Round two takes shape
Six of eight first-round playoff series are in the books. We’ve seen the defending champion deposed, a new recruit for the 250-goal club and just one series ending in a sweep. And there are a couple of game seven deciders to look out for ahead of round two.
250 for Gusev as Dynamo progresses
Nikita Gusev scored his 250th KHL goal on Sunday to help Dynamo Moscow finish off its series against SKA in six games. He struck in the 46th minute of the game, opening a 4-2 lead for his team and taking the game out of SKA’s reach. Gusev is the sixth player to reach 250 goals in the league and, ironically, 149 of them came as a SKA forward. Dynamo’s success in the series handed Petersburg a first-round loss for the first time since 2010.
Minsk makes history
With a 6-2 win at CSKA on Saturday, Dinamo Minsk won its first-round series 4-2 and progresses for the first time in KHL playoff history. This is the ninth time that the Belarusians have continued into post-season and the fifth in a row. Yet previously, the Bison got no further, halted variously by SKA (three times), Dynamo Moscow and Lokomotiv (twice each) and Jokerit.
Traktor sinks Admiral
In the end, there was no surprise in the series between top seed Traktor and eighth-ranked Admiral in the Eastern Conference. But the Sailors played a full part in this battle before falling in game six. Not only did Leonids Tambijevs’ outsiders win twice, they had a 4-0 lead in game five but fell to a huge fightback and lost in overtime. The momentum swung behind Traktor, and Benoit Groulx’s team finished the job with a 2-0 win in Vladivostok.
Champion ousted early
Defending champion Metallurg suffered an early end to its defense. Magnitka fell at the first hurdle against Avangard, going down in six games to Guy Boucher’s resurgent Hawks. The Siberians jumped to a 3-0 lead in the series, but Metallurg responded to get it back to 2-3 and raise hopes of a spectacular fightback. However, in game six Avangard got the job done in Omsk, scoring three unanswered goals in the second period on the way to a 3-2 verdict.
Lokomotiv sweeps through
Only one first round series ended in a sweep and, perhaps unsurprisingly, Lokomotiv was the team that made the perfect start to the playoffs. Igor Nikitin’s team won all four games against Torpedo in regulation. Goals from Alexander Radulov and Richard Panik made the difference in game four, setting up a 2-1 victory in Nizhny Novgorod to complete the series at the first available opportunity.
Spartak progresses past Severstal
For the second season in a row, Spartak is in the second round of the playoffs. A 4-1 series success over Severstal sees Alexei Zhamnov’s team advance. Now the Red-and-Whites are seeking a first appearance in the KHL’s final four. Severstal, meanwhile, will ponder what it needs to win a playoff series. This is the fifth year in a row that the Lynx made post season, but the club has yet to make it further.
Game sevens await
Two series are still to be decided. On Monday, Avtomobilist hosts Ak Bars for game seven of a series that has ebbed and flowed from the start. Then on Tuesday, Salavat Yulaev faces a decider against Sibir in Ufa. That series began with Salavat scoring 15 goals in two games, but Viktor Kozlov’s team has yet to land a knock-out blow on a dogged opponent.
Larionov leaves Torpedo
After three seasons behind the bench in Nizhny Novgorod, Igor Larionov has left Torpedo. The club announced the termination of the coach’s contract on Friday following the team’s first-round playoff exit at the hands of Lokomotiv. The Professor had 220 games at the helm, winning 112. While his spell saw the emergence of rising stars such as Nikita Artamonov and Vasily Atanasov, results steadily declined. Larionov’s first season saw Torpedo finish fourth in the West and reach the second round of the playoffs; this term the team was eighth and suffered a first round sweep. Larionov is the second head coach to step down since the end of the season, with Sochi’s Sergei Zubov also leaving his post.
