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Shipachyov still hunting record, game #1000 for Neftekhimik
Eight games are on tap on an exciting KHL Tuesday, with Shipachyov having another shot at the all-time scoring record as Dinamo Minsk pays a visit to Severstal and Neftekhimik celebrates its 1,000th game in the league.
Vadim Shipachyov and Dinamo Minsk travel to Cherepovets as the teams face for the fourth time this season. The veteran forward will have yet another attempt at surpassing Sergei Mozyakin’s all-time scoring record, with 929 points. The Belarusians will seek a return to victory after a road loss to Lokomotiv on Sunday (2:3), while Severstal won its previous four matches, defeating Admiral (6:5 OT), Amur (2:1 and 3:0), and Sibir (4:2). Will Shipachyov finally write his name as the league’s all-time leading scorer?
The KHL matchday will start in Kazakhstan. The third head coach in Barys’ season, Galym Mambetaliev, managed to do what both his predecessors failed to achieve – win two games in a row. The team collected victories over Dinamo Minsk (2:1) and Sibir (3:1). Seeking a third win, the Kazakhs return home for a four-game series hosting Kunlun Red Star, who lost five games in a row. Barys keeps on being the East’s last-seeded team, but now the team is just one point from Amur.
In the meantime, Salavat Yulaev will host Admiral. The Ufa team has found some excellent play from its imports and won two games in a row, while the Sailors suffered two consecutive defeats at the start of their road trip. Led by Nathan Todd and Joshua Leivo, Salavat Yulaev celebrated wins over HC Sochi (3:2 SO) and Torpedo (5:4), while Admiral lost to Ak Bars twice (2:0, 4:2).
Neftekhimik will celebrate today its 1,000th KHL game with a home game against Lada. The Wolves had a chance to overcome Avtomobilist as the Eastern Conference’s second seed, but lost to the Motormen on Saturday (2:3). The Togliatti side isn’t having its best season so far, and after two straight losses (3:5 to Admiral and 1:2 OT to Traktor), the team slipped down to ninth place in the Eastern table. The two sides have already met twice this season, with both games ending after SO.
In the last Eastern Conference game, a classic matchup between Ak Bars and Metallurg will take place in Kazan. It will be the fourth encounter between the two Eastern giants, with Ak Bars claiming all three games so far, with an 11:3 aggregate score. The Tatarstan franchise collected two consecutive wins, both against Admiral (2:0, 4:2), while Metallurg lost to Avangard on Sunday (2:3 OT) despite 42 saves by Ilya Nabokov. It will be Metallurg’s final game in a long road trip, after which the team will fly back to Magnitogorsk.
The action then moves to the Western Conference. Other than the game in Cherepovets, another three games will be on tap. In Nizhny Novgorod, Torpedo will seek a return to victory facing CSKA after a loss in Ufa (4:5) and a surprising home defeat to Vityaz (1:2). The Muscovites are now riding a two-game winning streak, with a 7:0 thumping of Amur and a 4:3 OT win over Amur. CSKA is currently two points above Torpedo in the Western standings, at the fourth place against Torpedo’s sixth.
In Moscow, Dynamo welcomes Amur as the two sides meet for the second time this season. The Tigers are in a deep crisis, with six straight losses, and they just fired head coach Andrei Martemyanov. Amur had other plans for the season, but the Far East franchise is now in a disappointing eleventh place in the Eastern Conference’s table. In the game against the Blue-and-Whites, the team will be led by acting head coach Viktor Kostyuchyonok, who spent two seasons in Khabarovsk as a player in the KHL, other than spells with Spartak, Dinamo Minsk, and Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg.
In the last game of this dense KHL Tuesday, Spartak hosts Vityaz. The Red-and-Whites are on a rare, for this season, two-game losing streak, and are currently sitting in third place in the Western Conference, tied with CSKA at 25 points. Vityaz is currently the ninth seed in the standings, with just one point from Dinamo Minsk and playoff places. Both teams will be seeking a win and unpredictability will again be key for today’s game.
17:00: Barys (5-13-1, 12th E) vs Kunlun Red Star (6-12-2, 11th W)
About the game
Barys starts a four-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Kunlun Red Star starts a two-game road trip on a five-match losing streak.
Barys’ forward Alikhan Asetov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Injury list
Barys: Wade Allison, Viktor Antipin, Maxim Mukhametov, Connor Smith, Roman Starchenko.
Kunlun Red Star: Ryan Merkley.
Milestone alert
Barys’ defenseman Nikita Kamalov and Kunlun Red Star’s forward Luke Lockhart reach 400 league appearances today.
Barys’ forward Dinmukhamed Kaiyrzhan reaches 100.
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (10-6-0, 6th E) vs Admiral (8-8-3, 8th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev is in the middle of a five-game home series and won its previous couple of matches.
