Five games in an action-packed matchday across both conferences!
The KHL match day opens in the Urals with two key Eastern Conference clashes, as Avtomobilist host Avangard and league-leading Metallurg welcome Sibir. The action then shifts west, where CSKA face Barys, Torpedo take on the Shanghai Dragons, and SKA close the night with a rivalry matchup against Spartak.
The match day starts in the Urals again, with Avtomobilist taking on Avangard and Metallurg facing Sibir. The Motormen enters today’s showdown on a four-match winning streak, most recently shutting out Sibir on home ice on Tuesday (2:0). Avtomobilist thus kept its place in the Eastern Conference’s top four, with 57 points, four more than Neftekhimik and with a game in hand on the Wolves. Avangard is currently above Avtomobilist by eight points, in third place in the East’s table. The Hawks won their last three matches, against CSKA (2:1), Traktor (5:2) and Salavat Yulaev (5:2 again). It will be the fourth meeting between the two sides this season, with Avtomobilist currently leading the season series. After today’s game, the Hawks will fly back to Omsk, where they will play the next couple of matches.
17:00: Avtomobilist (27-17-3, 4th E) vs Avangard (31-12-3, 3rd E)
About the game
Avtomobilist enters the fifth game of a six-match home series on a four-match winning streak.
Avangard ends a three-game road trip on a three-match winning streak.
The season series between the teams is 2-1 (4:1, 3:0, 2:3 ОТ).
Avtomobilist’s goalie Evgeny Alikin is on a 74:17 shutout streak.
Avtomobilist’s forward Reid Boucher is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points over that stretch.
Avtomobilist’s forward Stephane Da Costa is on a three-game scoring streak instead, with 7 (4+3) points.
Avtomobilist’s forward Alexander Sharov is also on a three-game scoring streak, but with 4 (2+2) points.
Avangard’s defenseman Damir Sharipzyanov is on a seven-game scoring streak, with 14 (8+6) points.
Avangard’s forward Andrew Poturalski had at least an assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling five helpers.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Dmitry Yudin.
Avangard: Alexander Volkov.
Milestone alert
Avangard’s forward Dmitry Rashevsky may dish out his 100th career assist (currently at 99).
In the meantime, Metallurg faces Sibir. Magnitka is currently the hottest team in the league and won eight straight matches, including a record-breaking 9:0 against HC Sochi and two straight victories in the Far East. Sergei Tolchinsky keeps on being a key piece of the puzzle for Andrei Razin’s men as he scored points in all these eight winning matches. Metallurg is now the undisputed leader of the league with 76 points – eight more than the second team in the East, Ak Bars, and twelve more than the Western’s leader, Severstal. After climbing back to the playoff places, Sibir maybe relaxed and got caught in a two-game losing streak, with only one win over the last five matches – albeit a big one, in Cherepovets (2:3). Today, Taylor Beck will try to return to scoring to celebrate his milestone.
17:00: Metallurg (36-6-4, 1st E) vs Sibir (18-25-5, 8th E)
About the game
Metallurg starts a four-game home series on an eight-game winning streak.
Sibir enters the second game of a four-match road trip on a two-game losing streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-0 (4:3, 2:1 ОТ).
Metallurg’s forward Sergei Tolchinsky is on an eight-game scoring streak, with 13 (6+7) points over that streak.
Metallurg’s forward Derek Barach is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points.
Injury list
Metallurg: Alexander Siryatsky.
Sibir: Ilya Fedotov, Daniil Valitov.
Milestone alert
Metallurg’s defenseman Makar Khabarov may line up for his 400th league appearance.
Metallurg’s forward Daniil Vovchenko may score his 300th KHL point (currently at 99).
Metallurg’s forward Alexander Petunin may reach 100 career goals (currently at 99).
Sibir’s forward Taylor Beck lines up for his 500th KHL game. The veteran forward 126 goals and 257 assists so far.
The action then moves to the Western Conference for three games. In Moscow, CSKA hosts Barys. The two sides met last week in Astana, with the Kazakhs celebrating a 3:1 win. That result may have been considered a surprise if thinking about the different positioning in the standings, yet Barys showed that they can beat anyone this season, collecting wins against other heavyweights like Lokomotiv, Avangard, and Avtomobilist. Despite this kind of success, Barys sits tenth in the Eastern Conference’s standings, tied with Amur at 39 points at just two points from the playoff places – the Kazakhs lost a great opportunity to climb up losing their last game in Togliatti. CSKA is sixth in the West, and lost its previous couple of games, losing to Avangard (1:2) before the clash in Astana.
19:30: CSKA (23-17-8, 6th W) vs Barys (16-26-7, 10th E)
About the game
CSKA starts a two-game home series on a two-game losing streak.
Barys, who defeated CSKA earlier in the season (3:1), is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost to Lada on Tuesday (0:2).
CSKA’s forward Prokhor Poltapov is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points over that span.
Injury list
CSKA: Dmitry Buchelnikov, Danila Moiseyev, Vladislav Provolnev.
Barys: Kirill Savitsky.
In Nizhny Novgorod, Torpedo will try stretching a four-game winning streak in a home game against the Shanghai Dragons. It will be the third meeting between the two Western sides as the teams traded wins earlier in the season – both in extra time. Torpedo’s streak let the team cementing its place in the West’s top four, with a three-point cushion over Dynamo Moscow. The Chinese franchise lost its previous four matches as they wait for new head coach Mitch Love to arrive – his debut will hardly be today. After this setback, the Dragons are now 10 points outside of the playoff places, but what’s even more concerning is that the team is losing game after game.
19:30: Torpedo (28-15-4, 4th W) vs Shanghai Dragons (17-20-9, 9th W)
About the game
Torpedo starts a four-game home series on a four-match winning streak.
The Shanghai Dragons start a three-game road trip on a four-match losing streak.
The season series between the two sides is 1-1 (0:1 ОТ, 4:3 SO).
Injury list
Torpedo: Alexei Kruchinin.
Shanghai Dragons: Parker Foo, Jeremy Groleau, Ben Harpur, Troy Josephs, Patrik Rybar.
Milestone alert
Shanghai Dragons’ Kirill Rasskazov may reach 100 career assists (currently at 99).
The matchday closes out with a rivalry match between SKA and Spartak. Spartak have conceded just two goals in two head-to-head meetings with SKA earlier this season, winning 3:1 and 2:1. The Red-and-Whites come into the matchup after a 3:1 road victory over the Shanghai Dragons, their third win in the last five games. The teams are level on 53 points, with Spartak sitting seventh in the Western Conference and SKA eighth. The St. Petersburg’s team will be looking to bounce back after consecutive home losses to HC Sochi (1:2) and Dinamo Minsk (3:4). Will they manage to respond and defeat Spartak for the first time this season?
19:30: SKA (24-16-5, 8th W) vs Spartak (24-17-5, 7th W)
About the game
SKA wraps up a three-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Spartak ends a two-game road trip following a win over the Shanghai Dragons on Tuesday (3:1).
The season series between the two sides is 0-2 (1:3, 1:2).
SKA’s forward Mikhail Vorobyov had at least an assist in each of his previous four matches, totaling five helpers.
Injury list
SKA: Trevor Murphy, Vladislav Romanov.
Milestone alert
SKA’s forward Sergei Plotnikov may score his 250th KHL goal (currently at 247).
Spartak’s forward Mikhail Maltsev may reach 100 league points (currently at 99).
