Metallurg roll on as derbies and playoff battles shape busy matchday
A packed KHL slate opens in Magnitogorsk, where league leaders Metallurg aim to extend a five-game winning streak against struggling HC Sochi. Avtomobilist and Traktor clash in a pivotal Urals showdown, while the focus then shifts West with three high-stakes games, with SKA visiting the Shanghai Dragons, Lokomotiv meeting Torpedo, and a Moscow Derby between Dynamo and Spartak, as teams battle for playoff positioning and momentum.
The KHL matchday starts in Magnitogorsk, where Metallurg will try to further stretch its five-game winning streak in a home game against HC Sochi. In the last three outings, Magnitka downed three heavyweights, defeating Lokomotiv (5:4 OT), Avangard (2:1), and SKA (5:1), respectively. Sergei Tolchinsky starred in this stretch, scoring points in each of the five Metallurg’s wins. At 70 points, Metallurg remains at the top of the league’s standings, and by a comfortable margin. Today’s opposition travel to the Urals following two straight defeats, to Dynamo Moscow (0:3) and Lada (1:4), respectively. At 32 points, the playoffs are 17 points ahead – an unlikely goal for the Black Sea franchise, who sits in tenth place in the Western Conference’s standings.
17:00: Metallurg (33-6-4, 1st E) vs HC Sochi (13-22-6, 10th W)
About the game
Metallurg, who defeated HC Sochi earlier this season (6:1), wraps up a four-game home series on a five-match winning streak.
HC Sochi starts a three-game road trip on a two-match losing streak.
Metallurg’s forward Sergei Tolchinsky is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (2+5) points over that stretch.
Metallurg’s forward Daniil Vovchenko is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points.
Injury list
Metallurg: Alexander Siryatsky.
HC Sochi: Matvei Guskhov, Daniil Seroukh.
Milestone alert
Metallurg’s defenseman Robin Press may reach 200 KHL points (currently at 199), while forward Yegor Korobkin may reach 100 (currently at 99).
In the meantime, Avtomobilist faces Traktor in a high-octane game. It will be the sixth meeting between the two Urals sides, with the Motormen currently up in the season series by one game. After struggling for a while with three straight losses, Avtomobilist returned to winning games on Monday, with Stephane Da Costa leading the way with a goal and an assist in the Motormen 2:1 OT win over Barys. The Yekaterinburg side have now three points over Traktor in the Eastern Conference’s standings, being in fourth place. The Chelyabinsk side is in better form, with four straight wins after an extra-time loss to Metallurg in the 2025 closing game. Most recently, Traktor defeated Sibir at home three days ago (4:1).
17:00: Avtomobilist (24-17-3, 4th E) vs Traktor (21-18-6, 5th E)
About the game
Avtomobilist enters the second game of a six-match home series following a win over Barys on Monday (2:1 OT).
Traktor plays the lone road game of the series on a four-match winning streak.
The season series between the teams is 3-2 (0:2, 5:3, 2:1 SO, 5:1, 1:3).
Traktor’s forward Andrei Svetlakov is on a four-game scoring streak with 5 (4+1) points over that stretch.
Traktor’s forward Joshua Leivo is on a three-game scoring streak, also with 5 (4+1) points.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Artyom Kashtanov, Dmitry Yudin.
Milestone alert
Traktor’s forward Joshua Leivo may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
The action then moves to the Western Conference for three games. In St. Petersburg, the Shanghai Dragons face SKA in the fifth derby of the season, with the latter taking three wins so far. The Chinese franchise just announced that head coach Gerard Gallant had to step down from his position due to health concerns and for now the team will be led by Mike Kelly. In their last outing, the Dragons lost 2:3 to CSKA after being up by two early in the game, remaining in the ninth spot in the Western Conference’s standings, six points below the playoff places. Despite a rocky start, SKA is in a better position, being now the seventh seed in the West. The last meeting between the two teams was on Dec. 30, with SKA claiming a 3:2 win. After that game, SKA collected two wins over Lada in extra time and lost in Magnitogorsk, while the Dragons had two wins (over Lada and Amur) and two losses (to Metallurg and CSKA). Today’s game will be key for the Shanghai Dragons to keep their hopes for a postseason qualification.
