Table-topping Magnitka shows class, Lada gives Minsk a scare. September 28 round-up

Metallurg moved to the top of the overall KHL standings with a 5-1 win at Avangard. The emphatic result puts Andrei Razin’s men a point clear of Lokomotiv. The game of the day unfolded in Minsk, where Lada fell five goals behind, then scored four in the last 10 minutes to leave Dinamo anxiously awaiting the hooter. Salavat Yulaev claimed a good 3-0 win at Torpedo, Shanghai Dragons overpowered Sochi to claim a third straight verdict, and Traktor edged past Dynamo Moscow in overtime.

Steelmen shoot down Hawks in style

Avangard Omsk 1 Metallurg Magnitogorsk 5 (1-2, 0-1, 0-2)

The second meeting of these teams this season brought a revenge win for Metallurg after the Hawks took an OT verdict two weeks earlier. Center Mike McLeod returned to the home line-up for only his second appearance of the season, while Ivan Prosvetov started in goal for the second game running. Metallurg rested Vladimir Tkachyov and Yegor Korobkin; Danila Palivko and Kirill Kadyshev returned, while 19-year-old forward Andrei Bokhmyanin made his debut.

The Steelmen made a fast start and a first-minute attack set Valery Orekhov set up Nikita Mikhailis for the opening goal. Then Metallurg got on a power play, but the advantage was short-lived: McLeod got clear and forced Orekhov into a foul. The defenseman was joined in the box by Sergei Tolchinsky, and Avangard had a minute of five-on-three play without success.

At equal strength, Avangard continued to attack. However, its progress was halted when Kirill Kozhevnikov took a major penalty after hooking an opponent between his legs. Nathan Todd scored from a tight angle, and a failed bench challenge left the home team down by two goals and two men. Metallurg could not profit further, and just before the intermission, McLeod created a goal at the other end. He dragged play down the ice before setting up Kirill Adamchuk for a crashing one-timer past Alexander Smolin.

Midway through the game, Mikhailis got his second of the night, punishing a defensive error to race clear and restore the two-goal lead. Igor Nechayev thought he added a fourth, but his effort came back off the post. Avangard struggled to reply, with only a late chance for Vasily Ponomaryov to give the host any encouragement.

Any hopes of a fast start to the third evaporated when Joseph Ceccone took the latest unnecessary penalty of the game. The penalty kill held, but the clock was ticking down. Metallurg was able to defend its lead, and sealed the win with a pair of empty-net goals from Ruslan Iskhakov and Nikita Korotkov.

Lada trails by five – and almost saves the game

Dinamo Minsk 5 Lada Togliatti 4 (0-0, 4-0, 1-4)

Lada almost pulled off a sensational fightback in Minsk. Down 0-5 in the third period, the Motormen scored four times in the last 10 minutes before the clock saved Dinamo’s blushes at the end of a thrilling evening of hockey.

There was little sign of the drama to come in the first period. Dinamo dominated the play, but there were few scoring chances as the teams shared just eight shots on goal.

Things changed in the second period. Ben King got the first penalty of the game, and Dinamo converted the power play thanks to Stanislav Galiyev in the 23rd minute. Brady Lyle soon doubled the lead, and Lada was short-handed again when Evgeny Groshev was assessed a cross-checking minor.

This time Sam Anas was on target, potting his first goal since returning from injury. Chris Tierney claimed his third assist of the night and three in six minutes changed the atmosphere in the arena.

A pattern was established: Lada fouled, Dinamo scored. Daniil Lipsky added a third power play goal late in the frame and seconds later the visitor’s Alexander Lukin got into a fight with Bogdan Belkin that saw both men sit for five.

At the start of the third period, Lada’s power play got its first chance to impress, but could not find a way to goal. Instead, 20-year-old forward Arseny Chukhrayev scored his first in the KHL to make it 5-0 in the 48th minute.

Everyone assumed the game was done, except Lada. Andrei Chivilyov quickly pulled one back. Then the visiting power play found its range and Jeremy Groleaux made it 2-5 on 56:11. Consolation efforts, surely?

Perhaps not. Lada saw a chance and played six-on-five, getting another one back through leading scorer Riley Sawchuk. Nerves jangled, Ilya Usov picked up a last-minute slashing penalty (and added a minor for unsporting conduct into the bargain) and – now playing six-on-four – Nikita Setdikov added a fourth for the Motormen. There were still 14 seconds to play, and Dinamo was wobbling like a heavyweight boxer desperate to hear the bell. Salvation came on an offside whistle with four seconds to play: the face-off went Dinamo’s way and the win was – just about – secured.