Admiral is in the middle of a five-game road trip and lost two straight matches.
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Nathan Todd is on a six-game scoring streak, with 10 (4+6) points over that span.
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Joshua Leivo is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Gleb Kuzmin.
Admiral: Stepan Starkov.
Milestone alert
Admiral’s forward Vyacheslav Osnovin lines up for his 600th KHL game.
19:00: Neftekhimik (8-8-5, 6th E) vs Lada (7-9-3, 9th E)
About the game
Neftekhimik ends a four-game home series following a loss to Avtomobilist on Saturday (2:3).
Lada starts a five-game road trip on a two-match losing streak.
The teams traded wins in the season series so far (4:5 SO, 3:2 SO).
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Vladimir Bryukvin, Alexander Dergachyov, Jean-Sebastien Dea.
Lada: Andrei Altybarmakyan, Yegor Chernikov, Nikolai Demidov, Evgeny Groshev.
Milestone alert
Neftekhimik celebrates its 1,000th KHL game.
19:00: Severstal (12-7-0, 5th W) vs Dinamo Minsk (10-8-1, 8th W)
About the game
Severstal is in the middle of a three-game home series and won its previous four matches.
Dinamo Minsk is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost to Lokomotiv on Sunday (2:3).
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (1:3, 3:2, 3:2 SO).
Severstal’s goalie Alexander Samoilov is on a 69:49 shutout streak.
Severtal’s forward Ruslan Abrosimov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points over that span.
Injury list
Severstal: Timofei Davydov, Makar Fomin, Gleb Ivanov, Ioannis Kaldis, Alexander Skorenov.
Dinamo Minsk: Andrei Kareyev, Andrei Stas.
Milestone alert
Severstal’s defenseman Nikolai Burenov lines up for his 100th KHL game.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Vadim Shipachyov may become the all-time KHL top scorer with 929 points.
19:30: Ak Bars (11-6-0, 3rd E) vs Metallurg (10-10-1, 4th E)
About the game
Ak Bars, who has defeated Metallurg three times this season (2:0, 4:3, 5:0), enters the third game of a four-match home series following two consecutive wins.
Metallurg ends a five-game road trip after a loss to Avangard on Sunday (2:3 OT).
Ak Bars’ forward Alexander Barabanov had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Injury list
Ak Bars: Nic Petan.
Milestone alert
Ak Bars’ goalie Amir Miftakhov may record his 10th KHL shutout.
Metallurg’s forward Daniil Vovchenko lines up for his 500th league appearance. He has 115 goals and 131 assists in his career.
19:30: Torpedo (10-7-3, 6th W) vs CSKA (9-4-7, 4th W)
About the game
Torpedo, who has defeated CSKA earlier this season (4:3 OT), is in the middle of a three-game home series and lost its previous couple of matches.
CSKA ends a two-game road trip on a two-match winning streak.
Injury list
Torpedo: Andrei Belevich, Anton Berlyov, Igor Larionov, Vyacheslav Voynov.
Milestone alert
Torpedo’s forward Kirill Voronin lines up for his 500th KHL game, while CSKA’s forward Ivan Drozdov reaches 300.
Torpedo’s forward Maxim Letunov may reach 100 KHL points (currently at 99).
Torpedo’s goalie Ivan Bocharov may line up for his 250th KHL game and record his 30th league shutout.
Torpedo’s goalie Ivan Kulbakov may celebrate his 50th career win.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (10-7-2, 7th W) vs Amur (5-13-2, 11th E)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow, who defeated Amur earlier this season (2:1), starts a five-game home series fresh off a win over Avtomobilist on Wednesday (2:1).
Amur ends a four-game road trip on a six-match losing streak.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (0+5) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s defenseman Brennan Menell had at least one assist in each of his previous five matches, totaling seven helpers.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxime Comtois is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
Injury list
Amur: Devin Brosseau.
Milestone alert
Amur’s defenseman Yakov Rylov lines up for his 1,000th game in the Russian championship.
19:30: Spartak (11-5-3, 3rd W) vs Vityaz (9th W)
About the game
Spartak ends a two-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Vityaz enters the third game of a six-match road trip following a win over Torpedo on Sunday (2:1).
Spartak’s forward Pavel Poryadin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 8 (4+4) points over that span.
Vityaz’s goalie Maxim Dorozhko is on a 59:22 shutout streak.
Vityaz’s forward Ivan Chekhovich had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Injury list
Spartak: Alexander Belyayev, Daniil Ivanov, Shane Prince, Nikita Susuyev.
Vityaz: Grigory Vashchenko, Ivan Yezhov.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s forward Ansel Galimov may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
Vityaz’s goalies Maxim Dorozhko and Dmitry Shikin may record their 10th career shutout.
