A big KHL Saturday with seen games!
Another exciting KHL matchday will start in the Far East, with Admiral facing Traktor and Amur hosting Avtomobilist. The Tigers may have their last chance to have at least a mathematical hope to qualify for postseason and will need a win over the Motormen. However, they will have another chance even if losing. The Tigers will lose any postseason should they lose to Traktor in regulation time and Admiral doesn’t lose in regulation to Avtomobilist.
Either, if Amur lose to Traktor in extra time and the Sailors defeat the Motormen and Sibir doesn’t lose to Magnitka in regulation. Amur lost its previous three matches, while Avtomobilist lost two. In the other Far East match, Traktor will try to protect their spot at the top of the Eastern Conference’ standings and return to victory after a home loss to Metallurg, while Admiral needs points to solidify its position in the playoff places.
Moreover, the Motormen also have a chance to book a ticket to the playoffs, if they win against Admiral and Neftekhimik loses to SKA. Or, they can lose to the Sailors in extra time and both Neftekhimik and Lada lose their games (to SKA and Barys, respectively).
Then, in Novosibirsk, Sibir welcomes Metallurg seeking a fifth straight win. Magnitka won its previous encounter, in Chelyabinsk, and will look to stretch its winning streak. The Novosibirsk team has yet to taste defeat in February. In their last three matches, Vadim Yepanchintsev’s squad allowed just one goal each to Amur (5:1) and Lada (4:1, 4:1). With 68 points, the visitors currently sit in fifth place in the conference. The hosts are in seventh place with 10 points fewer. Admiral, right behind them in the standings, has the same number of points, but Sibir has two games in hand.
As said earlier, Neftekhimik hosts SKA, and Lada welcomes Barys. The Togliatti side has sixteen points from the playoff line, and lost its previous ten matches. Barys failed to score in either of their previous two meetings with Lada in the current regular season (0-5, 0-1). The hosts are on a four-game losing streak, while Lada’s slump is even worse.
The action then moves to the Western Conference for two games. First, Spartak welcomes Torpedo. The opponents last faced a bit more than a week ago in Nizhny Novgorod, where Torpedo claimed its third win in four meetings against Spartak this season. Igor Larionov’s team is currently on a four-game winning streak. After their match against Spartak, they allowed just one goal each to Ak Bars (5:1) and Kunlun Red Star (4:1). Two days ago, Spartak suffered a 1:4 defeat in a Moscow derby against Dynamo. Defensemen Dmitry Vishnevsky and Michal Cajkovsky missed the game, while goaltender Dmitry Nikolaev sustained a minor injury in practice. Will they recover in time for the matchup against Torpedo, a team that has caused Spartak so many problems this season? The hosts sit in sixth place in the Western Conference with 68 points, just four points behind second place. Torpedo, meanwhile, firmly holds the final playoff spot in the top eight, leading their closest competitors by 11 points.
A showdown between Kunlun Red Star and Vityaz closes an exciting KHL Saturday. The Dragons’ 1:4 loss to Torpedo two days ago pushed them 11 points away from the playoff zone, a gap that will be extremely difficult to overcome. Their next opponents will be Vityaz, who sit one spot below them in the standings with 46 points this season. Pavel Desyatkov’s team managed to snap a six-game losing streak in style, scoring three unanswered goals in an away win over Dinamo Minsk.
10:00: Admiral (24-21-10, 8th E) vs Traktor (35-15-6, 1st E)
About the game
Admiral ends a six-game home series following a win over Avtomobilist on Thursday (4:3 OT).
Traktor starts a two-game road trip after a home loss to Metallurg on Wednesday (1:3).
The season series between the two sides is 1-2 (0:2, 4:3 OT, 2:3 SO).
Admiral’s forward Stepan Starkov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points over that span.
Admiral’s defenseman Libor Sulak had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Injury list
Admiral: Artyom Chmykhov, Dmitry Deryabin.
Milestone alert
Admiral’s forward Shane Prince may reach 200 KHL points (currently at 199).
10:30: Amur (13-35-6, 11th E) vs Avtomobilist (32-14-7, 4th E)
About the game
Amur is in the middle of a three-game home series and lost its previous three matches.
Avtomobilist enters the fifth game of a six-match road trip on a two-game losing streak.
The season series between the two teams is 0-2 (2:3, 4:5).
