All square in the East

Victories for Traktor and Sibir mean both of these Eastern Conference series are locked at 2-2. However, the two games were very different. Maxim Shabanov powered Traktor’s rally from 1-3, with five points in a 7-3 win. Sibir, meanwhile, edged past Salavat Yulaev with a 2-1 scoreline.

Shabanov sinks Sailors

Admiral Vladivostok 3 Traktor Chelyabinsk 7 (3-1, 0-4, 0-2)

(Series tied at 2-2)

Traktor finally produced a performance that reflected the theoretical gap between the East’s top seed and its lowest-ranked contender. Six unanswered goals in the second and third periods helped Benoit Groulx’s team square this series ahead of game five in Chelyabinsk on Friday.

But it wasn’t entirely plain sailing in Vladivostok: Admiral led 3-1 at the first intermission, and looked well placed to secure a lead in the series before heading back to the Urals. However, Maxim Shabanov’s 5 (2+3) points led Traktor to victory.

The first period was dominated by penalties, to the extent that it was rare to see equal-strength play. Vladimir Tkachyov was the first to visit the box in the sixth minute and although Admiral could not convert that power play, Libor Sulak opened the scoring just as Tkachyov returned to the game. Arkady Shestakov’s assist brought up 100 KHL points. Soon, he made it 101, scoring Admiral’s second of the game.

Right after that, Traktor got on the power play and Grigory Dronov pulled one back for the visitor. Shabanov had an assist to kick off his evening’s contribution. However, for the third time in the opening frame Admiral got on the power play and scored just as Traktor returned to full strength. This time, Ivan Muranov found the net.

At the start of the second period, the teams played four-on-four and Shabanov made the most of it to score 36 seconds after the restart. On 27 minutes, Charles Robinson tied the game on a delayed penalty. Shabanov wasn’t involved in the scoring play, but he drew the foul that gave his team the advantage. He was back on the scoresheet with an assist on the go-ahead goal; Artyom Blazhievsky scoring for the third game in a row with the teams once again playing four-on-four. To complete a memorable middle frame, the visitor added another power play goal through Andrei Svetlakov: from two goals down to two goals up in 20 minutes.

Admiral responded by swapping goalies. However, Ilya Konovalov lasted just 37 seconds of the third period before allowing another goal to Shabanov. The home team’s last hope of making a game of it came and went as Traktor killed Logan Day’s double minor, then Tkachyov added one more power play goal in the last minute.

Ufa offense silenced in Siberia

Sibir Novosibirsk 2 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 1 (0-0, 2-0, 0-1)

(Series tied at 2-2)

In Ufa this series was full of goals as Salavat Yulaev powered to a 2-0 lead. In Novosibirsk, it’s all been very different. Just five goals in two games, and four of them for Sibir to tie the series before Friday’s return to Bashkortostan. Today, Pavel Gogolev and Tayor Beck put the home team in front before Alexander Chmelevski deprived the Siberians of a shut-out in the 58th minute.

Sibir named an unchanged line-up following Monday’s impressive win. However, it was a late call: defenseman Trevor Murphy was at risk of a suspension after he was assessed a major penalty for a slash on Nikita Zorkin in the previous game. Ultimately, the disciplinary committee took no further action and the Canadian was available to play. Salavat Yulaev made one change, with Danil Alalykin getting his first playoff appearance of the season in place of Artyom Pimenov.

The opening stages were characterized by threatening counterattacks from Nathan Todd and Josh Leivo for the visitor, while Sibir twice got on the power play but failed to score. Although Beck and his colleagues could not take those chances, they created several problems for Alexander Samonov in the Ufa net. The goalie made several big saves, and was rewarded with a stroke of fortune when Sergei Shirokov beat him but not the crossbar. As in the previous game, the home defense did a good job of keeping Viktor Kozlov’s team to the outside. Although Salavat had plenty of possession, it struggled to really test Denis Kostin.

There was no shortage of interest in the first period, but also no goals. That changed at the start of the second when Gogolev opened the scoring in the 22nd minute. His effort marked Gogolev’s recovery from the illness that ruled him out of the opening games of the series.

The next big moment came midway through the session. Sibir was already on the power play when the two captains came together. Grigory Panin clattered Shirokov into the boards, and while the home player headed to the locker room, his opposite number went to the box. Within a minute, Beck doubled the lead.

That 2-0 advantage was a fair reflection of the game as a whole. Salavat Yulaev lacked speed in both thought and deed when it went forwards. Sibir defended calmly and with discipline, staying out of the box and covering each other’s play. Ufa’s game was summed up when the visitor finally got a power play late in the frame, but just 30 seconds later saw Leivo’s foul level the numbers.

Sibir, already without captain Shirokov, played the third period with just three lines. A solid defensive effort looked like it would be rewarded with another shut-out, but in the closing minutes Salavat Yulaev gave itself a lifeline. Chmelevski got it back to a one-goal game after Samonov returned to the bench. However, even with six skaters, Ufa could not find another goal in the last couple of minutes and Sibir held on to tie the series.