KHL 3x3, Round 3: Ak Bars’ series, and Magnitka’s second Supergame

Round three of the KHL 3x3 Championship saw Ak Bars on top again. The Kazan team won all six of its games to take a commanding lead at the top of the Winline Division. In the Fonbet Division, Metallurg also has a 10-point lead finishing second in this round. And Magnitka also had the consolation of halting Ak Bars in the Supergame to secure its second million-ruble check of the tournament.

Story of the round – six wins for Ak Bars

Ak Bars became the first team to win all six games in one round. The 0-6 loss in the opening game of the season against Ak Bars looks increasingly improbable, since every other game has ended with a win. Leaving aside the Supergames, which do not contribute to the tournament standings, Ak Bars has 11 straight wins and counting. Watching on, it’s easy to understand why: great passing play and excellent understanding among the players.

But we must also give credit to Metallurg: in the Supergame, Magnitka found the answers. Playing hard was enough to drag the game to a shoot-out, where the Steelmen won their second Supergame in three rounds.

Game of the round – Traktor 4 Metallurg 5

This final game of the round would decide which team would advance to play in that Supergame. When Magnitka got up 3-0, it seemed that the question was answered and Evgeny Timkin’s men would ease into the showcase. But Traktor had other ideas. A sudden shift through the gears saw the scores tied in the space of just 90 seconds. And there was more to come. Pavel Varfolomeyev restored Metallurg’s lead, then Grigory Nesvetayev got his second of the game for Traktor. In the end, Mikhail Gonchar potted the decider and Metallurg again came out on top.

Hero of the round – Yury Muravyov (Ak Bars)

Metallurg captain Sergei Shmelyov had the final word in this round, converting the winning penalty shot. However for the round as a whole, it was hard to look past Ak Bars for the MVP. Once again, it was tough to single out an individual since Kazan played as a real team throughout. However, Yury Muravyov earned the plaudits after scoring in all six games to finish with eight goals.