Avtomobilist’s forward Stephane Da Costa is on an eleven-game scoring streak, with 12 (3+9) points over that span.
Avtomobilist’s forward Anatoly Golyshev is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Curtis Valk.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s forward Stephane Da Costa may reach 200 KHL goals (currently at 199).
Avtomobilist’s goalie Vladimir Galkin may celebrate his 50th win in the league.
13:30: Sibir (25-20-8, 7th E) vs Metallurg (32-18-4, 5th E)
About the game
Sibir enters the third game of a four-match home series on a four-game winning streak.
Metallurg enters the fifth game of a seven-match road trip after a win against Traktor on Wednesday (3:1).
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (4:3, 1:4, 1:3).
Sibir’s forward Sergei Shirokov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Sibir’s forward Kirill Rasskazov is also on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points.
Sibir’s forward Taylor Beck is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
Sibir’s forward Georgy Belousov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points.
Injury list
Sibir: Fyodor Gordeyev.
Metallurg: Vladislav Yeryomenko.
Milestone alert
Metallurg’s forward Igor Geraskin may reach 200 points in the KHL (currently at 199).
15:00: Barys (11-36-7, 12th E) vs Lada (18-29-6, 10th E)
About the game
Barys enters the second game of a five-match home series on a four-game losing streak.
Lada ends a three-game road trip following ten straight losses.
The season series between the two teams is 0-2 (0:5, 0:1).
Injury list
Barys: Alikhan Asetov, Maxim Mukhametov.
Lada: Vladislav Chervonenko, Nikolai Demidov, Mikhail Fisenko, Maxim Groshev, Pavel Koltygin.
Milestone alert
Lada’s forward Dmitry Kugryshev may reach 400 KHL points (currently at 399).
Lada’s defenseman Maxim Berezin may record his 100th KHL assist (currently at 99).
17:00: Neftekhimik (16-24-14, 9th E) vs SKA (32-18-5, 5th W)
About the game
Neftekhimik starts a two-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
SKA, who defeated Neftekhimik earlier this season (3:2 OT), enters the fourth game of a five-match road trip after defeating Barys on Wednesday (5:2).
Neftekhimik’s forward German Tochilkin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
SKA’s forward Ivan Demidov had at least an assist in each of his previous five games, totaling six helpers.
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Alexander Dergachyov, Yegor Korbit.
SKA: Arseny Gritsyuk, Artemy Pleshkov.
Milestone alert
Neftekhimik’s forward Vladislav Leshchenko may reach 100 KHL goals (currently at 99), 100 assists (currently at 99), and 200 points (currently at 198).
SKA’s defenseman Dmitry Yudin lines up for his 600th KHL game, while forward Marat Khairullin reaches 500.
17:00: Spartak (30-15-8, 6th W) vs Torpedo (27-20-8, 8th W)
About the game
Spartak starts a four-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Torpedo ends a three-game road trip on a four-match winning streak.
The season series between the two sides is 1-3 (4:2, 0:6, 2:3 SO, 2:3 SO).
Torpedo’s forward Yegor Vinogradov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Spartak: Roman Bychkov, Yegor Ivanov.
Torpedo: Mikhail Abramov, Igor Larionov.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s forward Yegor Filin lines up for his 100th league appearance.
Spartak’s forward Andrei Loktionov may score his 300th league point (currently at 299).
Spartak’s goalies Dmitry Nikolayev and Artyom Zagidulin may record their respective 10th KHL shutout.
Torpedo’s defenseman Bogdan Konyushkov lines up for his 200th KHL game.
17:00: Kunlun Red Star (23-27-5, 9th W) vs Vityaz (20-28-6, 10th W)
About the game
Kunlun Red Star ends an eight-game home series following a loss to Torpedo on Wednesday (1:4).
Vityaz ends a three-game road trip and defeated Dinamo Minsk also on Wednesday (3:0).
The season series between the two teams is (2:7, 3:2 OT, 2:1).
Vityaz’s goalie Andrei Kareyev is on a 62:25 shutout streak.
Injury list
Kunlun Red Star: Jack Chelios, Parker Foo, Tomas Jurco, Semyon Sinyatkin.
Vityaz: Ivan Chekhovich, Alexander Daryin, Vladimir Galuzin, Grigory Vashchenko.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th KHL shutout.
