSKA (3:4 SO) and Traktor (1:4), and they start a short-range road trip today. On its hand, Vityaz won its latest two matches, against Barys (2:0) and Kunlun Red Star (7:2) and will definitely want to build on the momentum. Only one point separates the two sides in the Western Conference standings, with Dynamo Moscow so far being on the right side of the playoffs line in eighth place.

Then, HC Sochi welcomes Dinamo Minsk. The Black Sea franchise is enjoying great play from its goalies, with two straight shutouts, against Severstal (1:0) and Admiral (5:0), respectively. Last year’s top scorer Artur Tyanulin is also in fine shape, with a three-game scoring streak. Dinamo Minsk’s season has been full of ups and downs so far, and most recently, the Bisons lost to SKA at home (0:3) after a win over Admiral (7:2) in the first day of the new month. Today’s game can easily go either way, and Sochi’s strong goaltending may be a critical part of the encounter.

In the lone Eastern Conference game of the Sunday, Neftekhimik faces Amur. Both Eastern sides won their latest game, against Lada (3:2) and Ak Bars (2:1), respectively. The Wolves are currently the fourth seed in the Conference, with Amur being only the tenth, but the Khabarovsk team will seek a second consecutive win in Tatarstan after Friday’s victory in Kazan. The two sides will meet again next Tuesday. It will be another exciting game on a light matchday with only three games scheduled.

14:00: Vityaz (5-6-0, 9^th W) vs Dynamo Moscow (5-6-1, 8^th W)

About the game

Vityaz ends a two-game home series on a two-match winning streak.

Dynamo Moscow starts a two-game road trip following two straight defeats at home.

Vityaz’s forward Ivan Vorobyov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (4+2) points over that span.

Dynamo’s forward Pavel Kudryavtsev is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.

Injury list

Vityaz: Ilya Arkalov, Grigory Vashchenko.

Milestone alert

Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev may reach 400 KHL assists (currently at 399).

17:00: Neftekhimik (5-4-3, 4^th E) vs Amur (4-6-1, 10^th E)

About the game

Neftekhimik enters the second game of a four-match home series after a win over Lada on Wednesday (3:2).

Amur enters the third game of a four-match road trip following a win over Ak Bars on Friday (2:1).

Neftekhimik’s forward Alexander Dergachyov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.

Neftekhimik’s forward Andrei Belozyorov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points.

Amur’s forward Evgeny Grachyov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.

Injury list

Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Vladimir Bryukvin.

Amur: Vladislav Barulin, Devin Brosseau, Alexander Shevchenko.

17:00: HC Sochi (4-7-0, 11^th W) vs Dinamo Minsk (6-4-0, 7^th W)

About the game

HC Sochi enters the third game of a six-match home series on a two-game winning streak.

Dinamo Minsk starts a three-game road trip following a home loss to SKA on Thursday (0:3).

HC Sochi’s goalies are on shutout streaks: Sergei Ivanov is at 107:20, while Yegor Zavragin is at 66:38.

HC Sochi’s forward Artur Tyanulin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points over that span.

Injury list

HC Sochi: Roman Manukhov.

Dinamo Minsk: Roman Gorbunov, Andrei Kareyev.

Milestone alert

Dinamo Minsk’s forward Andrei Stas may reach 200 career points (currently at 198).