Lokomotiv and Avangard renew rivalry in an action-packed matchday

Seven games are on tap as Metallurg host surprising Barys in Magnitogorsk, while Traktor welcome in-form Spartak in Chelyabinsk. Salavat Yulaev face Neftekhimik in Ufa, and Dinamo Minsk host Sibir. HC Sochi then welcome Ak Bars, before Lokomotiv and Avangard renew their playoff rivalry in Yaroslavl. The action closes with Torpedo facing CSKA at the brand-new Volga Arena in a First Teams’ Cup clash.

The matchday starts in Magnitogorsk with a top clash between Metallurg and Barys. The Kazakhs are perhaps the season’s biggest surprise so far, with three wins in four games. They started the season with a 7:1 thumping of Sibir in Novosibirsk, then defeated Salavat Yulaev 8:6. After a loss to Amur in their home opener (1:3), the Kazakhs won again on Wednesday, shutting out Lada in Togliatti (6:0). Today will be a great chance to understand what heights Barys can reach in a road game against one of the league’s top teams: Metallurg. Andrei Razin’s men had a strong start to the season with three straight wins, but then followed the hot start with two consecutive losses, to Avangard (2:3 OT) and Spartak (2:3), respectively. With both teams eager to win this game, the fans in Magnitogorsk will be treated to an exciting battle.

After its road win in Magnitogorsk, Spartak will try keeping the ball rolling in a game in Chelyabinsk. The Red-and-Whites are one of the hottest teams in the league, with four straight wins. After losing the opener to Torpedo (0:1), Alexei Zhamnov’s men defeated CSKA (3:2), SKA (3:1), Severstal (8:0), and Metallurg (3:2). Traktor is in a very different position as the Chelyabinsk side is now sitting in last place in the Eastern Conference’s standings. After four games, Traktor collected only one win, against Avtomobilist on Sept. 09 (4:3), losing to Lokomotiv (twice, 1:5, 1:4) and Ak Bars (1:2). Today’s game will be a good chance for Traktor to revert the trend after two straight defeats.

In the meantime, Salavat Yulaev hosts Neftekhimik in another exciting matchup. Both teams are in fine form, but the Wolves left the best impression so far. After losing the opener to the Shanghai Dragons (4:5 OT), Neftekhimik won the four next straight games, leaving little chances to HC Sochi (4:1), Avtomobilist (3:1), Admiral (2:1), and Sibir (3:0). On the other side of the rink, Salavat Yulaev will want to bounce back after losing the first Green Derby of the season to Ak Bars. Up by three goals, the Ufa team lost the game in extra-time as Viktor Kozlov’s men will want to rehabilitate in front of their fans in this home game against Neftekhimik, to gain morale and points for the Eastern Conference’s standings.

The action then moves to the Western Conference, starting from Dinamo Minsk hosting Sibir. Both teams aren’t in their best moment. The Belarusians are somewhat surprisingly yet to win a game this season, with four straight losses. The Bison suffered no heavy loss, but they need to start winning games to avoid losing ground from the other teams. In its latest game, Dinamo Minsk lost to Lada (2:4). Sibir isn’t faring much better, yet the Novosibirsk side celebrated a win in a 2:0 shutout over Amur on Sept. 10. After that victory, Sibir lost to Avtomobilist (2:5) and failed to bounce back against Neftekhimik (0:3). Today, the team will try to improve its record in a difficult road game in Belarus.

Another winless team is HC Sochi. The Black Sea franchise lost all four games to start the 2026-2027 campaign and today the team will face another difficult test with Ak Bars coming to town. After losing to Metallurg on Sept. 11 (2:3 SO), the Tatarstan franchise lost again to Torpedo (2:3), but claimed on Wednesday the first Green Derby of the season with a sensational rally after being down by three goals by the second period (4:3 OT). HC Sochi has only scored twice in the current season, allowing fourteen goals: it’s time for the team to step up and improve its game to gain a better record in the West.

However, the central game of the day will certainly be Lokomotiv hosting Avangard. For three consecutive seasons, the teams faced off in the playoffs, and each time, Loko has come out on top. A preseason game between these teams demonstrated just how intense the rivalry between these two teams has become. The game in Yaroslavl will be the first official matchup between these teams since that very series, the outcome of which was largely decided by 33 seconds in Game Six. So far, Dmitry Kvartalnov’s team remains undefeated this season—will Avangard be the team to end Lokomotiv’s winning streak? The Hawks themselves enter today’s confrontation following three straight victories.

Closing down an action-packed matchday is a matchup between Torpedo and CSKA, also counting for the First Teams’ Cup. It will be the second clash between the two teams in the current 2026-2027 campaign with CSKA claiming an early win on Sept. 09 (3:0). After that game, CSKA lost to Admiral (2:4) and at home to Lokomotiv (2:3). Then, Muscovites bounced back with a 4:0 win over HC Sochi. It was only the second win for CSKA in the current season. Torpedo has instead won two straight matches, over Lada (7:2) and Ak Bars (3:2), and is higher in the standings. An exciting game is on tap at the brand-new Volga Arena.

