Ak Bars ties it up in game four

Alexander Chmelevski’s goal midway through the third period snapped a 1-1 tie in game four. The Ak Bars forward sends the 2026 Gagarin Cup Final series back to Yaroslavl locked at 2-2. 

Power play goal settles tight contest 

Ak Bars Kazan 2 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 1 (0-0, 1-1, 1-0) 
Final tied at 2-2 

After two high-scoring wins for the road team, game four of this year’s grand final was a tighter affair. Neither side made any personnel changes, and there was little evidence of any change in attacking intent. However, goals proved hard to come by in Kazan on Sunday. 

There were good early chances at both ends. Artyom Galimov hit the post for Ak Bars, but Alexander Polunin and Byron Froese responded with dangerous efforts for Lokomotiv. The action was breathless, with play whizzing through center ice in a whirl of fast-paced attacks. The visitor looked sharper in the midst of all that, firing in more shots and generally adopting a more aggressive approach. It wasn’t until midway through the first period that Ak Bars managed to gain a foothold in the game. On a few occasions, the host managed to pin Lokomotiv back into its zone without finding the finishing touch. As the game progressed, both teams slowed their initial surge and began to defend more deeply. That reduced the number of scoring chances in the latter stages of the opening frame. 

The second period began with Ak Bars on the power play. Twice, Grigory Denisenko threatened to score on his boyhood club, but Daniil Isayev had the answers on both occasions. At the other end, Polunin beat Timur Bilyalov in the 27th minute with the teams back at equal strength. A misplaced clearance saw Polunin win possession in center ice and he advanced to score from long range. 

The lead didn’t last long. Galimov was credited with a tying goal in the 35th minute after his shot rebounded off Isayev and cannoned into Alexander Yelesin and over the line. Ak Bars followed that with a power play, but could not break the deadlock before the intermission. 

Loko began the third period without Georgy Ivanov, giving Artyom Kuzin a few shifts in his place on the second line alongside Alexander Radulov and Yegor Surin. The game became more cautious, with players bogged down in physical battles and missing opportunities for creative play. 

In the end, it came down to special teams. Kazan’s penalty kill held up after Dmitrij Jaskin was assessed a holding minor. But when the home team got on the power play, Chmevelski potted the winner. Once again, there was help from a deflection: the American’s initial shot came back off the glass for him to pick up the pieces and score from the slot. In the closing stages, Bob Hartley called Isayev to the bench in favor of a sixth skater. But Ak Bars withstood that late surge to claim a vital victory and tie the series.