Final stretch for playoff hopefuls

With two weeks of the regular season to play, there are just three teams left unsure of their playoff fate – all of them in the Eastern Conference. Will the full line-up be decided this week, or will it go to the wire? Elsewhere, we’re looking forward to inaugurating a new KHL arena and following the pursuit of a goal record.

Western playoff participants set

We have eight from eight in the Western Conference. Torpedo’s 3-0 victory over Spartak on Saturday sealed the last remaining post-season spot, giving Igor Larionov’s team an unassailable advantage over ninth-placed Kunlun. However, it’s anyone’s guess what the first-round playoff pairings will look like. Although Lokomotiv has already secured first place and Torpedo looks destined to finish eighth, there are just eight points between Dynamo Moscow in second and SKA in seventh.

Two from three in the East

The picture in the Eastern Conference is not quite complete, but we’re close to confirming the playoff contenders here. Six teams have punched their tickets, and Lada’s elimination on Saturday means Admiral and Sibir are keeping a close eye on ninth-placed Neftekhimik. The Wolves are five points adrift of Sibir with six games to play – but the Sailors are still in the mix: despite being eight points clear, they have back-to-back games at Neftekhimik to wrap up their regular season campaign. 

Avtomobilist’s new home

Monday’s game between Avtomobilist and CSKA will be the first KHL game at the new UGMK Arena in Yekaterinburg. The 12,000 seater venue staged its first hockey action earlier this month with a junior game and now it’s the turn of the first team to settle into its new home. And home comforts might be a boost for Nikolai Zavarukhin’s team, which lost three in a row on the road.

The 200-goal club

Two more teams – Traktor and Spartak – have reached 200 goals for the season. They join SKA, which reached the landmark some weeks ago and is now up to 224. Yet there is a contrast between East and West. Traktor, current Eastern Conference leader, has more goals than any of its rivals. And it also has one of the best defenses in the section, with only Metallurg allowing fewer than its 147 goals. In the West, it’s goals at both ends: SKA’s 195 goals allowed is exceeded only by Sochi and Kunlun Red Star; Spartak’s 183 is the next worst on the list. The coming week could see more teams reach 200 goals: Salavat Yulaev currently has 196, Torpedo 194 and Ak Bars 190. 

Record pursuit

Josh Leivo is still chasing Sergei Mozyakin’s record of 48 regular season goals. He’s now up to 44, sharing second place on the all-time list with Dmitrij Jaskin. Leivo, who is well clear in the KHL scoring race, has five games left to get the five goals needed to set a new record. 

Winning streaks

There’s an argument that form and momentum are key for any team going into the playoffs. If that’s the case, Avangard and Dinamo Minsk look to be in a good place right now. Avangard stretched its winning streak to 11 games this week, coming out on top in road games at Sochi, Ak Bars and Torpedo. It says much for the team’s turnaround under Guy Boucher that this hot streak only has the Hawks in sixth in the East. However, it's now just a point off the top four. Dinamo, meanwhile, equalled a club record on Sunday with a ninth win in a row. A 4-2 success over Kunlun Red Star – the second in a week, with victory against Lada in between – helped Dmitry Kvartalnov’s men up to third in the West.

Landmark victory

It’s been a rough season for Barys. The Kazakhs are rooted to the foot of the overall standings with just 33 points, while the 89 goals scored in 63 games has the club on course for an unwanted record low. But last week brought a rare bright spot: the team’s 13th win of the season brought up 500 victories in the KHL. A 4-1 verdict over Sibir secured the landmark – and put a dent in Sibir’s hopes of sealing its playoff spot with a minimum of drama.

Long service award

Avtomobilist defenseman Nikita Tryamkin played his 700th KHL game during the week. He made his debut in 2012/2013, and has played his entire career in Russia with his hometown club. That longevity was rewarded at the end of the week when he agreed a three-year contract extension with the Motormen.