Semi-finals set

We’re down to the last four in the race for the Gagarin Cup after wrapping up round two swiftly last week. Two teams swept into the semis, the other two series were done in five games. That sets up some mouthwatering encounters when action resumes Friday.

Defending champ sweeps past Salavat Yulaev

Lokomotiv steamed into the 2026 Gagarin Cup semifinals thanks to dominant goaltending from Daniil Isayev. The shot-stopper had three shut-outs in four games to leave the opposition with no hope of progress and earn the nomination as best goalie of the round. In particular, Isayev came up big in the closing moments of games, closing out some tight verdicts. He was beaten only in game three, but a major penalty for Grigory Panin helped Artur Kayumov pot the winner in a 3-2 scoreline.

Kvartalnov suffers first 0-4 in playoffs

Dinamo Minsk’s much-vaunted offense failed to lay a glove on Ak Bars as the Belarusians suffered a second-round sweep. For head coach Dmitry Kvartalnov, that was the worst ever result in a KHL playoff series. Defense made a difference. In games one and four, Dinamo had serious trouble scoring. But the key moments arguably came late in game two. Minsk had battled back from 1-3, those offensive worries seemingly forgotten. Then, on 58:50, Sam Anas made it 4-3 and looked to have tied the series. Ak Bars responded to force overtime, where Nathan Todd won it for Anvar Gatiyatullin’s team. An assured 4-0 victory in game three left the Bison with too much to do. Defenseman Nikita Lyamkin had 2+3 in four games and was voted best defenseman of the round, fellow blue-liner Stepan Terekhov was the best rookie.

Avangard returns to semi-finals

A 4-1 victory over CSKA put Guy Boucher’s Hawks into the final four again – and a repeat of last season’s clash with Lokomotiv. It also ended Igor Nikitin’s hopes of winning back-to-back cups with different clubs after his summer move from Yaroslavl back to Moscow. The big moment came in game three, where CSKA looked capable of grabbing a win only to fall in overtime to a Konstantin Okulov goal. Okulov, a three-time cup-winner with CSKA, had 7 (4+3) points in five games to dump his former colleagues out of the competition. Okulov was also selected as best forward in this round.

Torpedo’s fightbacks fall short

Regular season champion Metallurg looked to be cruising through this series against Torpedo, sixth seed from the West and the lowest-ranked team left in the tournament. Up 3-0, a sweep seemed imminent – especially when Magnitka got up 2-0 by the second intermission in game four. But Torpedo rallied, forced overtime and Yegor Vinogradov’s goal sent the series back to the Urals. Game five almost produced a repeat: Metallurg led 3-1 in the third period, Torpedo took into the extras, but this time a home power play saw Roman Kantserov finish the job. Metallurg progresses to face Ak Bars in the semi-finals.

Coming up

The Gagarin Cup semi-finals start Friday and there are two intriguing match-ups to savor. Bob Hartley’s Lokomotiv faces Avangard, the team that Hartley led to the cup in 2021. And the opposing head coach, Guy Boucher, is another Canadian who, like Hartley, emerged from the QMJHL. Whichever team advances, we could see a Canadian head coach win the cup for only the third time. Then on Saturday, the Eastern Conference’s most successful teams go head-to-head. Ak Bars and Metallurg both have three Cups apiece. No team has won four; the winner of this series has a shot at history in the final.

Boucher leaves Avtomobilist

American forward Reid Boucher terminated his contract with Avtomobilist following the end of the Yekaterinburg club’s season. Boucher, 32, did not feature in the Motormen’s playoff campaign but had 42 (17+25) points in 43 regular season games for the team. In total he played 380 games in the league for 350 (187+163) points in spells with Avangard, Lokomotiv and Avto.

First coaching appointment confirmed

The current season isn’t over, but clubs are already making plans for the next campaign. Avtomobilist became the first to confirm a new head coach with the appointment of Alexei Kudashov. The former Atlant, Lokomotiv, SKA and Dynamo Moscow man signed a two-year deal. He replaces Nikolai Zavarukhin, who took over from Bill Peters during the 2021/2022 season. Zavarukhin’s best result was a run to the last four in 2024; Kudashov’s career best performances to date took him to the semi-finals in 2017 and 2025.

Junior semi-finals set

In the Junior Hockey League, the Kharlamov Cup is also down to the final four. The second-round pairings in the west went to form, with top seed Lokomotiv sweeping Dinamo-Shinnik and defending champion Spartak defeating Moscow rival Krasnaya Armiya. In the east, though, it was a different story. Top seed Omskiye Yastreby fell 1-3 to sixth-seed Chayka, and Avto (5) defeated Stalnye Lisy (2) by the same scoreline. Loko now faces Chayka in the semi-finals, with Spartak up against Avto. The action resumes on Saturday in Yaroslavl.