Loko one step away from back-to-back finals

A 3-0 win at Salavat Yulaev puts Lokomotiv up 3-1 in this 2025 KHL playoff semi-final. Daniil Isayev blanked the home offense, and goals from the visitor’s promising young forwards settled the outcome. 

Reshaped third line powers Lokomotiv triumph

Salavat Yulaev Ufa 0 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 3 (0-2, 0-1, 0-0)

(Lokomotiv leads the series 3-1)

Back-to-back wins in Ufa put Lokomotiv within one game of returning to the Gagarin Cup final. Last season’s runner-up leads this 2025 semi-final pairing 3-1 after a shut-out success today at Salavat Yulaev and can book its ticket to the grand final when the series returns to Yaroslavl on Monday.

Daniil Isayev made 27 saves to secure his second shut-out of the playoffs, while goals from the team’s rising stars – Daniil Tesanov, Ilya Nikolayev and Yegor Surin – led the Railwaymen to victory.

The Tesanov-Nikolayev partnership, which saw each assist on the other’s goal, was born of necessity. An injury to Byron Froese forced Nikitin into a reshuffle that put those two onto the third line alongside Nikita Kiryanov. Nikita Cherepanov was also available; his hit on Pyotr Khokhryakov saw him ejected from the previous game, but he was assessed no further suspension.

Salavat Yulaev welcomed back Josh Leivo, who joined Artyom Pimenov and Dennis Yan on the second line. Danil Alalykin took Khokhryakov’s place as third-line center, while Alexander Samonov returned as starting goalie. Samonov began the playoffs as Viktor Kozlov’s first choice, but lost his place to Semyon Vyazovoi after a 2-6 loss to Spartak in the previous round.

The pressure was on the home team from the start. Victory would square the series and leave everything to play for, whereas defeat would give Lokomotiv a 3-1 line and plant one skate in the final. But those high stakes seemed to inject tension rather than inspiration: the first period saw frequent errors from the home team and Lokomotiv took advantage. The visitor got in front in the 15th minute when Tesanov struck on the counterattack. Then, two seconds before the hooter, Nikolayev doubled the lead as Loko’s young guns fired their team into a commanding position.

The middle frame also saw Lokomotiv on top. Surin increased the lead after deking his way past a defenseman, moving in on Samonov’s net and delivering a well-placed shot beyond the netminder.

Down by three, Ufa had to find a response. However, little came off for the home team. It wasn’t just a failure to convert chances, but even to create them: Loko put bodies on the line to block shots – 24 in 60 minutes – and limited Salavat Yulaev’s opportunities to test Isayev.

Throughout the season, Lokomotiv has demonstrated that once in front, it rarely blows a lead in the third period. Today was no exception. The visitor held Salavat Yulaev to just eight shots in the final stanza, helping Isayev to secure his shut-out and closing a solid victory.

It all adds up to a strong position for Loko after four games of this series. However, the previous round against Avangard saw an identical sequence of results with Yaroslavl dropping the first game before rebounding to win three in a row. On that occasion, the Hawks hit back to force a game seven; can Salavat Yulaev match – and improve on – that recovery?