A big KHL Monday with seven matches, including a Moscow Derby
Spartak faces Dynamo Moscow for the fourth time this season, while CSKA seeks revenge against HC Sochi. Earlier on, Amur takes on Traktor, Sibir welcomes Avtomobilist, and Barys clashes with Metallurg in the Eastern Conference. In the West, Severstal hosts SKA, and Vityaz meets Dinamo Minsk.
Once again, the KHL matchday starts in Khabarovsk, with Amur hosting Traktor trying to return to victory after four straight losses. The Chelyabinsk side bounced back after a home defeat to Metallurg and achieved a win in Vladivostok despite Shane Prince getting his 200th KHL point. With that win, Traktor retained its top spot in the Eastern Conference’s standings, while Amur is in eleventh place and only plain mathematics allows them to still have playoffs hopes. After this game, Traktor will fly back to Chelyabinsk.
Then, Sibir welcomes Avtomobilist. The home side was on an excellent streak, halted by Metallurg on Saturday – Magnitka went away with a 5:2 victory in Novosibirsk. Sibir has however a ten-point cushion over Neftekhimik, the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference, and getting to the postseason looks like a formality at this point for Vadim Yepanchintsev’s men. On Saturday, Avtomobilist won in Khabarovsk, with Stephane Da Costa celebrating his 200th KHL tally, and retained a coveted spot in the Eastern Conference top four.
In the last game in the East, Barys welcomes Metallurg. The Kazakhs are indeed having a bad season, and they are running out of chances to at least please the home crowd with a win, after two consecutive losses on home ice, to SKA (2:5) and Lada (2:4). Barys dressed a very young lineup in those two games, and most likely will do the same in todays’ showdown against Magnitka. The Magnitogorsk franchise won three of its last five matches and retained its place just outside of the top four in the East. Interestingly enough, the Kazakhs managed to snatch a win against Metallurg earlier this season, with Metallurg also winning one match.
The action then moves to the Western Conference, with Severstal hosting SKA. The two teams last met a month ago, with the Steelers achieving a 7:4 win in St. Petersburg. To add a further layer of excitement to the game, the teams are tied at 69 points in the standings, in fifth and sixth place, respectively. Today’s duel will also be another exciting encounter of two offensive teams, and goals are to be expected in Cherepovets. Severstal is up 2-1 in the season series between the two teams. After this game, SKA will return home to St. Petersburg.
Vityaz has now lost most of its hopes for a postseason qualification, yet he didn’t surrender and defeated Dinamo Minsk 3:0 on the road just a week ago before falling to Kunlun Red Star on Saturday (4:5 SO). The Moscow Region franchise will now face the Bisons again for a revenge match, without much at stake due to the sheer difference of points in the standings, but no team will welcome a loss in such a battle. The Belarusians are currently the seventh seed in the Western Conference, and they wouldn't like to lose ground to Torpedo. It will be the sixth meeting between the two sides this season, with Dinamo Minsk claiming three wins against Vityaz’s two.
Two games in Moscow close out an exciting KHL Monday. CSKA hosts HC Sochi for a revenge game after a sensational Sochi win on Thursday, with young goalie Sergei Ivanov stopping 35 shots for his third shutout this season in a 2:0 win for the home side. The Muscovites are now in fourth place in the West’s table, tied with Spartak at 70 points. Despite that, HC Sochi is up in the season series, two games to one.
The Red-and-Whites will host Dynamo Moscow for another exciting Capital Derby after Thursday's showdown that saw the Blue-and-Whites emerging victorious with two goals coming from top scorer Nikita Gusev and tallies by Jordan Weal and Maxime Comtois (4:1). After that, Spartak achieved a nice home win over Torpedo (7:4), By the 29th minute, Spartak was trailing 0:4, and a comeback seemed nearly impossible. However, the Muscovites pulled off the unthinkable—they got one goal back before the second intermission and then dominated the third period with a stunning 6:0 run. This was Spartak’s first-ever KHL victory after trailing by four goals in a game—before this, they had failed to mount a comeback in all 63 previous instances. Torpedo, on the other hand, has now lost a game after leading 4:0 for the third time in KHL history, making them the all-time leader in this unfortunate category.
12:00: Amur (13-35-7, 11th E) vs Traktor (36-15-6, 1st E)
About the game
Amur ends a three-game home series on a four-match losing streak.
Traktor ends a two-game road trip following a win over Admiral on Saturday (2:1).
