Trade deadline shakeups define a packed matchday
Fresh off yesterday’s trade deadline, a busy KHL matchday starts in Omsk with Avangard hosting Admiral and continuing in Yekaterinburg, where Avtomobilist meets Amur. Torpedo welcomes Sibir after both sides made late roster moves, while Dinamo Minsk faces Salavat Yulaev in a clash of playoff contenders. HC Sochi hosts the Shanghai Dragons, Dynamo Moscow seeks revenge against Lada, and CSKA closes the night against Severstal.
The new week kicks off in Omsk, where Avangard faces Admiral. The Sailors travel to Omsk from Chelyabinsk, where they suffered a 1:3 loss – the eighth straight for the Eastern Conference’s last placed squad. Belarusian goalie Ivan Kulbakov had his debut between the piping, but his 22 saves weren’t enough for Admiral, who is now at eleven points from the playoff places. Avangard, on the other hand, celebrated four straight wins, three of them in the Urals over Traktor (5:2), Salavat Yulaev (5:2), and Avtomobilist (2:1 OT), with Andrew Poturalski finding the back of the net in extra time. The Hawks currently hold the third place in the East’s table. It will be the third meeting between the two sides in the current campaign, with the teams trading wins. Yesterday, Avangard announced signing forward Kirill Pilipenko, who has recently dissolved his contract with Severstal. The 29-year-old forward has a total of 290 games in the KHL, with 205 (103+102) points.
16:30: Avangard (32-12-3, 3rd E) vs Admiral (13-26-8, 11th E)
About the game
Avangard starts a two-game home series on a four-match winning streak.
Admiral is in the middle of a three-game road trip and lost its previous eight matches.
Earlier in the season, the teams traded wins (6:1, 1:2 ОТ).
Avangard’s defenseman Damir Sharipzyanov is on an eight-game scoring streak, with 15 (8+7) points over that stretch.
Avangard’s forward Andrew Poturalski is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points.
Avangard’s defenseman Joseph Cecconi had at least an assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Injury list
Avangard: Alexander Volkov.
Admiral: Alexander Daryin, Dmitry Deryabin.
Milestone alert
Avangard’s forward Dmitry Rashevsky may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
The other Far East franchise, Amur, isn’t faring much better than Admiral. Earlier in the season, it looked like the Tigers would be a prime candidate for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, yet a series of defeats – Amur lost its last eight matches – put them in a dangerous spot, currently at five points from the playoff places. Most recently, the Tigers lost twice to Metallurg, once at home (3:4) and once on the road (2:4). Today’s opponent, Avtomobilist, rounds up the top four in the East, and won four games in the last five after an extra time loss to Avangard (1:2 SO). An Amur loss in regulation may hand Metallurg the first ticket to the playoffs in the current season.
17:00: Avtomobilist (27-17-4, 4th E) vs Amur (16-25-7, 9th E)
About the game
Avtomobilist wraps up a six-game home series following a loss to Avangard on Thursday (1:2 SO).
Amur ends a two-game road trip on an eight-match losing streak.
The season series between the teams is 1-1 (3:1, 0:3).
Avtomobilist’s goalie Evgeny Alikin is on a 74:17 shutout streak.
Avtomobilist’s forward Reid Boucher is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (2+5) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Dmitry Yudin.
Amur: Roman Abrosimov.
The action then moves to the Western Conference, starting with Torpedo hosting Sibir. Both teams completed trades yesterday. Torpedo sent veteran forward Kirill Voronin to Dinamo Minsk, and acquired forward Timur Mukhanov from Severstal in exchange for Nikita Beresnev and Ilya Chefanov. The Novosibirsk side aimed higher, and traded with SKA for world championship’s gold medalist Andrei Loktionov, sending forward Scott Wilson to St. Petersburg. The Nizhny Novgorod side is one of the hottest teams in the league, with six straight wins, including a 6:0 thumping of SKA on Saturday. At 64 points, Torpedo rounds up the West’s top four. Sibir won its last couple of matches, over Eastern heavyweights Metallurg (2:1) and Ak Bars (3:2 SO), both on the road, cementing its positioning in the conference’s eighth place. After todays’ clash, the team will fly back to Novosibirsk, where Sibir will play the next seven matches.
