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Emotions and playoff battles on an action-packed matchday!
Six games are on tap with twelve teams hitting the ice, including Lokomotiv visiting Sibir, Avangard clashing with CSKA, Salavat Yulaev facing Avtomobilist, and two games in Moscow in the Western Conference.
Lokomotiv pays a visit to Novosibirsk as the Railwaymen start a four-game road trip that will bring them also to Astana, St. Petersburg, and Moscow before returning home to face Dynamo Moscow on Jan. 25. Lokomotiv won its previous four matches and keeps on holding the first place in the league’s standings. Sibir lost its last outing to Traktor (3:4 SO) and is engaging in a fierce battle with Lada and Neftekhimik for the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot. Among these teams, Sibir has the best offense, with 112 goals.
Then, Omsk will host a remake of the 2019 and 2021 Gagarin Cup finals between Avangard and CSKA. In the new year, the Hawks remain undefeated, with five wins in five games. CSKA’s results are the opposite—four losses in five games. The Muscovites will visit Avangard after their derby with Spartak. Konstantin Okulov will face his former team, CSKA, for the first time. With them, he won three Gagarin Cups. The last time Avangard and CSKA faced off was exactly one year before the upcoming game—on Jan. 17, 2024, when Omsk claimed a 4:1 home victory.
Another exciting Eastern Conference’s game is Salavat Yulaev hosting Avtomobilist. Salavat Yulaev has been struggling to find their rhythm, losing three of their four games in 2025. The two teams have already met twice in this regular season, exchanging home victories—Salavat Yulaev won in Ufa with a 5:3 score, while three days later, Avtomobilist claimed a commanding 6:1 home win. In the first game, Alexander Sharov, who now plays for Avtomobilist, scored for Salavat Yulaev. The Motormen are currently riding a four-game winning streak, defeating Spartak (3:2), Dinamo Minsk (4:3 SO), Admiral (4:3), and Barys (3:2 SO). Most recently, Salavat Yulaev shut out Neftekhimik (5:0).
The Wolves will try to recover facing Traktor at home. Neftekhimik lost to Salavat Yulaev (twice, 0:5, 2:7) and Sibir (1:2 OT), and will need a win today not to lose too much ground from Lada and Sibir in their pursuit of a playoff spot. Traktor keeps on leading the Eastern Conference standings with 63 points, trailing only Lokomotiv on the overall table, and won its past couple of matches, against Sibir (4:3 SO) and Torpedo (5:3), respectively.
The action then moves to the West for two games. First, Spartak hosts Kunlun Red Star as the Red-and-Whites lost their last three matches. Losses to Lokomotiv (4:5) and CSKA (2:4) prompted Spartak’s coaching staff to take some drastic measures. In the derby against CSKA (2-4), three of the red-and-whites’ offensive leaders—Ivan Morozov, Pavel Poryadin, and Nikolai Goldobin—were left out. It’s likely that Alexei Zhamnov will assess the impact of this action in the upcoming match against Kunlun Red Star. The Dragons are heading to Moscow from Omsk, where they narrowly lost to Avangard (2:3) in a hard-fought game, missing the chance to set a new club record for the longest winning streak, which remains at seven games. Kunlun continues to battle for a playoff spot in the Western Conference, trailing eighth-place Torpedo by four points. Spartak, with 57 points, is currently in fourth place in the conference.
Finally, Dynamo Moscow clashes with HC Sochi. The Blue-and-Whites have already won both meetings against Sochi in the current regular season, allowing only one goal over 120 minutes. Dynamo Moscow’s winning streak over Sochi now stands at ten games. Alexei Kudashov’s team remains unbeaten in 2025, with five consecutive victories, and climbed up to second place in the West, while Sochi is at the bottom of the standings.
15:30: Sibir (19-20-5, 8th E) vs Lokomotiv (36-8-2, 1st W)
About the game
Sibir enters the third game of a four-match home series following a loss to Traktor on Wednesday (3:4 SO).