17:00: Metallurg (3-1-0) vs Barys (3-1-0).

About the game

Metallurg is in the middle of a three-game home series and lost its latest couple of matches.

Barys enters the second game of a four-match road trip after a win over Lada on Wednesday (6:0).

Barys’ goalie Hunter Shepherd is on an 87:13 shutout streak.

Barys’ forward Justin Bailey is on a four-game scoring streak, with 9 (5+4) points over that stretch.

Injury list

Barys: Arkady Shestakov.

Milestone alert

Metallurg’s forward Nikita Mikhailis may reach 200 career assists (currently at 198).

17:00: Traktor (1-3-0) vs Spartak (4-1-0).

About the game

Traktor enters the second game of a four-match home series following two straight losses.

Spartak is in the middle of a three-game road trip and won its previous four matches.

Spartak’s goalie Artyom Zagidulin is on a 60:00 shutout streak.

Spartak’s defenseman Daniil Orlov had at least an assist in each of his previous four games, totaling five helpers.

Spartak’s forward Alexander Belyayev is on a three-game scoring streak, with 7 (5+2) points over that stretch.

Spartak’s forward Yegor Filin is equally on a three-game scoring streak, but with 5 (2+3) points.

Injury list

Traktor: Vitaly Kravtsov.

Spartak: Alex Galchenyuk, Maxime Comtois, William Reilly.

17:00: Salavat Yulaev (2-1-1) vs Neftekhimik (4-0-1).

About the game

Salavat Yulaev enters the second game of a four-match home series following a loss to Ak Bars on Wednesday (3:4 OT).

Neftekhimik is in the middle of a three-game road trip and won its previous four matches.

Salavat Yulaev’s forward Jack Rodewald is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (4+3) points over that stretch.

Neftekhimik’s forward Filip Dolganov is on a 60:00 shutout streak.

Injury list

Salavat Yulaev: Artyom Gorshkov, Gleb Kuzmin.

19:10: Dinamo Minsk (0-1-3) vs Sibir (1-3-1).

About the game

Dinamo Minsk starts a two-game home series still winless after four matches.

Sibir kicks off a two-game road trip following two straight losses.

Dinamo Minsk’s forward Sam Anas is on a four-game scoring streak, with 6 (2+4) points over that stretch.

Dinamo Minsk’s defenseman Ty Smith had at least an assist in each of his previous four matches, totaling six helpers.

Injury list

Dinamo Minsk: Rhett Gardner, Alex Limoges, Nicholas Meloche.

Milestone alert

Dinamo Minsk’s goalie Vasily Demchenko may record his 30^th KHL shutout.

19:30: HC Sochi (0-4-0) vs Ak Bars (4-1-1).

About the game

HC Sochi enters the third game of a four-match home stand following four straight losses.

Ak Bars ends a three-game road trip after a win over Salavat Yulaev on Wednesday (4:3 OT).

19:30: Lokomotiv (5-0-0) vs Avangard (3-1-0).

About the game

Lokomotiv starts a two-game home series as the Railwaymen won their first five matches in the season.

Avangard kicks off a four-game road trip on a three-match winning streak.

Lokomotiv’s forward Yegor Surin is on a five-game scoring streak, with 7 (4+3) points over that stretch.

Lokomotiv’s forward Georgy Ivanov is also on a five-game scoring streak, but with 5 (2+3) points.

Avangard’s forward Andrew Poturalski is on a three-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points over that span.

Avangard’s defenseman Mikhail Gulyayev had an assist in each of his previous three matches.

Avangard’s forward Joshua Leivo is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points.

Avangard’s forward Dmitry Rashevsky is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.

Injury list

Lokomotiv: Maxim Beryozkin, Artur Kayumov.

Avangard: Maxime Lajoie, Pavel Leuka, Michael McLeod, Nikolai Prokhorkin, Damir Sharipzyanov, Alexander Volkov.

Milestone alert

Lokomotiv’s goalie Daniil Isayev may record his 40^th career shutout, while Alexei Melnichuk may reach 10.

19:30: Torpedo (4-1-0) vs CSKA (2-3-0).

About the game

Torpedo enters the second game of a five-match home series on a two-game winning streak.

CSKA, who defeated Torpedo earlier in the season (3:0), enters the second road game of a series of five following a win over HC Sochi on Wednesday (4:0).

CSKA’s forward Denis Zernov is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that stretch.

Injury list

Torpedo: Matvei Polyakov, Nikita Shavin.

Milestone alert

Torpedo’s forward Amir Garayev may reach 100 career points (currently at 99).

CSKA’s forward Denis Zernov may score his 300^th point in the KHL (currently at 299).