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Moscow Derby headlines a three-game KHL Friday
CSKA and Dynamo Moscow meet in a First Teams’ Cup clash as the league-leading Red-and-Blues look for a 10th straight win, while Dynamo aim to end a difficult run. In the East, Metallurg hosts Salavat Yulaev in a battle between two of the conference’s top teams, with Magnitka still adjusting after Andrei Razin’s temporary departure. HC Sochi and Spartak complete the Friday slate on the Black Sea.
The matchday starts in the Eastern Conference, with an exciting showdown between Metallurg and Salavat Yulaev. It’s the second meeting between the two sides in the current season. On Sept. 23, a double by Nathan Todd led Magnitka to a 4-3 road win in Ufa as Magnitka went on with excellent results. However, the team has recently temporarily parted ways with its head coach Andrei Razin after a 2-5 loss to Admiral in Magnitogorsk, but Metallurg replied with a 3-0 blanking of the Sailors in the revenge match. Despite the difficult situation, Magnitka remains the top team in the league with 21 points. Salavat Yulaev is also having a good season so far, and bounced back with a 5-4 OT win in Novosibirsk after two straight losses (2-4 to Sibir and 1-3 to CSKA). The Ufa team is currently third in the Eastern Conference’s standings, with a six-point gap to Metallurg.
Another two games are on tap in the Western Conference. HC Sochi hosts Spartak for the second time in three days. On Wednesday, the Red-and-Whites returned to victory after six straight games to stop a concerning skid. Nikita Gusev put on a passing clinic with two assists for Sochi, but that wasn’t enough to save the Black Sea franchise from its second straight loss, after a home defeat to Torpedo on Saturday (0-6). Spartak climbed up to the sixth place in the Western Conference’s standings, while HC Sochi sits at the bottom, with only four points. Will Spartak manage to achieve its second straight win on the Black Sea shore?
Closing out a light KHL Friday is an exciting Moscow Derby between CSKA and Dynamo Moscow, that will count for the First Teams’ Cup’s standings. The teams are headed opposite directions. Seven losses in the last eight games for Leonids Tambijevs’ men are leaving the Blue-and-Whites outside the playoff places for now – that’s something that Dynamo will want to correct in today’s showdown. The other Moscow side is instead on a roll, with nine consecutive wins – a stretch that started on Sept. 16 with a win in Sochi (4-0). CSKA is thus now first in the West’s table, tied with Lokomotiv at 20 points. The teams met recently, on Saturday, with CSKA claiming a 4-3 SO win, despite Maxim Letunov’s hat-trick for the Blue-and-Whites – his first in the KHL. After that confrontation, CSKA went on defeating Salavat Yulaev on home ice (3-1), while Dynamo lost to the Shanghai Dragons (2-3).
17:00: Metallurg (10-3-1, 1st E) vs Salavat Yulaev (7-5-1, 3rd E)
About the game
Metallurg, who defeated Salavat Yulaev earlier in the season (4-3), ends a three-game home series after a win over Admiral on Wednesday (3-0).
Salavat Yulaev wraps up a three-game road trip following a win over Sibir also on Wednesday (5-4 OT).
Metallurg’s goalie Yegor Zavragin enters today’s game on an 87:31 shutout streak.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Artyom Gorshkov, Gleb Kuzmin.
Milestone alert
Metallurg’s forward Nikita Mikhailis may record his 200th KHL assist (currently at 199).
Salavat Yulaev’s forward Artyom Nabiyev lines up for his 100th league appearance.
19:30: HC Sochi (2-10-0, 11th W) vs Spartak (6-5-2, 6th W)
About the game
HC Sochi wraps up a four-game home series following two straight losses.
Spartak enters the second game of a four-match road trip after its win in Sochi on Wednesday (5-2).
Injury list
HC Sochi: Cam Lee, Vladislav Kara, Kirill Voronin.
Spartak: Alexander Bryntsev, Demid Mansurov, Daniil Orlov, German Rubtsov.
Milestone alert
HC Sochi’s forward Dmitry Kagarlitsky may record his 350th KHL assist (currently at 349).
Spartak’s forward Maxime Comtois may reach 100 points in the KHL (currently at 99).
19:30: Dynamo Moscow (5-7-2, 9th W) vs CSKA (10-3-0, 2nd W)
About the game
Dynamo Moscow is in the middle of a three-game home series following five straight defeats.
CSKA, who defeated Dynamo earlier in the season (4-3 SO), plays the lone road game of the series on a nine-game winning streak.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nick Merkley is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (2+1) points over that stretch.
CSKA’s forward Prokhor Poltapov is also on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
CSKA’s forward Marat Khairullin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points.
CSKA’s forward Maxim Sorkin is on a three-game scoring streak, with 3 (1+2) points.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Yegor Rimashevsky, Nikita Tertyshny.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Maxim Letunov lines up for his 300th KHL appearance.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Dylan Sikura may record his 100th KHL point (currently at 99).
Dynamo Moscow’s goalie Maxim Motorygin may reach 10 career shutouts.
CSKA’s forward Ivan Drozdov may record his 100th assist in the league (currently at 99).
