Three more book playoff spots. February 27 round-up
Thursday’s KHL action saw Severstal, CSKA and Dinamo Minsk clinch their playoff places. The key result was CSKA’s 6-0 victory over ninth-placed Kunlun. As well as guaranteeing a top-eight finish for the Muscovites, it also opened the way for Severstal (beaten 2-3 at home by Torpedo) and Dinamo (2-1 winners over Spartak) to punch their tickets. The day’s other game saw Dynamo Moscow return to second in the West with a 1-0 win over SKA in St. Petersburg.
Tertyshny leads Torpedo to victory
Severstal Cherepovets 2 Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod 3 (0-2, 1-1, 1-0)
Two goals from Nikita Tertyshny set Torpedo on the way to a narrow win at Severstal. The former Traktor man struck twice in the first 10 minutes, giving the visitor a lead that it would hold until the end. Severstal battled back to make it a one-goal game with 11 minutes to play, but could not escape defeat in regulation.
Both teams came into the game looking to clarify their playoff prospects. For Severstal, a win today would guarantee post season action, and even defeat might not bring any further delay if the Steelmen’s result was no worse than Kunlun Red Star’s. Torpedo also had an eye on Kunlun’s result as it looked to add to a seven-point lead over the team currently in ninth. Anything better than defeat in regulation for the visitor would also end Sochi’s mathematical hopes of making the playoffs.
The early exchanges definitely favored Torpedo. Nikita Tertyshny opened the scoring in the fourth minute and double the lead midway through the first period. Severstal was by no means out of contention and enjoyed a good deal of attacking possession, but could not find a way back in the first period.
That changed after the intermission. In the 26th minute Kirill Pilipenko halved the deficit, assisted by Danil Aimurzin as Severstal’s leaders combined once again. However, there was no great turnaround in the game. Instead, Torpedo restored its two-goal advantage midway through the second period on a goal from Vasily Atanasov and then enjoyed the first power play of the evening when Ivan Podshivalov was assessed a tripping minor. The power play did not accrue, but Torpedo held a 3-1 lead going into the third period.
Midway through the third, Podshivalov pulled a goal back for Severstal. But the home team could not complete its fightback. Instead, Torpedo held on for a 3-2 win to knock Sochi out of playoff contention. Severstal’s disappointment was eased shortly after the hooter when Kunlun’s defeat at CSKA confirmed the home team’s playoff place for 2025.
Playoff place for Dynamo
Dinamo Minsk 2 Spartak Moscow 1 (2-0, 0-1, 0-0)
Belarus will host playoff hockey again this season after Dinamo reeled off a fifth successive victory. Success at home to second-placed Spartak sealed a post-season berth for Minsk, while the visitor fell behind Dynamo.
Dinamo’s recent surge in form, which included a 3-0 win at Spartak four days earlier, had lifted Dmitry Kvartalnov’s team to the brink of securing its playoff place. With that objective in sight, it was no surprise to see the host on top in the opening frame as Sam Anas scored twice.
That said, Spartak contributed to its own downfall. The opening goal came on the power play after goalie Dmitry Nikolayev knocked the net of its moorings. Anas took advantage with a shot from the right-hand circle to break the deadlock in the 16th minute. Twelve seconds later, Minsk was back on the power play after an interference call against Nikolai Goldobin. As Dinamo pressed, Nikita Yefremov was penalized for closing his hand on the puck in front of Nikolayev’s net and Anas stepped up to convert the penalty shot.
Spartak had a lift at the start of the second period with a power play of its own. The visitor could not score with the extra man, but managed to ride the momentum and reduce the deficit in the 24th minute. Mikhail Maltsev’s shot flashed wide of the target but rebounded off the boards for Adam Ruzicka to score from the slot.
After that, the Muscovites continued to push for a tying goal. It wasn’t until late in the second period that we saw much from Dinamo’s offense. However, Vasily Demchenko was in solid form in the home net to preserve that 2-1 lead to the intermission.
