Avangard hosts Neftekhimik; Shanghai Dragons battle Spartak again
A compact two-game matchday offers intrigue in both conferences, opening in Omsk with Avangard hosting Neftekhimik before shifting to the West, where the Shanghai Dragons welcome Spartak. The Hawks look to build on a shutout win and solidify their position near the top of the Eastern Conference, while Neftekhimik aims to halt a losing skid. Later on, Spartak seek another road victory against the Dragons, who are desperate to revive their playoff hopes.
The matchday kicks off with a showdown between Avangard and Neftekhimik. Earlier this season, the Hawks won two of their three games against Neftekhimik, with the most recent meeting coming only last week. The Omsk side now heads into the new clash on the back of another convincing road win, a 3:0 shutout over Lokomotiv. With 49 points, the Hawks sit comfortably third in the Eastern Conference, just three points behind Ak Bars, which has played four more games. After facing Avangard, Neftekhimik travelled to Magnitogorsk, where it fell in extra time against Metallurg to suffer a fourth straight defeat, leaving Igor Grishin’s team fifth in the East, with 38 points.
16:30: Avangard (23-9-3, 3rd E) vs Neftekhimik (18-18-2, 5th E)
About the game
Avangard starts a four-game home series on a two-match winning streak.
Neftekhimik is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost its previous four matches.
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (2:1, 5:6, 3:0).
Avangard’s goalie Nikita Serebryakov is on a 144:18 shutout streak.
Avangard’s forward Konstantin Okulov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Neftekhimik: Raul Yakupov.
In the second game of the day, the Shanghai Dragons are set for a revenge match against Spartak. Two days ago, the Red-and-Whites prevailed over the Chinese side (3:1), and before that they edged out SKA (2:1). Thus, Alexei Zhamnov’s men have every chance of taking three wins out of three from St Petersburg. With 44 points, the visitors hold sixth place in the Western Conference, narrowly ahead of SKA. The Dragons sit ninth, and each setback distances them further from the playoff zone. At present, Gerard Gallant’s team is on a four-game losing streak—can the Dragons break it today?
19:30: Shanghai Dragons (14-14-8, 9th W) vs Spartak (20-14-4, 6th W)
About the game
The Shanghai Dragons enter the third game of an eight-match home series on a four-game losing streak.
Spartak enters the seventh game of a twelve-match road trip following two straight wins.
The season series between the two sides is 1-3 (3:1, 0:3, 6:7 SO, 1:3).
Injury list
Shanghai Dragons: Jake Bischoff, Parker Foo, Jeremy Groleau.
Spartak: Nikita Korostelyov, Pavel Poryadin, Daniel Usmanov, Dmitry Vishnevsky.