19:30: Shanghai Dragons (17-17-9, 9th W) vs SKA (23-14-5, 7th W)
About the game
The Shanghai Dragons play the lone home game of the series following a loss to CSKA on Thursday (2:3).
SKA ends a three-game road trip after defeating Lada on Monday (4:3 SO).
The season series between the two teams is 1-3 (7:4, 2:3 ОТ, 1:4, 2:3).
Shanghai Dragons’ goalie Andrei Kareyev is on a 68:32 shutout streak.
Shanghai Dragons’ forward Nick Merkley is on a four-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that stretch.
SKA’s forward Matvei Korotky is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (4+1) points.
Injury list
Shanghai Dragons: Troy Josephs, Parker Foo, Jeremy Groleau, Ben Harpur.
SKA: Trevor Murphy, Vladislav Romanov.
Disqualifications
Shanghai Dragons’ goalie Patrik Rybar serves a one-game ban.
Milestone alert
Shanghai Dragons’ forward Kirill Rasskazov may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
SKA’s forward Andrei Loktionov may record his 200th KHL assist (currently at 199).
In Nizhny Novgorod, both Torpedo and Lokomotiv will try to build on recent wins in an exciting head-to-head game. The teams met in the last game of 2025, with the Railwaymen claiming a 1:0 win. After that match, Torpedo had two wins and two losses – both with a 6:7 score – while Lokomotiv defeated CSKA (2:1 SO) and Sibir (3:2 OT), losing out to Metallurg (4:5 OT). The Railwaymen enter today’s game tied with Severstal at the top of the Western Conference’s standings with 61 points, with a chance to be alone after the game as yesterday the Steelers lost at home to Sibir. Torpedo slipped down to sixth place in the West, tied with CSKA at 54 points, just one point below Dynamo Moscow.
19:30: Torpedo (25-15-4, 6th W) vs Lokomotiv (28-12-5, 2nd W)
About the game
Torpedo plays the lone home game of the series following a win over Dynamo Moscow on Monday (4:3 OT).
Lokomotiv wraps up a four-game road trip and most recently defeated Sibir, on Thursday (3:2 OT).
The season series between the teams is 1-1 (2:1, 0:1).
Torpedo’s forward Yegor Vinogradov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 8 (2+6) points over that stretch.
Torpedo’s defenseman Bogdan Konyushkov and forward Amir Garayev are also on a four-game scoring streak, but with 5 (1+4) points.
Torpedo’s defenseman Robert Nardella had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Injury list
Torpedo: Alexei Kruchinin.
Lokomotiv: Yegor Surin.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s goalie Alexei Melnichuk may record his 10th KHL shutout.
Today’s last game will be another Moscow Derby between Dynamo and Spartak. It will be the fourth meeting between the two capital sides this season, with the Blue-and-Whites currently up in the series. Today Spartak will wrap up a very long twelve-game road trip and will return to its home ice for a game against Torpedo on Jan. 17 before moving on with two games in St. Petersburg. Both sides will be aiming to bounce back after recent defeats. Dynamo is currently in the Western Conference’s top four, while Spartak closes out the playoff places in the conference, with a six-point cushion over the Shanghai Dragons.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (26-15-3, 4th W) vs Spartak (22-16-5, 8th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow enters the second game of a four-match home series following a loss to Torpedo on Monday (4:3 OT).
Spartak wraps up a twelve-game road trip following a loss to CSKA on Sunday (1:2).
The season series between the teams is 2-1 (5:0, 2:4, 1:0).
Spartak’s forward Mikhail Maltsev is on a five-game scoring streak, with 9 (4+5) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Kirill Gotovets, Artyom Mikheyev.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s defenseman Artyom Sergeyev may record his 100th KHL assist (currently at 99).
Spartak may celebrate its 500th win in the KHL.
Mikhail Maltsev lines up for his 200th league appearance.
