Action-packed match day with eight games on tap
Eight games headline a packed match day: Avangard hosts SKA, Salavat Yulaev welcomes Lada, Torpedo meets Lokomotiv, Dinamo Minsk faces HC Sochi in Belarus, Spartak takes on Sibir and CSKA welcomes Severstal in Moscow, Neftekhimik challenges Ak Bars in Tatarstan, and Dynamo Moscow squares off with the Shanghai Dragons. Key conference rivals meet in must-win clashes.
The match day starts with an exciting showdown in Omsk between Avangard and SKA. The Hawks already defeated SKA earlier in the season, and today they will be looking for another win to bounce back after accumulating defeats in the Far East against Amur (2:3 OT) and Admiral (1:2 OT). Avangard’s positioning didn’t suffer much despite the setback, as the points gained for extra time losses allowed the Hawks retain their place in the Eastern Conference’s top four. SKA has instead returned to winning games, with victories over the Shanghai Dragons (3:2 OT) and Dynamo Moscow (3:2). The St. Petersburg franchise is now tied with CSKA at 24 points as the West’s standings are incredibly tight. To help with its playoffs push, after trading for Pierrick Dube from Traktor, SKA inked a one-year deal with Brendan Leipsic, already playing for the St. Petersburg side in 2023-2024 and splitting last season between Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk.
16:30: Avangard (14-6-3, 3rd E) vs SKA (10-9-4, 9th W)
About the game
Avangard, who defeated SKA earlier in the season (4:2), starts a two-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
SKA starts a three-game road trip following two straight wins.
Injury list
SKA: Matvei Korotky, Vladislav Romanov, Nikita Zaitsev.
Milestone alert
Avangard’s goalie Nikita Serebryakov may reach 20 KHL shutouts.
In Ufa, Salavat Yulaev will try to rebound back as Lada comes to Bashkortostan. After capturing a win in Astana, the Ufa franchise lost to Neftekhimik as the attack failed to deliver, being shutout by the Wolves. Lada, instead, found themselves on the right side of a shutout when the team celebrated a 1:0 win in Minsk to make it a three-point advantage over last-placed HC Sochi in the Western Conference’s table. Following its loss to Neftekhimik, Salavat Yulaev slipped to ninth place in the East. The team has nine straight home wins over Lada, with the Togliatti side celebrating its latest win in Ufa on Sept. 24, 2009 (1:3).
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (9-12-2, 9th E) vs Lada (7-14-3, 10th W)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev starts a two-game home series following a loss to Neftekhimik on Friday (0:1).
Lada enters the sixth game of a seven-match road trip after defeating Dinamo Minsk on Saturday (1:0).
Lada’s goalie Alexander Trushkov is on a 60:28 shutout streak.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Daniil Alalykin, Anton Berlyov, Gleb Kuzmin, Dennis Yan, Nikita Zorkin.
Lada: Alexei Ozhgikhin.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Alexander Komarov lines up for his 100th KHL appearance.
Salavat Yulaev’s defenseman Alexei Vasilevsky may reach 100 league assists (currently at 99).
Lada’s forward Nikita Setdikov reaches 300 league appearances today.
In Nizhny Novgorod, Volga region rivals Torpedo and Lokomotiv meet for the first time this season. Both teams are in a roll, with five consecutive wins and the second and first place in the Western Conference’s table, respectively. It will be the first showdown of the season between the two sides, who are separated by a mere two points in the standings. Lokomotiv and Torpedo are currently two of the hottest teams in the league, thus fans will be treated to a high-quality game which will most likely attract a sold-out crowd.
19:00: Torpedo (16-8-2, 2nd W) vs Lokomotiv (17-5-2, 1st W)
About the game
Torpedo starts a six-game home series on a five-match winning streak.
Lokomotiv starts a two-game road trip also on a five-match winning streak.
Lokomotiv’s forward Artur Kayumov had at least an assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Injury list
Torpedo: Mikhail Naumenkov, Nikita Rozhkov.
Lokomotiv: Richard Panik, Andrei Sergeyev, Daniil Tesanov, Alexander Volkov.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s goalie Alexei Melnichuk may reach 10 KHL shutouts.
In Belarus, Dinamo Minsk will try to rebound back after a disappointing home loss to Lada, failing to score. Today, the opponent is HC Sochi. Ilya Samsonov’s signing and Dmitry Mikhailov’s appointment as a head coach gave the team a good sparkle, but results are yet to improve with two consecutive losses. Earlier in the season, the Bison had an easy win over Sochi and today the Belarusians will strive to give their fans another win after failing to score to Lada. The Minsk franchise remains in the West’s top four, while HC Sochi is at the foot of the standings.
19:10: Dinamo Minsk (14-6-3, 4th W) vs HC Sochi (5-12-4, 11th W)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk enters the seventh game of an eight-match home series following a loss to Lada on Saturday (0:1).
