Salavat highlights leadership credentials. December 2 round-up

A 4-1 victory over Eastern Conference leader Traktor underlined Salavat Yulaev’s potential as top dog in the East. The win puts Viktor Kozlov’s men just two points behind, and two ahead of third-placed Avtomobilist, which lost 4-5 in a shoot-out at home to Spartak. Dinamo Minsk also had a 5-4 road win, defeating Sibir to snap a three-game skid. Table-topping Lokomotiv won 3-0 at Admiral, Amur edged the battle of the strugglers against Sochi and Vityaz took a shoot-out success over Neftekhimik

Khokhlachyov scores, but loses against former club

Amur Khabarovsk 2 HC Sochi 1 (1-0, 0-1, 1-0)

This was a basement battle: Amur and Sochi lie at the foot of their respective conferences amid disappointing seasons for both. Amur handed a first start to goalie Damir Shaymardanov, whose KHL career to date encompasses just 16 minutes of Saturday’s crazy 5-7 loss to SKA. Sochi, beaten 4-3 at Admiral last time out, included forward Alexander Khokhlachyov, who recently joined from Amur.

After Saturday’s free-scoring encounter here, it didn’t take long for the new week to bring its first goal. Home defenseman Cam Lee found the net with a point shot that wrongfooted visiting goalie Sergei Ivanov. After that, both teams created decent chances in an even game. The home team suffered a blow when experienced defenseman Yakov Rylov was injured: he struggled to get up after colliding with the net and played no further part in the game.

Early in the second period, Ivanov pulled off an improbable save to deny Amur a second goal. But the Tigers also ran into penalty trouble and eventually that cost the home team. With 21 seconds left in the stanza, Khokhlachyov scored on the power play to the jeers of his former fans.

Both teams looked for a winner in the third period. Ivanov performed heroics to keep Amur’s power play at bay, then Sochi found the net only to have the goal whistled down on a bench challenge. That gave the Tigers a lift and even as they continued to play shorthanded, they conjured up a winner. Kirill Slepets raced away from the Sochi defense and fired past Ivanov to make it 2-1.

Late on there was more danger for Amur after a penalty on Oleg Li. Sochi’s final surge saw a shot off the post, but the Tigers held on to take the verdict.

Leader eases to victory in Vladivostok

Admiral Vladivostok 0 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 3 (0-0, 0-1, 0-2)

Daniil Isayev’s sixth shut-out of the season backstopped another win for table-topping Lokomotiv. The Railwaymen snapped Admiral’s three-game hot streak despite making the long trip to Vladivostok on the day of the game, foregoing the usual acclimatization morning.

The game got off to a fast start, with both teams looking to sustain a high tempo. Lokomotiv looked the more threatening in a goalless first period: Andrei Sergeyev forced a good save out of Vasily Demchenko early in the session and, towards the end, Maxim Shalunov also went close. Admiral had the only power play of the frame, but struggled to generate much danger after Martin Gernat’s foul.

After the intermission, Loko settled into its favored gameplan: sustained attacking pressure to wear down a tiring opponent. Denis Alexeyev’s line was especially effective and it was no surprise that Alexeyev himself opened the scoring when he converted a great feed from Daniil But in the 25th minute. After that, there was little change in the pattern of play. Lokomotiv ensured that Admiral rarely got out of its zone and the home team managed just two shots on goal in the middle frame.

However, it remained a one-goal game through 40 minutes. To escape an anxious finale, the visitor needed to add to its lead. At the start of the third, Alexeyev turned provider as But made it 2-0 and from that point on the game felt safe. Lokomotiv calmly played out time, Admiral seldom got a touch of the puck. Alexander Radulov’s empty-netter wrapped up a routine win late on.

Pinchuk paces Dinamo victory

Sibir Novosibirsk 4 Dinamo Minsk 5 (1-2, 2-3, 1-0)

A high-scoring game between two teams battling for playoff places saw Dinamo snap a three-game skid in Novosibirsk. The Belarusians had been beaten on home ice in their previous three outings, while Sibir enjoyed a few days’ rest after defeating Barys.

The stage was set for goals right from the start. Dinamo’s Roman Gorbunov took a penalty early on, and Georgy Belousov put Sibir ahead on the power play in the third minute. The visitor quickly recovered, with Yegor Borikov tying the game before Xavier Ouellet put Minsk up 2-1 in the ninth minute. Vitaly Pinchuk assisted on that one, collecting the first of his three points in the game.

Dinamo led at the first intermission, but it wasn’t long before we got a second sight of why Sibir’s power play is the most effective in the KHL this season. Pinchuk sat for interference, and Andy Andreoff tied the game. Back in the action, Pinchuk atoned for his foul with another helper, this time for Brady Lyle to make it 3-2. Another two minutes went by, and Vadim Shipachyov added to his record points haul with an assist for Vadim Moroz to make it 4-2 and chase starting goalie Denis Kostin to the bench. Anton Krasotkin came into the game for his first action since Oct. 30.

Krasotkin saw Trevor Murphy pull a goal back for Sibir, but he was beaten after 10 minutes on the ice. Pinchuk was credited with the goal, but defenseman Alexei Yakovlev was the luckless player who diverted the puck into his own net to send Dinamo to the intermission with a 5-3 lead.

In the third period, Pinchuk almost had his second of the game, denied only by the piping. Sibir survived that scare and got a chance to save the game when Andreoff scored his second of the night late on. However, the clock ran down before the home team could take matters to overtime. Dinamo climbs to seventh in the west, Sibir remains 10th in the east.