19:00: Torpedo (30-15-4, 4th E) vs Sibir (20-25-5, 8th E)
About the game
Torpedo, who defeated Sibir earlier in the season (4:3 SO), enters the third game of a four-match home series on a six-game winning streak.
Sibir wraps up a four-game road trip on a two-match winning streak.
Torpedo’s goalie Denis Kostin is on an 80:11 shutout streak.
Torpedo’s forward Yegor Vinogradov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 6 (3+3) points over that stretch.
Torpedo’s forward Yegor Sokolov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (1+6) points.
Torpedo’s defenseman Bob Nardella had at least an assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Torpedo’s forward Vasily Atanasov netted a goal in each of his previous three games.
Torpedo’s forward Vladimir Tkachyov, starting the season with Sibir, is on a three-game scoring streak, with 8 (2+6) points over that span.
Injury list
Torpedo: Alexei Kruchinin.
Sibir: Ilya Fedotov, Daniil Valitov.
Milestone alert
Torpedo’s forward Vasily Atanasov lines up for his 200th league appearance.
Torpedo’s forward Dmitry Shevchenko may reach 100 KHL goals (currently at 99).
In Minsk, Dinamo will try to build on its recent win over the Shanghai Dragons in a home game against Salavat Yulaev. The teams’ first meeting of the current regular season took place on Dec. 30 in Ufa, where Dinamo Minsk emerged victorious in extra time. Two days ago, Dmitry Kvartalnov’s side had recorded a convincing home win over the Shanghai Dragons (6:1), a result that marked their third victory in the last four games. With 65 points, the Bisons sit among the top three teams in the Western Conference, continuing a remote battle for the lead with Severstal and Lokomotiv. The hosts also announced the signing of defenseman Pavel Voronov, having previously acquired his rights in a trade with Spartak. Salavat Yulaev will play the second of three games on their current road trip, which opened with a win over HC Sochi (2:1) and was their third victory in the last five outings. With 50 points, the Ufa side is sixth in the Eastern Conference, edging Traktor on tiebreakers with the teams level on points.
19:10: Dinamo Minsk (30-13-5, 3rd W) vs Salavat Yulaev (23-22-4, 6th E)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk, who defeated Salavat Yulaev earlier in the season (3:2 OT), ends a two-game home series following a win over the Shanghai Dragons on Saturday (6:1).
Salavat Yulaev is in the middle of a three-game home series and defeated HC Sochi also on Saturday (2:1).
Salavat Yulaev is on a fourteen-game scoring streak, with 26 (8+18) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Joshua Brook, Xavier Ouellet.
Salavat Yulaev: Evgeny Kuznetsov, Gleb Kuzmin, Dean Stewart, Alexei Vasilevsky.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Pyotr Khokhryakov may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
In Sochi, the hosts will meet the Shanghai Dragons. The teams’ first meeting of the current regular season took place on Nov. 15 on the Black Sea coast and went in favor of Sochi (4:2), and now the sides are set to face each other three times in a row. At the moment, Dmitry Mikhailov’s team is mired in a three-game losing streak, having fallen to Lada (0:4), Severstal (4:5 OT), and Salavat Yulaev (1:2). The Leopards have dropped to the bottom of the Western Conference standings and trail Togliatti by a narrow margin while holding three games in hand. The Shanghai Dragons sit ninth with 43 points, ten fewer than SKA, who currently close out the playoff zone. The visitors are on a six-game losing streak that has reduced their playoff hopes to a purely theoretical level. Over their last four games, the Dragons have scored just four goals combined against Lokomotiv (0:2), Spartak (1:3), Torpedo (2:7), and Dinamo Minsk (1:6). Will they manage to be more productive against Sochi? Yesterday, the Shanghai Dragons inked veteran goalie Dmitry Shikin to a contract valid until the end of the current campaign.
