Torpedo’s perfect run faces test against the Shanghai Dragons
Five KHL games are scheduled for today: it all starts early in the Far East with Amur vs Dynamo Moscow, followed by Sibir returning home to take on Severstal. The action continues as Lokomotiv hosts HC Sochi, Dinamo Minsk faces Barys in their home opener, and the Shanghai Dragons conclude the day against Torpedo, with top teams and players aiming to extend their streaks or bounce back from defeats.
The KHL Monday has another early start in the Far East, this time with Amur facing Dynamo Moscow. The Muscovites just collected a hardly fought win in Vladivostok, with Maxime Comtois netting the decisive shootout attempt, halting a two-game losing streak. Today, they will try to get the best over Amur. The Tigers were toothless in their last outing against Sibir, losing 0:1 after an extra time loss against the Novosibirsk side on Wednesday (3:4 SO). The Blue-and-Whites will want to win again to start climbing up the standings, but Amur will have the same ambition. After today’s game, Dynamo Moscow will fly back home for the next three games.
After defeating Amur twice, Sibir returns home to face Severstal. After a slow start, Sibir has now three wins in the last four matches, and will be on the lookout for another win. Andrei Kozyrev’s team has recently returned to victory after downing Barys at home (3:2) following two straight home losses, and will try to build on that win to gain momentum and return to the top spots of the Western Conference’s standings. However, Sibir is enjoying strong goaltending so far, with Anton Krasotkin and Louis Domingue first and second in the league, respectively, for saves percentage.
The action then moves to the Western Conference, starting with Lokomotiv hosting HC Sochi. The Yaroslavl train’s march looks stronger than ever, especially after a triumphant 5:1 win over CSKA in Moscow. Several Lokomotiv players had a strong start of the season, with Yegor Surin being one of the top goal scorers league wide. That doesn’t mean that they already won the game today as they return to Yaroslavl after a four-game road trip – Vladimir Krikunov’s HC Sochi is a difficult client to deal with, and most likely will be one for the whole season: they have already defeated CSKA and Dynamo Moscow.
Then, in Belarus, Dinamo Minsk and Barys will face each other for the second time this season. It will be the first home game in Minsk in the 2025-2026 campaign, and a sellout crowd is to be expected in the Belarusian capital. In the first outing, the Bison celebrated a 3:1 victory in Astana, with a double by Alex Limoges and a tally by Sam Anas. Dinamo Minsk lost its previous couple of matches, to Avangard and SKA, respectively, but both times went to extra time and thus gained a precious point in each game. Barys is equally on a two-game losing streak, thus the fans can expect excitement and uncertainty.
In the last game of an exciting KHL Monday, the Shanghai Dragons host Torpedo. The Nizhny Novgorod side is the hottest team in the league, the lone team with a perfect record so far, with six wins in six matches. Moreover, forwards Sergei Goncharuk and Yegor Vinogradov are having a breakout season and are currently the league’s top scorers. The Dragons’ season has instead been full of ups and downs, with a nice start with wins over SKA and Lokomotiv, but also two losses to Admiral and one to Amur. Today, the Chinese franchise will try to return to victory and halt Torpedo’s fantastic start as the team plays a game in St. Petersburg before moving on with a three-game road trip.
12:15: Amur (2-2-2) vs Dynamo Moscow (2-3-1)
About the game
Amur enters the third game of a four-match home series on a two-game losing streak.
Dynamo Moscow ends a five-game road trip and defeated Admiral on Saturday (4:3 SO).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxime Comtois is also on a three-game scoring streak, but with 3 (2+1) points.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxim Mamin had at least one assist in each of his previous three games, totaling four helpers.
Injury list
Amur: Evgeny Svechnikov.
Dynamo Moscow: Artyom Mikheyev.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nikita Gusev may reach 700 points in the KHL (currently at 696).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxim Mamin may score his 250th KHL point (currently at 249).
15:30: Sibir (3-2-0) vs Severstal (3-3-0)
About the game
Sibir starts a two-game home series following two straight wins on the road over Amur.
Severstal starts a six-game road trip fresh off a win over Barys on Saturday (3:2).
Sibir’s goalie Anton Krasotkin is on a 67:44 shutout streak.
Injury list
Sibir: Andrei Churkin, David Farrance.
Severstal: Thomas Gregoire, Artyom Shchuchinov, Konstantin Shostak, Daniil Veryayev.
Milestone alert
Severstal’s forward Nikolai Chebykin may reach 100 career points (currently at 98).
19:00: Lokomotiv (4-1-1) vs HC Sochi (2-2-1)
About the game
Lokomotiv starts a three-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
HC Sochi starts a two-game road trip following two consecutive losses.
Lokomotiv’s forward Georgy Ivanov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that span.
Lokomotiv’s forward Yegor Surin is also on a three-game scoring streak, but with 4 (3+1) points.
Lokomotiv’s forward Maxim Beryozkin had an assist in each of his previous three games.
Injury list
Lokomotiv: Daniil Tesanov.
HC Sochi: Amir Garayev.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s goalie Alexei Melnichuk may reach 10 KHL shutouts.
Lokomotiv’s head coach Bob Hartley celebrates his 300th league game.
19:10: Dinamo Minsk (2-1-2) vs Barys (3-3-0)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk, who defeated Barys earlier this season (3:1), starts a six-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Barys ends a three-game road trip also on a two-match losing streak.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Vitaly Pinchuk is on a nine-game scoring streak, with 11 (2+9) points over that span.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Alex Limoges is on a three-game scoring streak, with 6 (5+1) points.
Barys’ forward Emil Galimov is on a six-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points.
Injury list
Barys: Nikita Boyarkin, Tamirlan Gaitamirov, Ivan Nikolishin, Roman Starchenko, Tyce Thompson.
19:30: Shanghai Dragons (2-2-1) vs Torpedo (6-0-0)
About the game
The Shanghai Dragons play the lone home game of the series following two straight defeats.
Torpedo enters the fourth game of a five-match road trip on a six-game winning streak.
Torpedo’s goalie Ivan Kulbakov is on a 78:01 shutout streak.
Torpedo’s forward Sergei Goncharuk is on a seven-game scoring streak, with 10 (5+5) points over that span.
Torpedo’s forward Yegor Vinogradov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points over that span.
Torpedo’s forward Vasily Atanasov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points.
Torpedo’s defenseman Bogdan Konyushkov had at least an assist in each of his previous three games, totaling four helpers.
Injury list
Torpedo: Maxim Letunov.
Milestone alert
Torpedo’s forward Vladislav Firstov lines up for his 200th league appearance.
Torpedo’s forward Vasily Atanasov may score his 100th KHL point (currently at 99).
Torpedo’s forward Alexei Kruchinin may net his 100th league tally (currently at 99).
