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Christmas matchday brings high stakes and heated battles across the league
The Christmas matchday in the KHL features five thrilling games, headlined by a clash between CSKA and SKA in Moscow. Earlier, Salavat Yulaev faces Amur in Ufa after a recent shutout victory. Dinamo Minsk hosts Ak Bars, looking to replicate their recent success in Kazan. Lokomotiv travels to Nizhny Novgorod for a showdown with Torpedo, while the day ends with Dynamo Moscow visiting Vityaz in the Moscow Region. Fans can expect intense competition as teams battle for crucial points in the standings.
The Christmas matchday brings a challenge between CSKA and SKA to look forward to. The October clash went to St. Petersburg (5:4 OT), but this time, the Moscow side seems to enter the matchup as favorites. They’re riding an eight-game winning streak, fueled by standout performances from their top players. Prokhor Poltapov and Vitaly Abramov are on five-game point streaks, while Maxim Sorkin has recorded points in his last four. SKA won three out of five games in their recent home series and remains the highest-scoring team in the league. But will that be enough to stop Ilya Vorobyov’s surging squad? Moreover, SKA won its previous seven games against CSKA. The Muscovites have just snapped Stanislav Galiyev off Avangard.
The matchday will start earlier in the Eastern Conference with Salavat Yulaev hosting Amur for the second time in three days. On Monday, Semyon Vyazovoi shut out the Tigers, recording his first clean sheet in the league. The Ufa team returned to victory after two straight defeats, and that was Salavat Yulaev’s third W in the last five matches. Amur hasn’t been as successful, with just one win in the last five games, against Sibir (5:1). In the standings, Salavat Yulaev keeps on running behind Traktor in the Eastern Conference’s second place, while Amur is second to last with a thirteen-point gap to the playoff’s line.
After an OT loss in Tashkent to Spartak, Dinamo Minsk returns home to clash with another high-placed team, Ak Bars. The two teams met on Dec. 20 in Kazan, with the Bisons claiming an unexpected, 3:1 road win. Today, Ak Bars will seek revenge after a thrilling win in Moscow over Dynamo (6:5). In the last five matches Ak Bars won three times and gained points in another one (a 2:3 OT loss to Salavat Yulaev), and is in third place in the East with a few games in hand. Dinamo Minsk cemented its position in seventh place in the West, with a four-point advantage over eighth seed Torpedo.
The Nizhny Novgorod franchise hosts Lokomotiv as the teams meet again this season, trying to climb up in the Western Conference’s standings and return to victory after two losses, to SKA (4:6) and Vityaz (5:6 SO), respectively. Lokomotiv is still the top team in the league’s standings, and defeated Torpedo two times out of three this season. It will be an interesting game to follow, with both teams battling hard for a win in a close game.
The intense KHL matchday will end with Vityaz welcoming Dynamo Moscow. The Blue-and-Whites defeated Vityaz three times this season, and will be seeking a fourth triumph over the Moscow Region team. With today’s clash, Dynamo starts a five-game road trip, and will be looking to start it in a good fashion, returning to victory after losing to Ak Bars on Monday (5:6). The Moscow Region franchise, who has several players sitting on injury list, is in ninth place in the Western Conference’s table, while Dynamo lost the third place to CSKA and is now sitting in fourth position.
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (24-10-2, 2nd E) vs Amur (8-26-4, 12th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev enters the second game of a five-match home series following a win over Amur on Monday (3:0).
Amur ends a three-game road trip and most recently lost to Salavat Yulaev.
Salavat Yulaev’s goalie Semyon Vyazovoi is on an 82:31 shutout streak.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Gleb Kuzmin.
Amur: Alexander Bryntsev.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s goalie Alexander Samonov may record his 20th KHL shutout.
17:00: Dinamo Minsk (19-13-5, 7th W) vs Ak Bars (23-10-2, 3rd E)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk, who defeated Ak Bars earlier this season (3:1), enters the second game of a four-match home series following a loss to Spartak on Sunday (2:3 OT).
Ak Bars ends a two-game road trip following a win over Dynamo Moscow also on Sunday (6:5).
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Daniil Sotishvili.
Ak Bars: Yegor Babenko.
Milestone alert
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Vadim Shipachyov may score his 950th league point (currently at 948).
19:30: Torpedo (16-13-7, 8th W) vs Lokomotiv (30-7-2, 1st W)
About the game
Torpedo starts a four-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Lokomotiv starts a three-game road trip fresh off a win over HC Sochi on Sunday (3:1).
The season series between the two sides is 1-2 (1:2 SO, 0:1, 3:0).
Torpedo’s forward Vladislav Firstov and Igor Larionov are on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Torpedo’s forward Vasily Atanasov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (3+4) points.
Injury list
Torpedo: Mikhail Abramov, Markus Phillips.
19:30: Vityaz (15-17-4, 9th W) vs Dynamo Moscow (23-12-3, 4th W)
About the game
Vityaz enters the sixth game of an eight-match home series following a win over Torpedo on Tuesday (6:5 SO).
Dynamo Moscow starts a five-game road trip after a loss to Ak Bars on Sunday (5:6).
The season series between the two teams is 0-3 (0:3, 1:2, 3:4).
Vityaz’s forward Derek Barach is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
Vityaz’s forward Andrei Chivilyov achieved the same feat, but in only three games.
Injury list
Vityaz: Vladimir Galuzin, Sergei Kalinin, Jeremy Roy, Ivan Savchik, Dean Stewart, Grigory Vashchenko.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s forward Dmitry Buchelnikov lines up for his 100th league appearance.
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th shutout in the league.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev may reach 650 KHL points (currently at 648).
19:30: CSKA (22-7-7, 3rd W) vs SKA (22-11-4, 5th W)
About the game
CSKA ends a four-game home series on an eight-match winning streak.
SKA, who defeated CSKA earlier this season (5:4 OT), starts a two-game road trip on a two-match winning streak.
CSKA’s forward Vitaly Abramov is on a five-game scoring streak, with 10 (6+4) points over that span.
CSKA’s forward Prokhor Poltapov is also on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points.
CSKA’s forward Maxim Sorkin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (4+3) points.
Injury list
CSKA: Yegor Fateyev, Dmitry Samorukov.
SKA: Artyom Zemchyonok.
Milestone alert
CSKA’s forward Konstantin Okulov may reach 250 league assists (currently at 249).