19:30: HC Sochi (14-25-7, 11th W) vs Shanghai Dragons (17-22-9, 9th W)
About the game
HC Sochi, who defeated the Shanghai Dragons earlier in the season (4:2), ends a three-game home series on a three-match losing streak.
The Shanghai Dragons end a three-game road trip after six straight losses.
Shanghai Dragons’ forward Nick Merkley is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that stretch.
Injury list
HC Sochi: Artyom Volkov, Denis Vengryzhanovsky.
Shanghai Dragons: Jeremy Groleau, Ben Harpur, Troy Josephs, Patrik Rybar.
Milestone alert
Shanghai Dragons’ forward Ilya Kablukov may score his 200th league point (currently at 199).
Shanghai Dragons’ forward Kirill Rasskazov may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
The action then moves to Moscow for a couple of games. Dynamo hosts Lada in a revenge match. Earlier this season, Dinamo won two of its three meetings with Lada. The White-and-Blues suffered their lone defeat to the Togliatti side three days ago on the road and will now look to take revenge on home ice. After Alexei Kudashov’s departure, the hosts enjoyed a brief uptick in results, but have since lost eight of their last ten games. Sitting fifth in the standings, Vyacheslav Kozlov’s Dinamo trails Torpedo by six points and holds just a two-point edge over CSKA. Lada, meanwhile, is riding a three-game winning streak that has helped Pavel Desyatkov’s men climb off the bottom of the Western Conference, edging past HC Sochi by the narrowest of margins.
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (27-18-4, 5th W) vs Lada (15-28-6, 10th W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow starts a four-game home series on a two-match losing streak.
Lada starts a three-game road trip on a three-match winning streak.
The season series between the two teams is 2-1 (4:3 SO, 4:2, 1:2).
Lada’s forward Riley Sawchuk is on a five-game scoring streak, with 8 (3+5) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Kirill Gotovets, Artyom Mikheyev.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s defenseman Arytom Sergeyev may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
Lada’s forward Andrei Obidin may reach 100 career points (currently at 99).
Finally, CSKA hosts Severstal. Both teams were active on the transfer market, with Severstal trading with Torpedo and parting ways with Kirill Pilipenko. CSKA inked American defenseman Nick Ebert, with Avtomobilist in the previous three seasons, and traded with Avangard for forward Klim Kostin, acquired in exchange for forward Kirill Dolzhenkov. At 56 points, Igor Nikitin’s side sits sixth in the Western Conference, two points behind Dynamo Moscow and just ahead of Spartak. After yesterdays’ Lokomotiv win over the Red-and-Whites, Severstal is now the second team in the Western Conference’s standings.
19:30: CSKA (24-17-8, 6th W) vs Severstal (31-14-4, 2nd W)
About the game
CSKA ends a two-game home series following a win over Barys on Thursday (1:0).
Severstal is in the middle of a five-game road trip and defeated HC Sochi on Wednesday (5:4 OT).
The season series between the two sides is 3-2 (2:1, 3:2, 2:0, 3:4 ОТ, 1:3).
CSKA’s goalie Dmitry Gamzin is on a 65:51 shutout streak.
Severstal’s forward Ruslan Abrosimov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (1+4) points over that stretch.
Severstal’s forward Alexander Skorenov is also on a three-game scoring streak, but with 4 (2+2) points.
Severstal’s defenseman Ioannis Kaldis had at least an assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Injury list
CSKA: Dmitry Buchelnikov, Danila Moiseyev, Vladislav Provolnev.
Severstal: Alexander Samoilov, Daniil Veryayev, Artyom Zhukov.
Milestone alert
Severstal’s defenseman Nikita Kamalov lines up for his 500th KHL appearance, while defenseman Vladimir Grudinin reaches 200.
Severstal’s forward Mikhail Ilyin may score his 100th career point (currently at 99).