Spartak survives big fightback from Avtomobilist

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 4 Spartak Moscow 5 SO (1-2, 0-2, 3-0, 0-0, 0-1)

After a nine-goal thriller in Novosibirsk, this clash between third place in the east and second place in the west was also an entertaining affair. Avtomobilist trailed 1-4, tied it up in the third, but eventually fell to Spartak in a shoot-out.

Spartak welcomed back forward Nikolai Goldobin, who missed the game in Ufa amid rumors that he might be traded. The Red-and-Whites restored him to the first line as they looked to halt a three-game skid. Avtomobilist responded to Saturday’s home loss against Traktor by introducing a third line built around Gornyak forwards Stepan Borisov and Konstantin Khremkin, while Anatoly Golyshev dropped to the fourth line. Nick Merkley was a scratch.

The home team started well and gained an early power play. However, Spartak twice forced turnovers, and the second of them saw Alexander Pashin convert a three-on-two rush. A couple of minutes later, the Muscovites had a five-on-three power play which led to Ivan Morozov doubling the lead.
After that, Spartak seemed to be in control of the game. However, the next goal went to the home team: Avto got on the power play and Stephane da Costa’s deflected shot found the net.

Not for the first time, Avtomobilist head coach Nikolai Zavarukhin shuffled his lines during the intermission. The second period began with the familiar strike force of Golyshev, da Costa and Brooks Macek lining up for the face-off. But Spartak continued to have the better of the game and extended its lead to 4-1. Daniil Orlov’s deflected point shot brought another power play goal. Proceedings were enlivened further when two big defensemen, Evgeny Kashnikov and Veniamin Korolyov squared up for a fight. After that, Mikhail Maltsov added a fourth late in the frame when he redirected Adam Ruzicka’s shot. That was the first goal scored at equal strength in this game.

At the start of the third, Macek scored one of his trademark power play goals to bring the game back to life. Avtomobilist continued to press and Maxim Osipov made it 3-4 midway through the session.

Alexei Zhamnov called a time-out to settle Spartak down, but Avtomobilist scented blood. The break didn’t much help the visitor as the Motormen continued to press for a tying goal. They got it in the 57th minute thanks to Andrei Obidin, sending the game to overtime.

In the extras, the visitor looked slightly the more dangerous team but nobody really created a game-winning chance. That meant a shoot-out, in which Spartak’s Pavel Poryadin was the only player to score.

Ufa enters the battle for top spot

Salavat Yulaev Ufa 4 Traktor Chelyabinsk 1 (2-1, 1-0, 1-0)

After moving into second place in the East at the weekend, Salavat Yulaev consolidated its position with a comfortable win over Traktor. The long-time leader of the Eastern Conference has slowed a little of late and this result continued a sequence of alternate wins and losses.

The home team, fresh from a big win over Spartak last time out, was unchanged for this game. However, Traktor made the livelier start and looked the more likely to score. Against the run of play, Salavat Yulaev made the breakthrough after five minutes. Defenseman Alexander Komarov fired in a shot at Sergei Mylnikov and Vladislav Yefremov followed up to convert the rebound.

Traktor kept pushing, with Mikhail Kotlyarevsky testing Alexander Samonov on the PK before Maxim Shabanov almost converted a feed to the back door on another swift counter. Once again, though, Ufa came up with a compelling answer: Mikhail Naumenkov doubled the lead with a shot that Mylnikov simply did not anticipate. That was the end of the visiting goalie’s evening as Zach Fucale took over between the piping. Before the intermission, Traktor got one back through Nikita Tertyshny.

In the middle frame, both teams had good scoring chances. It all came down to the power plays: Traktor fluffed its chance, but Josh Leivo took advantage of Charles Robinson’s penalty to send the teams back to the locker rooms with Salavat up 3-1.

With a two-goal lead to defend, Ufa simplified its game in the final stanza. Viktor Kozlov asked his team to find a sensible balance of offense and defense, and his players largely delivered. Sheldon Rempal padded the lead midway through the session, surprising Fucale with a backhand shot. Traktor’s hopes of a fightback were hampered towards the end by a penalty on Steven Kampfer, but even before that there was little real sign of a recovery.

Shoot-out success halts losing run

Vityaz Moscow Region 4 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 3 SO (1-0, 2-2, 0-1, 0-0, 1-0)

Neftekhimik came from behind three times to force this game to a shoot-out before falling to Vityaz in a shoot-out. Both teams were lifted by goals from recent signings: Kirill Petrov struck on his debut for the visitor to send the game to OT, while Alexei Makeyev was on target in his second appearance since returning to the home team.

Vityaz, beaten in its last three outings, made a great start to the game when Vladimir Galuzin opened the scoring in the third minute. The home team outshot its visitor 13-7 in the first period and looked well placed to go on and control the rest of the game.

However, Neftekhimik proved its resilience in the second stanza. Andrei Belozyorov scored twice, once on the power play, to keep the game in the balance. In between Belozyorov’s markers, Ivan Vorobyov briefly restored the Vityaz’ lead. The home team also managed to get back in front before the second intermission thanks to Alexei Makeyev’s first goal since returning to the club.

That was starting to look like it might be the winner. However, Derek Barach’s interference call in the 53rd minute opened the door for Neftekhimik. The power play did not produce a tying goal, but 19 seconds after Vityaz got back to full strength, the visitor tied it up. Kirill Petrov, a former Ak Bars forward playing his first game this season, tied it up for the third time.

Overtime could not produce a winner, but the shoot-out saw Dmitry Buchelnikov and Barach on target to give Vityaz the verdict.