HC Sochi starts a two-game road trip on a two-match losing streak.
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Xavier Ouellet.
HC Sochi: Matvei Guskov, Pavel Khomchenko, Vasily Machulin.
Milestone alert
Dinamo Minsk’s goalie Vasily Demchenko may line up for his 400th KHL game and record his 30th shutout.
In the first Moscow game of the night, Spartak faces Sibir. The Novosibirsk side is in a deep crisis, with nine straight defeats and the last spot in the Eastern Conference’s standings. It was the first time in the KHL history that Sibir lost nine times in a row, and today the team will try to halt this serious skid. The Muscovites only won once in the last three matches, a 1:0 extra time win over HC Sochi. In its last outing, Spartak suffered from a loss to Lokomotiv, en route to its fifth consecutive win.
19:30: Spartak (12-8-3, 6th W) vs Sibir (7-13-3, 11th E)
About the game
Spartak starts a three-game home series following a loss to Lokomotiv on Thursday (2:5).
Sibir is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost its previous nine matches.
Spartak’s forward Adam Ruzicka is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Spartak: Nikita Buruyanov, Pavel Poryadin, German Rubtsov, Ivan Vorobyov.
Sibir: Fyodor Gordeyev, Roman Kalinichenko, Chase Priskie, Valentin Pyanov, Sergei Shirokov.
Milestone alert
Sibir’s forward Arkhip Nekolenko may line up for his 400th KHL appearance.
In the last Eastern game of the match day, Neftekhimik hosts Ak Bars in the second edition of the Tatarstan derby. The Wolves claimed a first win during Ak Bars’ skid early in the season, but will be looking forward another victory today – Neftekhimik won its previous three matches, while Ak Bars has three straight defeats. Despite the setback, the Kazan franchise remains in second place in the East, while Neftekhimik climbed up to the fifth spot with its four wins in the last five matches. After today’s game, Ak Bars will return to Kazan, where the team will play the next three games before clashing with Neftekhimik again on Nov. 21.
19:30: Neftekhimik (14-10-1, 5th E) vs Ak Bars (15-7-2, 2nd E)
About the game
Neftekhimik is in the middle of a three-game home series and won its previous three matches.
Ak Bars ends a three-game road trip on a three-match losing streak.
Neftekhimik’s goalie Filipp Dolganov is on a 59:45 shutout streak.
Neftekhimik’s forward Andre Belozyorov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Alexander Dergachyov, Nikita Popugayev.
Ak Bars: Albert Yarullin.
In the second Moscow game of the match day, CSKA faces Severstal in the third seasonal encounter between the two Western Conference sides. The Muscovites claimed two wins so far, and they will be looking for a third victory today. Most recently, CSKA defeated Sibir at home (4:0) with another strong performance from Daniel Sprong, halting a four-game skid and protecting its spot in the eighth place in the West, tied with SKA at 24 points. The Steelers won their previous couple of matches, against HC Sochi (5:4 OT) and the Shanghai Dragons (4:2), climbing up to third place at just two points from second-placed Torpedo.
19:30: CSKA (11-11-2, 8th W) vs Severstal (16-8-0, 3rd W)
About the game
CSKA ends a three-game home series following a win over Lada on Saturday (4:0).
Severstal enters the third game of a four-match road trip on a two-game losing streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-0 (2:1, 3:2).
CSKA’s goalie Dmitry Gamzin is on a 60:23 shutout streak.
Severstal’s forward David Dumbadze is on a a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points over that span.
Severstal’s forward Danil Veryayev is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points.
Injury list
CSKA: Yegor Fateyev, Danila Moiseyev, Dmitry Samorukov, Colby Williams.
Severstal: Vladimir Grudinin, Vladislav Tsitsyura, Grigory Vashchenko.
In the last game of a tense match day, Dynamo Minsk faces the Shanghai Dragons. The Blue-and-Whites won six straight games before falling to SKA on Saturday at home. They are tied with Dinamo Minsk at 31 points in the standings and are in fifth place in the West. The Dragons aren’t in their best moment. The team lost eight of its nine matches, and slipped down to seventh place – at a certain point, the Dragons were tied with Lokomotiv for the conference’s lead. As the team starts a new road trip, it may be a good chance to regroup and revert the trend, returning to winning games. It will be the fifth meeting between Dynamo Moscow and the Shanghai Dragons this season, with the Blue-and-Whites being up in the series.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (15-7-1, 5th W) vs Shanghai Dragons (10-7-6, 7th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow is in the middle of a three-game home series and lost to SKA on Saturday (2:3).
The Shanghai Dragons start a four-game road trip and lost its previous three matches.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Jordan Weal is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that stretch.
The season series between the two teams is 3-1 (3:2 ОТ, 2:3, 3:2 SO, 5:1).
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Artyom Mikheyev.
Shanghai Dragons: Parker Foo, Jeremy Groleau, Riley Sutter.