Lokomotiv starts a four-game road trip on a four-match winning streak.
Sibir’s forward Taylor Beck and Lokomotiv’s defenseman Andrei Sergeyev had at least one assist in each of his last three games, totaling four helpers each.
Sibir’s defenseman Trevor Murphy is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points.
Injury list
Sibir: Fyodor Gordeyev.
Lokomotiv: Daniil Isayev.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s forward Artur Kayumov may tally his 100th KHL goal (currently at 99).
16:30: Avangard (23-18-3, 6th E) vs CSKA (26-11-7, 3rd W)
About the game
Avangard ends a three-game home series on a five-match winning streak.
CSKA starts a four-game road trip fresh off a victory over Spartak on Monday (4:2).
Avangard’s forward Reid Boucher is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points over that span.
Avangard’s forward Konstantin Okulov had one helper in each of his previous four matches.
Injury list
Avangard: Sergei Boikov, Emil Galimov, Alex Grant, Alexei Solovyov, Vladimir Tkachyov.
CSKA: Dmitry Samorukov.
Milestone alert
Avangard’s forward Ryan Spooner lines up for his 300th KHL game, while defenseman Ryan Merkley reaches 100. Spooner may also score his 250th league point (currently at 248).
Avangard’s forward Nikolai Prokhorkin may reach 350 points in the KHL (currently at 348).
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (29-13-2, 2nd E) vs Avtomobilist (25-13-6, 5th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev is in the middle of a three-game home series and defeated Neftekhimik on Wednesday (5:0).
Avtomobilist is in the middle of a three-game road trip and won its previous four games.
The teams traded wins earlier this season (5:3, 1:6).
Salavat Yulaev’s goalie Semyon Vyazovoi is on an 89:09 shutout streak.
Avtomobilist’s forward Anatoly Golyshev is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Gleb Kuzmin.
Avtomobilist: Nick Ebert, Curtis Valk.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s defenseman Andrei Vasilevsky lines up for his 600th KHL game.
19:30: Neftekhimik (14-19-12, 10th E) vs Traktor (29-13-5, 1st E)
About the game
Neftekhimik starts a six-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
Traktor ends a four-game road trip following two straight victories.
The season series between the two teams is 0-2 (2:3, 2:6).
Traktor’s forward Charles Robinson is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points over that span.
Traktor’s forward Vitaly Kravtsov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points.
Traktor’s defenseman Artyom Blazhiyevsky is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points.
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Alexander Dergachyov, Yegor Korbit.
Traktor: Nikita Korostelyov, Ostap Safin.
Milestone alert
Neftekhimik’s forward Vyacheslav Leshchenko may score his 100th KHL goal (currently at 99).
19:30: Spartak (26-13-5, 4th W) vs Kunlun Red Star (20-21-4, 9th W)
About the game
Spartak ends a two-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
Kunlun Red Star is in the middle of a five-game road trip and lost to Avangard on Tuesday (2:3).
The season series between the two teams is 1-1 (5:1, 2:4).
Spartak’s forward Ansel Galimov is on a seven-game scoring streak, with 10 (5+5) points over that span.
Injury list
Spartak: Michal Cajkovsky, Yegor Savikov.
Kunlun Red Star: Jack Chelios, Semyon Sinyatkin.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s goalie Artyom Zagidulin may reach 10 KHL shutouts.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (28-14-3, 3rd W) vs HC Sochi (13-27-4, 11th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow ends a three-game home series on a five-match winning streak.
HC Sochi ends a three-game road trip following two straight defeats.
The season series between the teams is 2-0 (5:1, 2:0).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Cedric Paquette is on a five-game scoring streak, with 9 (3+6) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Dmitry Rashevsky is on a four-game scoring streak, with 8 (5+3) points.
Injury list
HC Sochi: Amir Garayev, Timur Khafizov.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s head coach Alexei Kudashov may celebrate his 350th KHL win.
HC Sochi’s defenseman Maxim Fedotov lines up for his 200th league appearance.
