Three games in the Eastern Conference today!

It’s another light matchday this Wednesday, with Traktor hosting Sibir, Avtomobilist facing Avangard, and Neftekhimik clashing with Vityaz in a key matchup for the playoff picture in both conferences.

The matchday kicks off with two games in the Urals region. In Chelyabinsk, Traktor hosts Sibir, with the Black-and-Whites continuing its home stand riding a four-game winning streak. Earlier this season, the hosts defeated Sibir in all three matchups. With 67 points, they remain atop the Eastern Conference standings, five points clear of their nearest rivals, Ak Bars and Salavat Yulaev, who each have three games in hand. Sibir, despite a 4:3 SO loss to CSKA, extended their point streak to five games, with top imports Trevor Murphy, Taylor Beck, and Brendan Leipsic scoring in all these matches. This performance keeps Vadim Yepanchintsev’s team in eighth place in the East. The visitors are three points ahead of Lada, who have one game in hand over the Novosibirsk team.

In the meantime, in Yekaterinburg, the Motormen face Avangard. Avtomobilist is on an impressive run, remaining undefeated since Jan. 5. During this stretch, the Urals team has racked up six consecutive wins, including their latest road win against HC Sochi (2:1). With 60 points, the hosts sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, just two points behind second place. The Hawks follow in sixth position but trails Ekaterinburg by nine points. Two days ago, the Omsk team suffered their first truly disappointing game under Guy Boucher, conceding four unanswered goals to Salavat Yulaev in Ufa. This came after the Hawks delivered a dominant 4:0 win over CSKA with a mirrored scoreline. Avangard will return to Omsk following today’s game.

In the final game of the matchday, the playoff struggle will be at its top with Neftekhimik hosting Vityaz. The opponents find themselves in a tough spot in the playoff race, both sitting in 10^th place in their respective conferences. Two days ago, Neftekhimik suffered their fifth consecutive loss, falling to Metallurg (2:3 OT). They now trail eighth-place Sibir in the East by four points, having played one game more than the Novosibirsk team. This game will also mark the 250^th KHL match for Neftekhimik’s head coach, Oleg Leontyev. Vityaz, on the other hand, lost their most recent game to Traktor (3:4) and is a full nine points away from the coveted eighth spot. With the stakes so high, any dropped points could be disastrous for either team.

17:00: Traktor (31-13-5, 1^st E) vs Sibir (19-20-7, 8^th E)
About the game

Traktor is in the middle of a three-game home series and won its previous four matches.

Sibir starts a five-game road trip on a three-match losing streak.

The season series between the two teams is 3-0 (5:4, 5:0, 4:3 SO).

Traktor’s forward Vitaly Kravtsov is on a six-game winning streak, with 11 (6+5) points over that span.

Sibir’s defenseman Trevor Murphy is on a five-game scoring streak, with 8 (2+6) points.

Sibir’s forward Taylor Beck is also on a five-game scoring streak, with 8 (1+7) points.

Sibir’s forward Brendan Leipsic is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (4+3) points.

Injury list

Traktor: Nikita Korostelyov, Ostap Safin.

Sibir: Fyodor Gordeyev.

Milestone alert

Traktor’s head coach Benoit Groulx is at his 50^th KHL match.

17:00: Avtomobilist (28-13-6, 5^th E) vs Avangard (24-19-3, 6^th E)
About the game

Avtomobilist starts a three-game home series on a seven-match winning streak.

Avangard ends a two-game road trip following a loss to Salavat Yulaev on Monday (0:4).

The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (3:0, 4:2, 2:4).

Avtomobilist’s forward Anatoly Golyshev is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points over that span.

Avtomobilist’s forward Stephane Da Costa is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points.

Avtomobilist’s forward Maxim Denezhkin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points.

Avtomobilist’s forward Denis Romantsev ls also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points.

Injury list

Avtomobilist: Nick Ebert, Curtis Valk.

Avangard: Sergei Boikov, Emil Galimov, Alex Grant, Alexei Solovyov, Vladimir Tkachyov.

Milestone alert

Avtomobilist’s forward Andrei Obidin lines up for his 400^th league appearance.

Avangard’s forward Nikolai Prokhorkin may record his 350^th KHL point (currently at 348), while Ryan Spooner can reach 250 (currently at 249).

19:30: Neftekhimik (14-20-3, 10^th E) vs Vityaz (18-23-5, 10^th W)
About the game

Neftekhimik enters the third game of a six-match home series on a five-game losing streak.

Vityaz, who defeated Neftekhimik earlier this season (4:3 SO), ends a three-game road trip following a loss to Traktor on Monday (3:4).

Vityaz’s forward Dmitry Buchelnikov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points over that span.

Vityaz’s defenseman Jeremy Roy is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.

Injury list

Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Alexander Dergachyov, Yegor Korbit.

Vityaz: Alexander Daryin, Sergei Kalinin, Grigory Vashchenko.

Milestone alert

Neftekhimik’s head coach Oleg Leontyev is at his 250^th KHL game.

Neftekhimik’s forward Vyacheslav Leshchenko may net his 100^th league tally (currently at 99).

Vityaz’s forward Ivan Savchik lines up for his 100^th league appearance.

Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10^th KHL shutout.