All tied up

After two games of the 2026 Gagarin Cup final, there’s nothing between the teams. After Wednesday’s 5-1 win in Yaroslavl, Ak Bars brings Lokomotiv back to Kazan with the series locked a 1-1.

Miller’s hat-trick paces road victory

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 1 Ak Bars Kazan 5 (0-2, 0-1, 1-2)
Final tied at 1-1
 
Mitch Miller scored three and assisted on another as Ak Bars powered to a convincing victory in game two of the series. The American defenseman moves to 20 (6+14) points in this year’s playoffs, just one behind scoring leader Konstanin Okulov of Avangard.

With Okulov’s season already over, and Miller now four points ahead of Lokomotiv’s Alexander Radulov, his closest still active rival in post season, the 24-year-old is in with a great chance of becoming the first defenseman to lead a KHL playoff campaign in scoring. Last season his 13 points made him the most productive D-man in the Gagarin Cup.

The game began with a couple of penalties. First, Ak Bars’ Ilya Karpukhin sat for shooting the puck over the glass, then Lokomotiv was assessed a too many men bench minor. Neither team could make a breakthrough with the extra man, although the Ak Bars power play caused problems for Daniil Isayev.
Back at equal strength, the home team looked to be gaining momentum, only for Karpukhin to open the scoring against the run of play. The defenseman collected a great pass from Alexander Barabanov and beat the goalie to the short side in the eighth minute. After falling behind, the Railwaymen lost some of their rhythm and came under further pressure. Despite a decent chance for Artur Kayumov, Ak Bars looked more likely to score again: Alexander Chmelevski hit the bar and the pressure continued.

Miller doubled the lead late in the frame, with Barabanov collecting his second helper of the game.

At the start of the second period, Lokomotiv looked to raise the tempo. An early turnover tested the visiting defense, then Yegor Surin spurned a glorious opportunity when he failed to beat Timur Bilyalov despite enjoying the freedom of the slot. A home power play added to the sense that a Lokomotiv goal was only a matter of time. However, once again, Ak Bars absorbed the pressure and struck with a counterpunch. Late in the frame, the visitor got on the power play. Miller got the puck to the slot, and while Ilya Safonov could not force it home, Nathan Todd cashed in on the rebound.

Down by three, and in danger of seeing its lead in the series evaporate, Lokomotiv made a lively start to the final frame. However, the puck stubbornly refused to get away from Bilyalov; a combination of good shot-stopping and poor finishing preserved the 3-0 scoreline.

Frustrations increased, and midway through the session Ak Bars enjoyed 65 seconds with a two-man advantage after Byron Froese followed Ilya Nikolayev into the box. Nikolayev had already returned to the game by the time Miller got his second of the night, converting that power play. The defenseman forced a turnover at the point and advanced to shoot past Isayev and make it 4-0 in the 51st minute.

There was some consolation for the home team when Georgy Ivanov pulled a goal back in the 55th minute, shortly after a clash between Surin and Dmitrij Jaskin reduced both teams to four skaters. But Miller had the final word with an empty-netter to seal his treble and complete an impressive road win.