Runaway Lokomotiv wins battle of the leaders. November 12 round-up
Table-topping Lokomotiv moved 13 points clear of second-placed Spartak in the Western Conference standings thanks to a 2-0 win in Moscow. Daniil Isayev’s fourth shut-out of the season halted the home team’s hot streak and backstopped an 11th successive victory for the Railwaymen. Elsewhere, Vityaz defeated Severstal by the same 2-0 scoreline and Salavat Yulaev won 3-1 at home to Lada.
Yan’s goal brings victory to Salavat Yulaev
Salavat Yulaev Ufa 3 Lada Togliatti 1 (0-0, 1-1, 2-0)
After picking up five points from a possible six on its latest three-game road trip, Salavat Yulaev returned home to face Lada. The Motormen last won in Ufa in September 2009, and failed to break that streak today.
While the visitor made few changes after its loss at CSKA, Viktor Kozlov reshuffled his lines. Josh Leivo and Danil Alalykin joined Alexander Chmelevski, while Nathan Todd was placed with Alexander Sharov and Sheldon Rempal. Yegor Suchkov returned to action.
Early in the game, the visitor played with confidence, generating swift and dangerous counterattacks. Dmitry Kugryshev had a good opportunity to open the scoring, but fired his shot against the post. Salavat struggled to create much in the face of a solid Lada defense, which killed two home power plays.
The second period finally brought some goals. Yaroslav Tsulygin gave Ufa the lead with a precise wrist shot from some distance. However, Lada hit back within two minutes after winning an O-zone face-off and getting the puck to Denis Barantsev for a rapid response.
In the final frame the teams put up a good contest which remained in the balance until the 51st minute. Then Sharov’s accurate feed set up Denis Yan, whose instinctive finish proved to be the winning goal. Lada worked hard to find a way back, but after a late time-out and a switch to six-on-five, the visitor was sunk when Alalykin found the empty net.
Dorozhko blanks Severstal
Vityaz Moscow Region 2 Severstal Cherepovets 0 (1-0, 0-0, 1-0)
The home team moved to within two points of the playoff places after snapping a two-game skid. Today’s result means back-to-back losses for Severstal after a seven-game hot streak lifted it into the top four in the West.
Vityaz dominated the first period, outshooting its visitor 15-4. However, the only reward for that control came in the 13th minute when Derek Barach converted the first power play of the game. That’s the 15th goal of the season for the American sniper. Severstal got a power play chance of its own right after, but failed to find a way past Maxim Dorozhko.
After a fairly feeble first period, the visitor improved after the intermission. Although the Steelmen did not trouble Dorozhko with all that many shots, they certainly put pressure on the home defense. One spell of play saw Vityaz forced to ice the puck three times in quick succession, but Severstal could not turn that pressure into a tying goal.
It was a similar story in the third. Severstal again outshot the home team and by the end of the evening Vityaz had 22 blocked shots to add to a further 22 saves from Dorozhko. This time, though, penalties undermined the visitor’s cause; notably a double minor on Mikhail Ilyin for high sticking midway through the frame. Late on, Severstal’s attempts to launch a late storm were undermined by Yanni Kaldis’s trip to the box and Jeremy Roy finished the job with a power play goal into an empty net.
Loko blanks Spartak in battle of the leaders
Spartak Moscow 0 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 2 (0-0, 0-1, 0-1)
Lokomotiv consolidated its position at the top of the standings with victory over second placed Spartak. Daniil Isayev’s fourth shut-out of the season halted the Red-and-Whites’ five-game winning streak, while goals from Daniil Tesanov and Yegor Surin secured Loko’s 11th successive victory.
That adds up to a huge 13-point lead for the Railwaymen over Spartak at the top of the Western Conference. The gap to Traktor in the overall standings is now 11 points as last year’s runner-up looks to go one better in the 2024-2025 season.
Tuesday’s eagerly-awaited clash began with an even first period. The teams were tied for shots (9-9) and there was little to choose in terms of offensive possession (5:44 vs 5:12). Spartak had two power plays to Loko’s one, but neither side could force a breakthrough in the opening stanza.
That all changed after the intermission. Lokomotiv started well and got in front in the 22nd minute. Nikita Kiryanov’s shot was blocked by home goalie Dmitry Nikolayev, but Tesanov got the rebound and stuffed it home at the second attempt.
Despite getting front, the visitor was unable to assert any dominance in the game. Spartak had another couple of power plays either side of halfway, forcing the Loko defense to step up. Once again, though, Isayev was seldom troubled, despite half chances for Ivan Morozov, Adam Ruzicka and Dmitry Vishnevsky. Once back to equal strength, the league leader finally managed to take some control. The closing stages of the second period brought a handful of shots on target and, eventually, a power play.
The man advantage carried into the third period and, although Spartak made it safely back to five-on-five, Loko’s momentum carried it a second goal. Seven seconds after Daniil Orlov returned to the game, Byron Froese found Surin on the doorstep and the 18-year-old timed his play to perfection, turning to shoot past Nikolayev as he lay grounded on the ice. That was a fourth goal of the season for the youngster.
After that, it was hard for Spartak to find a way back. Igor Nikitin’s team is expert at protecting a lead. Today, although the home side matched Lokomotiv for shots in the third-period, it had far less time on the puck to fashion those chances. The outcome was predictable enough: players were gripping sticks, making poor percentage plays and failing to test Isayev as much as they needed. The final nail in the Spartak coffin came in the 58th minute when Nikolayev was assessed a delay of game minor, making it impossible to send on a sixth skater until 59:12. Isayev finished the day with 24 saves to backstop the win.
