Lokomotiv visits Chelyabinsk, Barys faces Neftekhimik
Only two games are on tap today – both in the Eastern Conference – on a light KHL Sunday.
The Railwaymen are currently riding a seven-game winning streak, and they look unstoppable—they even defeated SKA in St. Petersburg on Oct. 30 (3:2). Lokomotiv has currently a seven-game winning streak, and today ends a road trip before returning to Yaroslavl. Forward Maxim Beryozkin can tie a club record in today’s game – he scored points in eleven consecutive games. The home side, Traktor, returned to victory also on Oct. 30, blanking Sibir at home (5:0), with Zach Fucale earning his tenth KHL shutout. Before that game, Traktor lost to Avtomobilist (4:5). Both teams are sitting at the top of their respective Conference, and the crowd in Chelyabinsk will be treated to an exciting and much-anticipated game between the leaders of the standings.
In the other game of the matchday, Barys will face Neftekhimik. The Kazakhs are having a difficult season and are currently the last seed in the Eastern Conference’s standings, other than having went through two changes at the head coach position. Galym Mambetaliyev managed to get some good results from the team after shuffling its roster in order to give more space to local players, but failed to get Barys out of last place. Things may change today after Amur lost to Admiral yesterday—the Kazakhs may overtake the Tigers with a win, but Neftekhimik defeated Barys earlier this season, with Jean-Sebastian Dea finding the back of the net after four minutes of extra time. Today, the Canadian forward won’t be playing for the Wolves as he’s sitting on IL. Neftekhimik lost its previous three matches and will be looking for a return to victory to return to playoffs places.
14:00: Traktor (16-4-2, 1st E) vs Lokomotiv (19-2-2, 1st W)
About the game
Traktor ends a three-game home series following a win over Sibir on Wednesday (5:0).
Lokomotiv ends a three-game road trip on a seven-match winning streak.
Traktor’s goalie Zach Fucale is on a 73:59 shutout streak.
Traktor’s defenseman Ilya Karpukhin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Lokomotiv’s goalie Alexei Melnichuk is on an 82:51 shutout streak.
Lokomotiv’s forward Maxim Beryozkin is on an eleven-game scoring streak, with 12 (3+9) points over that span.
Lokomotiv’s forward Artur Kayumov is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (3+4) points.
Lokomotiv’s defenseman Martin Gernat is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points.
Injury list
Traktor: Danil Yurtaikin.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s forward Maxim Shalunov may score his 200th league goal (currently at 199).
15:00: Barys (5-14-1, 12th E) vs Neftekhimik (8-10-5, 9th E)
About the game
Barys enters the second game of a four-match home series following a loss to Kunlun Red Star on Tuesday (0:2).
Neftekhimik, who defeated Barys earlier this season (2:1 OT), ends a two-game road trip on a three-match losing streak.
Injury list
Barys: Wade Allison, Viktor Antipin, Connor Smith, Roman Starchenko.
Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Vladimir Bryukvin, Jean-Sebastien Dea, Alexander Dergachyov.
Milestone alert
Barys’ forward Dinmukhamed Kaiyrzhan may line up for his 100th league appearance.
