Capital city showdown heats up KHL Friday
Five games set the pace for today’s KHL action, starting in Yekaterinburg as Avtomobilist hosts Avangard in a battle of Eastern Conference heavyweights. Metallurg faces Torpedo in Magnitogorsk, with Evgeny Kuznetsov poised for his debut. Lada seeks another win against Sibir, Spartak welcomes Salavat Yulaev in Moscow, and the night ends with CSKA challenging Dynamo in a classic capital derby.
The KHL match day will start once again in Yekaterinburg, with Avtomobilist and Avangard facing off for the second time in four days after colliding in Omsk on Monday. Then, the Motormen had an impressive 4:1 win on the road, and that was the Hawks’ most recent game. In the meantime, Avtomobilist faced SKA on Wednesday, when Roman Gorbunov netted his seventh goal this season to give the Motormen an extra time win (2:1 OT). Today’s opponents are the second and third seed in the Eastern Conference, showing an excellent form. However, Avtomobilist seems to have the edge, with five consecutive wins – and that while adding another player to its already long list of players sitting on injury list: they have now seven injured skaters.
17:00: Avtomobilist (9-4-1, 2nd E) vs Avangard (9-3-0, 3rd E)
About the game
Avtomobilist, who defeated Avangard earlier this season (4:1), ends a three-game home series on a five-game winning streak.
Avangard starts a four-game road trip after its loss to the Motormen on Monday.
Avtomobilist’s forward Roman Gorbunov is on a six-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points over that span.
Avtomobilist’s forward Denis Romantsev is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Stephane Da Costa, Stepan Khripunov, Brooks Macek, Maxim Osipov, Nikita Tryamkin, Curtis Valk, Sergei Zborovsky.
Avangard: Nail Yakupov.
Milestone alert
Avangard’s goalie Nikita Serebryakov may reach 20 KHL shutouts.
In Magnitogorsk another rematch is going to take place, with Metallurg facing Torpedo after Tuesday’s emotional clash, ended with a 5:1 win for Magnitka on the road. The teams meet again on the Urals today, after Metallurg remained at the top of the KHL standings after recording a third successive win on its current road trip, following victories in Moscow over CSKA (3:1) and Spartak (6:2). Torpedo lost its previous three games, but remains a strong candidate for a top-four spot in the Western Conference’s table. To add an extra layer of excitation to the game, today forward Evgeny Kuznetsov should play his first game wearing Metallurg’s jersey.
17:00: Metallurg (10-1-2, 1st E) vs Torpedo (8-5-1, 3rd W)
About the game
Metallurg, who defeated Torpedo on Tuesday (5:1), starts a four-game home series on a four-match winning streak.
Torpedo starts a three-game road trip on a three-match losing streak.
Metallurg’s forward Vladimir Tkachyov had at least an assist in each of his previous eight matches, totaling ten helpers.
Metallurg’s forward Ruslan Iskhakov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that span.
The action then moves to the Western Conference with three games. First, Lada faces Sibir seeking its third win in four games after defeating HC Sochi and Neftekhimik (3:1 at home and 4:1 on the road, respectively), and losing in extra time to Admiral (1:2 OT). The Togliatti side finally found some pace, but it still has a long road in front of itself as the team sits at the bottom of the Western Conference’s standings. Most recently, Lada announced the return of forward Maxim Shalunov, who scored fifteen goals for the team in the 2023-2024 season. On the other end of the ice Sibir has two wins in its last five matches, but Louis Domingue just had a 38-save shutout win over conference rivals Barys, and that may help both the goalie and the team.
18:00: Lada (3-8-2, 11th W) vs Sibir (5-6-0, 10th E)
Lada ends a three-game home series following a win over HC Sochi on Tuesday (3:1).
Sibir starts a three-game road trip fresh off a win over Barys on Monday (1:0 SO).
Lada’s forward Nikita Mikhailov scored a goal in each of his previous three games.
Sibir’s goalie Louis Domingue is on a 65:00 shutout streak.
Injury list
Lada: Danila Dyadenkin, Alexei Ozhgikhin.
Sibir: Andrei Churkin, David Farrance, Ivan Klimovich.
Milestone alert
Lada’s forward Andrei Altybarmakyan and Sibir’s forward Vladislav Kara may score his 100th league point (Altybarmakyan is currently at 99, Kara at 98).
Sibir’s forward Scott Wilson lines up for his 200th KHL appearance.
Then, two games are scheduled in Moscow, starting with Spartak facing Salavat Yulaev. The Red-and-Whites just shut out the Shanghai Dragons with two assists from Adam Ruzicka and Dmitry Nikolayev’s tenth career shutout (3:0). Spartak also grabbed two important points for the top-four race in the Western Conference. After two straight wins, Salavat Yulaev lost to Dynamo Moscow on Wednesday (1:4) and remained at the bottom of the Eastern Conference’s table. After today’s game, Spartak will fly to the Far East, while Salavat Yulaev will return home for Oct. 14 Green Derby – the second of the season.
19:30: Spartak (6-4-3, 5th W) vs Salavat Yulaev (3-6-2, 11th E)
About the game
Spartak ends a six-game home series following a win over the Shanghai Dragons on Tuesday (3:0).
Salavat Yulaev ends a two-game road trip after a loss to Dynamo Moscow on Wednesday (1:4).
Spartak’s goalie Dmitry Nikolayev is on a 68:59 shutout streak.
Spartak’s forward Nikita Korostelyov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (4+1) points over that span.
Spartak’s forward Pavel Poryadin is also on a four-game scoring streak, but with 7 (4+3) points.
Spartak’s defenseman Daniil Orlov had an assist in each of his previous four matches.
Injury list
Spartak: Dmitry Vishnevsky.
Salavat Yulaev: Oleg Kuzmin, Alexei Pimenov, Dean Stewart.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s defenseman Alexei Vasilevsky may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
In the second Moscow game, CSKA and Dynamo will play their second capital derby of the season after CSKA celebrated a 6:2 home win on Sept. 6. Much has changed since that day, and now the Blue-and-Whites are two points above CSKA in the Western Conference’s standings. This is the classical case of a game that can easily go either way and where unpredictability will be key as the puck drops at Dynamo’s VTB Arena. After today’s clash, Dynamo Moscow will travel to St. Petersburg for two straight games against the Shanghai Dragons, while CSKA will stay in the Russian capital to face Ak Bars on Sunday.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (7-4-1, 6th W) vs CSKA (6-5-1, 7th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow ends a two-game home series on a three-match winning streak.
CSKA, who defeated Dynamo Moscow earlier this season (6:2), plays the lone road game of the series after a home win over Severstal on Monday (3:2).
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxime Comtois is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Dylan Sikura is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.
CSKA’s forward Dmitry Buchelnikov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (4+3) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Maxim Mamin, Artyom Mikheyev.
CSKA: Yegor Fateyev, Danila Moiseyev.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Artyom Ilyenko lines up for his 500th KHL game.
CSKA’s forward Nikolai Kovalenko may score his 100th assist in the KHL (currently at 99).