And after the break the game continued in similar fashion. Spartak sought a way through, Dinamo defended carefully. It wasn’t until Minsk captain Andrei Stas took a tripping minor in the 53rd minute that we saw a real chance for Spartak to change the trajectory of the game. The Belarusians killed that one, but immediately saw Roman Gorbunov go to the box. This time, Andrei Zhamnov called a time-out and almost immediately a Ruzicka shot clipped the crossbar on its way over.
However, that was as close as Spartak would get to saving the game. Dinamo closed out the win, moving to 73 points and securing its playoff spot.
Big win powers CSKA into playoffs
CSKA Moscow 6 Kunlun Red Star 0 (0-0, 1-0, 5-0)
The home side got the win it needed to confirm its playoff spot, despite some spirited opposition from Kunlun. The visitor arrived in Moscow on the back of two successive road wins, but still had plenty of ground to make up on eighth-placed Torpedo.
With high stakes for both teams, the first period failed to catch fire. CSKA had the better of the play but there were few scoring chances of note.
Things picked up after the intermission. Jayden Halbgewachs tested Pavel Khomchenko early on, but CSKA quickly responded. Prokhor Poltapov’s breakaway goal opened the scoring in the 23rd minute and, after the home team killed the first penalty of the game, it went on to dictate the play until the midway stage.
However, Red Star improved in the latter stages of the frame. A second power play for the visitor was far more dangerous, and Khomchenko made a huge save to deny Tyler Graovac a tying goal late in the second period.
The Dragons almost burned CSKA at the start of the third as well, but Yaroslav Likhachyov’s shot hammered into the post. However, the game took a decisive turn in the 45th minute when Jan Drozg was ejected from the game for a dangerous high stick. The major penalty brought a power play goal for Vladislav Kamenev and the home team created more promising chances as the five-minute advantage continued. By the time Red Star was back to full strength, it had barely 10 minutes to recover a two-goal deficit.
And within moments, the CSKA lead jumped to 4-0. Kirill Dolzhenkov and Denis Guryanov scored within a minute of one another to put the game out of reach, then Joey Duszak became the second Kunlun player to be ejected from the game. Two more power play goals completed the rout.CSKA’s win secures its playoff spot, while Red Star now has a nine-point gap to make up on Torpedo with just eight games left to play.
Comtois strike defeats SKA
SKA St. Petersburg 0 Dynamo Moscow 1 (0-0, 0-0, 0-1)
A solitary goal was enough to give Dynamo the verdict in St. Petersburg. Thursday’s win moves Alexei Kudashov’s men up to second in the Western Conference. And, if the standings do not change in the last month of the season, they would resume hostilities with seven-placed SKA in post season.
The home team was without influential forward Evgeny Kuznetsov, who is reportedly suffering with SARS. His absence may have contributed to a tight start in sixth and final meeting between the teams in this regular season. SKA had the edge in the early stages, albeit without many big chances in front of Maxim Motorygin’s net. Gradually, Dynamo gained the upper hand. Maxim Dzhioshvili’s attempt from close range bounced kindly for Pavel Kudryavtsev to shoot, but his effort went straight into Artemy Pleshkov’s chest. Then, just before the hooter, Dmitry Rimashevsky battled to the slot in time to redirect Andrei Burmistrov’s point shot. Pleshkov again came to the rescue, spreading himself to make the save.
However, the visitor could not build on that in the second stanza. Instead, SKA was the livelier team in another goalless session. However, both teams hit the post: Jordan Weal going close for Dynamo before Vladimir Alistrov followed suit for the home team. The game remained deadlocked at the second intermission.
With both goalies in good form, it took 15 minutes of the third to find a breakthrough. Even a major penalty on Alistrov came and went without SKA yielding a goal. Yet all that good work on the penalty kill was undone in the 55th minute when Dynamo finally got in front. The visitor launched a quick counter, Rashevsky sent the puck down the left wing and Max Comtois took over to fire home the winning goal.
In the closing stages, SKA pushed forward in search of a tying goal. However, Dynamo defended soundly to take the verdict and send the home team to a fourth loss in five games.
