Five games today, with a battle between Dynamo teams!
Five matches are on tap, two in the East and three in the West, starting with Traktor welcoming Lada and Ak Bars seeking revenge against Neftekhimik. In the Western Conference, Torpedo hosts HC Sochi and Vityaz faces Salavat Yulaev. The center stage will see Dynamo Moscow clashing with Dinamo Minsk as the teams face for the fourth time this season.
The match day commences in Chelyabinsk, with the third showdown between Traktor and Lada. So far, the Black-and-Whites have defeated their opponents twice. Both sides are on a two-game winning streak, with Traktor defeating the Far East teams, Amur (5:2) and Admiral (2:1), and Lada recording wins against Eastern Conference rivals Salavat Yulaev (3:0) and Barys (4:2). With the wins, Traktor retained its spot on the top of the East standings, while Lada is in tenth place with only slim chances to reach the postseason.
The Eastern action continues with a revenge match between Ak Bars and Neftekhimik. The two sides met recently, with the Wolves celebrating a 3:2 home victory on Tuesday. The Kazan side is in a bit of a crisis, also losing its previous three games, to Avangard (2:6), Salavat Yulaev (0:3), and Torpedo (1:5), respectively. Neftekhimik has instead defeated SKA on home ice on Saturday (4:3). However, there will be an extra layer of motivation for Ak Bars in today’s game – other than returning to winning games, a victory today will grant the team a ticket to the elimination stage. Moreover, they recovered forward Ilya Safonov, who was out with an injury. For Neftekhimik, a defeat would be a hard one to swallow, with the playoff line sitting eight points above.
The action will then move to the West for three games. Torpedo will seek a win against HC Sochi to retain its coveted spot in the eighth place in the standings. Sochi, however, won its previous four matches, including a 5:3 road win over Dynamo Moscow with Daniil Seroukh scoring all five goals for his team, marking the second time a player hits five tallies in a single game after Alexei Morozov – the current league’s president – scored five goals to Barys back in 2008, almost seventeen years ago. Most recently, Torpedo lost in Moscow to Spartak (4:7) after four straight wins.
Perhaps, however, the hottest game in the matchday will be Dynamo Moscow facing their namesakes from Minsk The showdown between the two Dynamo teams has been quite intriguing this season. We’ve seen a comeback by the Muscovites from 0:3, a narrow victory for the Bisons with a goal from Robert Hamilton and a shutout by Vasily Demchenko. And when the teams met in Moscow, the fans witnessed nine goals and a 6:3 win for the home side. All in all, the results suggest that the fourth matchup is bound to be a must-watch. The Belarusians seem to be in fine shape, having just defeated CSKA on the road (4:1) led by a double by Vadim Shipachyov, who is just one tally from reaching 300 league goals – only Sergei Mozyakin has more (419).
The action-packed matchday ends with Vityaz hosting Salavat Yulaev. The Ufa team was shut out by Lada on Wednesday and will continue its march to retain a spot in the Eastern Conference’s top four. Vityaz is the tenth seed in the West and, with 15 points from the playoff line, a postseason qualification seems unlikely.
17:00: Traktor (37-15-6, 1st E) vs Lada (20-29-6, 10th E)
About the game
Traktor starts a five-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Lada starts a three-game road trip also on a two-match winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-0 (2:1 ОТ, 5:0).
Traktor’s defenseman Logan Day had at least one assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Lada’s goalie Alexander Trushkov is on a 94:32 shutout streak.
Lada’s forward Ivan Romanov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points over that span.
Lada’s forward Alexei Ozhgikhin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points.
Injury list
Lada: Vladislav Chervonenko, Nikolai Demidov, Mikhail Fisenko, Maxim Groshev, Pavel Koltygin.
Milestone alert
Traktor’s goalie Zach Fucale may play his 100th KHL game.
19:00: Ak Bars (35-19-2, 4th E) vs Neftekhimik (18-24-14, 9th E)
About the game
Ak Bars starts a two-game home series on a four-match losing streak.
Neftekhimik starts a six-game road trip on a two-match winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (4:1, 2:0, 2:3).
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Roman Abrosimov, Alexander Dergachyov, Yegor Korbit.
Ak Bars: Yegor Babenko, Mitchell Miller.
Milestone alert
Neftekhimik’s forward Vyacheslav Leshchenko may reach 100 KHL goals (currently at 99), 100 assists (currently at 99), and 200 points (currently at 198).
19:00: Torpedo (27-21-8, 8th W) vs HC Sochi (19-31-6, 11th W)
About the game
Torpedo starts a two-game home series following a loss to Spartak on Saturday (4:7).
HC Sochi ends a three-game road trip on a four-match winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (3:5, 7:1, 3:1).
HC Sochi’s forward Alexander Khokhachyov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
Injury list
Torpedo: Mikhail Abramov, Igor Larionov.
Milestone alert
Torpedo’s forward Maxim Letunov and HC Sochi’s forward Artur Tyanulin may both reach 200 KHL games.
19:30: Vityaz (20-29-7, 10th W) vs Salavat Yulaev (36-17-3, 2nd E)
About the game
Vityaz ends a two-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Salavat Yulaev, who defeated Vityaz earlier this season (4:0), ends a two-game road trip following a loss to Lada on Wednesday (0:3).
Vityaz’s forward Dmitry Buchelnikov had an assist in each of his previous four matches.
Vityaz’s forward Alexei Makeyev is also on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points.
Vityaz’s defenseman Yaroslav Busygin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
Injury list
Vityaz: Ivan Chekhovich, Vladimir Galuzin.
Salavat Yulaev: Gleb Kuzmin.
Milestone alert
Vityaz’s goalie Dmitry Shikin may record his 10th KHL shutout.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (34-17-5, 2nd W) vs Dinamo Minsk (30-18-7, 7th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow ends a two-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Dinamo Minsk enters the third game of a four-match road trip following two consecutive wins.
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (6:3, 4:3, 0:1).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxime Comtois is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that span.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Artyom Ilyenko, Brennan Menell.
Dinamo Minsk: Dillon Dube, Nikita Pyshkaylo.
Milestone alert
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Sergei Kuznetsov may reach 100 KHL games.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Vadim Shipachyov may become the second player in the KHL history to reach the 300-goal mark (currently at 299).