The season series between the two teams is 1-1 (3:4, 3:2 OT).
Amur’s forward Vladislav Barulin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
15:30: Sibir (25-21-8, 7th E) vs Avtomobilist (33-14-7, 3rd E)
About the game
Sibir ends a four-game home series following a loss to Metallurg on Saturday (2:5).
Avtomobilist ends a six-game road trip after defeating Amur also on Saturday (3:2 OT).
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (0:4, 2:4, 4:0).
Sibir’s forward Taylor Beck is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that span.
Avtomobilist’s forward Stephane Da Costa is on a twelve-game scoring streak, with 14 (4+10) points.
Avtomobilist’s forward Brooks Macek netted at least one goal in each of his previous three outings, totaling four goals.
Injury list
Sibir: Fyodor Gordeyev.
Avtomobilist: Curtis Valk.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s goalie Vladimir Galkin may record his 50th KHL victory.
17:30: Barys (11-37-7, 12th E) vs Metallurg (33-18-4, 5th E)
About the game
Barys is in the middle of a five-game home series and lost its previous five matches.
Metallurg enters the sixth game of a seven-match road trip on a two-game winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 1-1 (2:1, 0:2).
Barys’ forward Nikita Setdikov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Metallurg’s forward Daniil Vovchenko scored a goal in each of his previous three matches.
Injury list
Barys: Alikhan Asetov, Maxim Mukhametov.
Metallurg: Vladislav Yeryomenko.
Milestone alert
Metallurg’s forward Igor Geraskin may record his 200th KHL point (currently at 199).
19:00: Severstal (34-19-1, 5th W) vs SKA (32-19-5, 6th W)
About the game
Severstal ends a two-game home series following a loss to Lokomotiv on Friday (1:5).
SKA ends a five-game road trip and lost to Neftekhimik on Saturday (3:4).
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (5:8, 4:3, 7:4).
Injury list
Severstal: Yaroslav Dyblenko, Alexander Skorenov.
SKA: Arseny Gritsyuk, Artemy Pleshkov.
Milestone alert
Severstal’s forward Adam Liska lines up for his 400th KHL game, while SKA’s forward Valentin Zykov reaches 200.
SKA’s forward Pavel Dedunov and defenseman Andrei Pedan may reach 100 KHL points (both currently at 99).
19:00: Vityaz (20-28-7, 10th W) vs Dinamo Minsk (28-18-7, 7th W)
About the game
Vityaz starts a two-game home series after a loss to Kunlun Red Star on Saturday (4:5 SO).
Dinamo Minsk starts a four-game road trip after a loss to Vityaz on Thursday (0:3).
The season series between the two sides is 2-3 (1:5, 1:2, 4:1, 4:6, 3:0).
Vityaz’s goalie Andrei Kareyev is on a 62:25 shutout streak.
Vityaz’s forward Dmitry Buchelnikov had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Vityaz’s forwards Derek Barach and Alexei Makeyev are on an identical three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Vityaz: Ivan Chekhovich, Vladimir Galuzin.
Dinamo Minsk: Nikita Pyshkailo.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th KHL shutout.
19:30: CSKA (31-15-8, 4th W) vs HC Sochi (17-31-6, 11th W)
About the game
CSKA starts a two-game home series following a loss to HC Sochi on Thursday (0:2).
HC Sochi starts a three-game road trip on a two-match winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (3:4 SO, 4:1, 0:2).
HC Sochi’s goalie Sergei Ivanov is on a 73:09 shutout streak.
Injury list
CSKA: Vitaly Abramov, Ivan Prosvetov, Dmitry Samorukov.
Milestone alert
CSKA’s head coach Ilya Vorobyov may celebrate his 350th KHL win.
HC Sochi’s forward Artur Tyanulin lines up for his 200th league appearance.
19:30: Spartak (31-15-8, 3rd W) vs Dynamo Moscow (34-16-4, 2nd W)
About the game
Spartak enters the second game of a four-match home series following a win over Torpedo on Saturday (7:4).
Dynamo Moscow plays the lone road game of the series on a three-game winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 1-2 (4:2, 0:5, 1:4).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev is on a six-game scoring streak, with 11 (7+4) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Jordan Weal is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Artyom Ilyenko, Brennan Menell.
Milestone alert
Spartak’s forward Andrei Loktionov lines up for his 600th KHL game.
Spartak’s goalies Dmitry Nikolayev and Artyom Zagidulin may record their respective 10th KHL shutout.