OT win gives Traktor a boost

Dynamo Moscow 1 Traktor Chelyabinsk 2 OT (1-0, 0-0, 0-1, 0-1)

Traktor clinched its third win of the season to move within a point of the top eight in the East. Scott Gordon’s team is still at the foot of the standings, but is now level with Sibir and Admiral on six points, one behind Amur.

Dynamo, meanwhile, continues its uneven start to the season under Leonids Tambijevs. A four-game winning streak seemed to have given the Muscovites momentum, but today was a fourth loss in five since then. The Blue-and-Whites remain sixth in the West.

The first period saw Traktor have a slight edge in the game, but the only goal went the other way. In the 18th minute Maxim Letunov picked up a stretch pass and advanced down the left before moving inside to beat Henrik Haukeland.

In the second, Traktor again had a lot of possession and kept the puck in the Dynamo zone well. But, once again, the visitor struggled to create clear chances. The teams had just eight shots on goal each in the session, and the closest anyone came was a Bulat Shafigullin effort that slammed into Haukeland’s crossbar.

The visitor’s pressure eventually paid off at the start of the third. Leading goalscorer Nathan Legare claimed his fourth of the season, getting the touch Valentsov slung in the puck from the boards. In the closing stages, Dynamo began to put some serious pressure on Haukeland, chasing a winner in vain.

Instead, the game went to overtime and Traktor quickly found a way past Maxim Motorygin. Andrei Svetlakov’s hit won possession, Ivan Vydrenkov joined the attack and set up Mikhail Rolgizer, who fired into the far corner.

Fast start downs Torpedo

Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod 0 Salavat Yulaev Ufa 3 (0-2, 0-1, 0-0)

Two quick goals early in this game set Salavat Yulaev on the road to victory, and solid defense plus a shut-out from Semyon Vyazovoi secured the result.

Viktor Kozlov’s men improve to four wins from the last five and edge in front of Ak Bars into third place in the East. Torpedo had a similar four-from-five record going into tonight’s game, but missed the chance to close within two points of Western Conference leader Lokomotiv.

The home team made a good start to the game, but was rocked when Ufa scored twice in less than 90 seconds. First the visitor managed a spell of sustained pressure, culminating in a successful point shot from Yaroslav Tsulygin on 5:06. Then Nikita Kamalov’s pass across his own zone went astray, inviting Denis Orlovich-Grudkov to snaffle the puck and double the lead on 6:23.

After that, both teams had chances but there was no further scoring in the first period.

The middle frame saw Salavat Yulaev enjoy more of the play, outshooting Torpedo 12-6. That pressure brought a third goal, Dean Stewart netting his first of the season as the midway mark approached. That goal owed much to a great set-up from Yegor Suchkov, who delivered a superb pass to the slot from his team-mate steer home.

In the third, Torpedo stepped up its offense. Yegor Vinogradov was close to an early goal, but Alexander Alexeyev did well to back up Vyazovoi and block a goalbound shot. However, the home team’s chances were undermined by a couple of untimely penalties and the Ufa defense held firm. In the 57th minute, a minor for Sheldon Rempal gave Torpedo a power play of its own. Despite playing six-on-four, there was no way through as Vyazovoi claimed his third shut-out of the season.

Three in a row as Dragons take flight

Shanghai Dragons 4 HC Sochi 1 (2-0, 1-0, 1-1)

The Dragons made short work of the Leopards to post a third straight victory. Mitch Love’s men have five wins from seven games, a PPG ratio that would put them higher than their current position had they not played fewer than any other team in the Western Conference.

Sochi, meanwhile, remains adrift at the foot of the standings with just one win in nine games. Andrei Mironov’s first experience as a head coach in the KHL has been a tough one.

It didn’t get any better for him tonight. Shanghai opened the scoring after 34 seconds on a goal from Riley Sutter and pressed home that advantage. Midway through the first period, Nikita Alexandrov doubled the lead with his first goal of the season.

Alexandrov was assisted by Daniil Malorosiyanov, who got his first point for Shanghai after arriving on loan from Avtomobilist. Late in the second period, the 21-year-old defenseman added his first goal when he followed up a face-off win to rifle home from the top of the left-hand circle. His debut marker came in in 95th KHL game and left Sochi with too much to do.

The visitor did have some consolation in the final stanza. Viktor Baldayev, who once played for Kunlun Red Star in the pre-Dragons era, got a 50th-minute goal to deny the home team a first shut-out of the season. But the last word went to Sutter, who added to his opener with an empty net goal.