Spartak hunts for third win, SKA eyes redemption against Kunlun
Four games are on tap today, all in the Western Conference, as Spartak aims for a third consecutive win against Sochi, who look for revenge after Saturday's shutout loss. Dynamo seeks a fourth straight win hosting Torpedo, who need to end a four-game skid. Elsewhere, SKA faces Kunlun on the road, while Dinamo Minsk battles Vityaz in a crucial matchup for playoff positioning.
Spartak will seek to gain a third straight win when today the Red-and-Whites face HC Sochi on a two-match winning streak. The two sides already met on Saturday, when Spartak celebrated a 4:0 win, with Dmitry Nikolayev recording his second shutout of the season. Today the Black Sea franchise will seek revenge, but lost its previous eight games in Sochi against Spartak. However, earlier this season, Sochi did defeat Spartak in the clubs’ opener. Spartak is currently the third seed in the Conference, while HC Sochi is close to the bottom of the standings.
In Moscow, Dynamo will host Torpedo. The two sides are in opposite situations. The Blue-and-Whites won their previous three matches, against Vityaz (2:1), Amur (1:0), and Avtomobilist (2:1). They also lost twice in a row after defeating today’s opposition, Torpedo, 3:2 SO as the teams met for the first time this season. The Nizhny Novgorod side lost four consecutive games, instead. Following a 3:1 win in Nizhnekamsk, Torpedo lost to Salavat Yulaev (4:5), Vityaz (1:2), CSKA (1:3), and Dinamo Minsk (2:5), losing all the matches in its last home series. Today, the team will start a short, two-game road trip trying to return to victory. After the losses, Torpedo slipped down to eighth place in the Western Conference’s standings.
In the third game of the matchday, Kunlun Red Star will face SKA. The Dragons are tied with Sochi at 16 points for the last place in the West, but they actually celebrated a win over SKA earlier this season, before losing 0:8 in the second encounter. Somewhat ironically, Kunlun Red Star defeated SKA only in St. Petersburg. The Dragons start a new home series today. SKA is on a rare two-game losing streak, with defeats against Lokomotiv (2:3) and Salavat Yulaev (2:4). Moreover, the Ufa franchise managed to stop SKA’s productive line of Evgeny Kuznetsov, Ivan Demidov, and Sergei Plotnikov. Despite the losses, the St. Petersburg franchise remains in second place in the Western Conference’s table.
In the last game of this KHL Monday, Dinamo Minsk hosts Vityaz as the teams face each other for the third time this season. The Belarusians grabbed the first two matches, and they will be on the hunt again to earn precious points for their playoff qualifications. However, Vityaz will also want to win to return to the right side of the playoffs line—the Moscow Region franchise is currently the ninth seed in the West. Most recently, Vityaz collected two straight losses, while Dinamo Minsk celebrated an away win in Nizhny Novgorod (5:2) as the Bisons return home today to start a new series.
17:00: HC Sochi (7-11-2, 11th W) vs Spartak (13-5-3, 3rd W)
About the game
HC Sochi ends a two-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
Spartak enters the second game of a four-match road trip after winning its last couple of games.
The season series between the two sides is 1-1 (2:1 SO, 0:4).
Spartak’s goalie Dmitry Nikolayev is on a 73:49 shutout streak.
Spartak’s forward Pavel Poryadin is on a six-game scoring streak, with 12 (6+6) points over that span.
Injury list
Spartak: Alexander Belyayev, Daniil Ivanov.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s forward Pavel Poryadin may reach 250 KHL points (currently at 247).
Spartak’s forward Ansel Galimov may record his 100th career assist (currently at 99).
Spartak’s head coach Alexei Zhamnov celebrates his 100th KHL game as a head coach.
17:00: Dynamo Moscow (12-7-2, 6th W) vs Torpedo (10-9-3, 8th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow, who defeated Torpedo earlier this season (3:2 SO), is in the middle of a five-game home series and won its previous three matches.
Torpedo starts a two-game road trip on a four-match losing streak.
Injury list
Torpedo: Igor Larionov.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s defenseman Daniil Pylenkov lines up for his 300th KHL game, while defenseman Brennan Menell reaches 200.
Torpedo’s forward Kirill Voronin may reach 500 league appearances.
Torpedo’s goalie Ivan Kulbakov may celebrate his 50th KHL win.
Torpedo’s goalie Ivan Bocharov may record his 30th league shutout.
17:00: Kunlun Red Star (7-13-2, 10th W) vs SKA (15-7-1, 2nd W)
About the game
Kunlun Red Star starts a three-game home series following a loss to Severstal on Friday (2:7).
SKA ends a two-game road trip after two straight losses.
Kunlun Red Star’s goalie Jeremy Smith is on a 70:25 shutout streak.
Kunlun Red Star’s defenseman Ian McCoshen is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Injury list
SKA: Artyom Zemchyonok.
19:30 Dinamo Minsk (11-9-1, 7th W) vs Vityaz (10-11-1, 9th W)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk, who defeated Vityaz twice this season (5:1, 2:1), starts a four-game home series following a win over Torpedo (5:2).
Vityaz enters the fifth game of a six-match road trip on a two-game losing streak.
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Dillon Dube, Andrei Kareyev, Andrei Stas.
Vityaz: Grigory Vashchenko, Ivan Yezhov.
Milestone alert
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Alexander Volkov lines up for his 200th league appearance. He may celebrate scoring his 100th KHL point (currently at 99).
Vityaz’s goalies Maxim Dorozhko and Dmitry Shikin may record their respective 10th shutout in the league.
