Urals triple-header leads into key battles in the West
Five games headline a packed KHL matchday, starting in the Urals with three intriguing clashes. League-leading Metallurg aims to extend its winning streak, Salavat Yulaev and Sibir look to halt recent slides, and Avtomobilist hosts Avangard in a key Eastern Conference battle. The action then shifts West, where Lokomotiv welcomes Dynamo Moscow in a high-stakes rivalry, before SKA hosts struggling Admiral in St. Petersburg.
The matchday starts in the Urals, with three games. In Magnitogorsk, Metallurg seeks a fourth straight win against Andrei Razin’s former team, Severstal. Two of these wins occurred in extra time for Magnitka, against Barys (3:2 OT) and Admiral (4:3 OT), respectively, with a regulation win over Amur (3:1). Metallurg remains at the very top of the league’s standings, with 93 points – nine more than Avangard, who follows in second place. Severstal is still second in the Western table, and has most recently defeated Barys in Astana (3:2 OT). Earlier in the season, Metallurg collected a 5:2 win when the teams met in Cherepovets on Sept. 16, led by a double by Derek Barach. After today’s game, Severstal will fly back home to Cherepovets, where the Lynx will play the next two matches.
17:00: Metallurg (44-8-5, 1st E) vs Severstal (37-19-4, 2nd W)
About the game
Metallurg, who defeated Severstal earlier in the season (5:2), wraps up a three-game home series on a three-match winning streak.
Severstal ends a four-game road trip following a win over Barys on Sunday (3:2 OT).
Severstal’s forward Mikhail Ilyin had at least an assist in each of his previous three matches, totaling four helpers.
Severstal’s forward Alexander Skorenov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points over that stretch.
Severstal’s defenseman Ioannis Kaldis is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points.
Injury list
Severstal: Nikolai Chebykin, Ilya Davydov.
In Ufa, Salavat Yulaev hosts Sibir. Both sides will try to bounce back after recent losses. After a roller coaster with a 0:4 loss to SKA and a 6:0 win in Chelyabinsk, Salavat Yulaev suffered from a 3:5 loss to Spartak on Sunday, marking its second loss in the last three games. With yesterday’s Traktor win over Lada, the Ufa team now sits in seventh place in the Eastern Conference’s standings, tied with the Chelyabinsk side at 62 points. Sibir follows on the eighth spot, at 57 points, six more than Amur. The Novosibirsk side lost its last three games, to Amur (1:2 OT), Avangard (1:2 SO), and Neftekhimik (0:1), respectively.
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (29-24-4, 7th E) vs Sibir (25-28-7, 8th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev is in the middle of a three-game home series and lost to Spartak on Sunday (3:5).
Sibir enters the third game of a six-match road trip on a three-game losing streak.
The season series between the two sides is 2-1 (2:3 SO, 5:2, 5:2).
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Alexander Chyorny, Prokhor Korbit, Gleb Kuzmin.
Sibir: Mikhail Abramov, Timur Akhiyarov, Valentin Pyanov.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Pyotr Khokhryakov may record his 100th KHL assist (currently at 99).
Sibir’s forward Taylor Beck may reach 400 KHL points (currently at 396).
In the last Urals game of the night, Avtomobilist hosts Avangard. It will be the sixth and last game between the two sides in the season, with the Motormen currently claiming a 3-2 lead in the season series. Both teams played their latest game on Sunday. Avtomobilist collected a 4:1 home win over the Shanghai Dragons, with Brooks Macek netting the game-winning goal for the Motormen. Avangard has instead surprisingly lost at home to Amur (3:4). The Hawks remain in second place in the Eastern table, while Avtomobilist rounds up the top four, well above Neftekhimik with a game in hand. Today’s fans in Yekaterinburg will be treated to a high-level game with both sides hunting a win.
17:00: Avtomobilist (33-21-4, 4th E) vs Avangard (40-14-4, 2nd E)
About the game
Avtomobilist enters the sixth game of a seven-match home series following a win over the Shanghai Dragons on Sunday (4:1).
Avangard plays the lone road game of the series after losing to Amur also on Sunday (3:4).
The season series between the two sides is 3-2 (4:1, 3:0, 2:3 ОТ, 1:2 ОТ, 3:2 ОТ).
Avtomobilist’s forward Daniel Sprong is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Avtomobilist: Dmitry Yudin.
Avangard: Alexander Volkov.
The action the moves to the Western Conference for two games. In Yaroslavl, Lokomotiv hosts Dynamo Moscow in a classic matchup. An intriguing situation is developing in the series between the two teams. The Railwaymen confidently lead the Western Conference, while Dynamo has slipped to around sixth place, yet the season series belongs to the Muscovites (2–1), with both of Dynamo’s wins coming by shutout. Can the Muscovites repeat that success? The Blues-and-Whites are in desperate need of points right now to avoid letting their main rivals — SKA and Spartak — move ahead of them in the standings. Moreover, both teams showed excellent form of late, with Lokomotiv winning their last three matches and Dynamo Moscow claiming four consecutive wins.
19:30: Lokomotiv (39-15-5, 1st W) vs Dynamo Moscow (32-21-4, 6th W)
About the game
Lokomotiv ends a three-game home series on a three-match winning streak.
Dynamo Moscow starts a two-game road trip on a four-match winning streak.
The season series between the two sides is 1-2 (3:2, 0:1, 0:2).
Lokomotiv’s forward Nikita Kiryanov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that stretch.
Dynamo Moscow’s goalie Maxim Motorygin is on a 70:00 shutout streak.
Dynamo Moscow’s forwards Dylan Sykura and Maxime Comtois are on an identical four-game scoring streak, with 5 (4+1) points over that span.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Fredrik Claesson, Kirill Gotovets, Artyom Mikheyev.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s forward Pavel Kraskovsky may reach 200 career points (currently at 198).
Lokomotiv’s goalie Alexei Melnichuk may record his 10th KHL shutout.
Then, in St. Petersburg, SKA faces Admiral. In December, SKA defeated the Sailors on the road, 3:1 — at the time, Admiral was still coached by Leonids Tambijevs. Later, Admiral’s management decided to part ways with the head coach. Tambijevs, who twice led Admiral to the playoffs and reached the second round of the postseason with the team, recently officially joined SKA’s coaching staff. For him, the meeting with Admiral will surely be a matter of principle. The derby win over CSKA was the fourth victory in the last five games for the St. Petersburg side. Admiral, over the same stretch, has won only once, having lost to Metallurg two days earlier in extra time (3:4 OT). With 41 points, the Far Eastern team sits at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. SKA is seventh in the West, narrowly ahead of Spartak and one point behind Dynamo Moscow.
19:30: SKA (30-20-7, 7th W) vs Admiral (15-31-11, 11th E)
About the game
SKA, who defeated Admiral earlier in the season (3:1), is in the middle of a seven-game home series and defeated CSKA on Saturday (3:0).
Admiral enters the third game of a four-match road trip following a loss to Metallurg on Sunday (3:4 OT).
SKA’s goalie Sergei Ivanov is on a 132:26 shutout streak.
SKA’s defenseman Sergei Sapego had an assist in each of his previous three matches.
Injury list
SKA: Igor Larionov, Trevor Murphy, Vladislav Romanov, Nikita Zaitsev.
Admiral: Vladimir Bryukvin, Alexander Daryin, Mario Grman, Nikita Soshnikov.
Milestone alert
SKA’s forward Sergei Plotnikov may net his 250th KHL goal (currently at 249).
Admiral’s forward Vyacheslav Osnovin may reach 200 career points (currently at 99).
