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CSKA chase an 11th straight win in a six-game KHL Tuesday
CSKA put their 10-game winning streak on the line in the Moscow derby against Dynamo, who are still fighting to return to the playoff places. In the East, Amur aim for a fifth consecutive victory against Spartak, while Salavat Yulaev meets Sibir for the third time this season and Barys hosts Avtomobilist. In the West, league-leading Metallurg visits Dinamo Minsk, while the Shanghai Dragons take on struggling Traktor in St. Petersburg.
The matchday starts in Khabarovsk again, this time with Amur hosting Spartak. The Tigers have been in fine form, with four consecutive wins. Amur started its streak with a win in Yekaterinburg (3-0), then defeated Traktor in Chelyabinsk (2-1). Consequently, the Tigers downed Traktor again (2-0) and Lada (1-0). With three shutouts and only one goal allowed in the last four matches, Amur showed an adept defensive game, but will also need to try and score more goals as only Avangard put fewer pucks in the net (22 against 23). The Tigers are currently the third seed in the Eastern Conference’s standings. Coming to the Far East today is Spartak. The Red-and-Whites defeated Sochi twice in a row (5-2, 2-0), and retained their spot in the playoff places in the West. Today’s game will be critical for both sides, with Amur willing to get a fifth straight win and Spartak also eyeing a win to keep its winning run going. However, given the form of both teams’ goalies, scoring first could prove decisive.
In Ufa, Salavat Yulaev faces Sibir for the third time in the season, with the two Eastern sides trading wins so far. The two teams met last week, with Salavat Yulaev ending up on top (5-4 OT), while the first time, Sibir had the upper hand (4-2). After that clash last Wednesday, Salavat Yulaev lost in Magnitogorsk (1-7) but defeated Neftekhimik, powered by a double from Sheldon Rempal (4-3). Sibir has instead won twice in a row, over Traktor (2-1) and Barys (3-2) – both on the road – to return to the right side of the playoffs line. Salavat Yulaev is currently in the top four in the East, and will will look to win to maintain its position near the top of the table.
In Astana, Barys will try to return to winning ways when it hosts Avtomobilist after a home loss to Sibir (2-3). It was somewhat an unexpected result for the Kazakhs, who entered the game on a three-match winning streak. After the loss, Barys slipped down to fifth place, and will be on the lookout for a return to the top four. However, the Motormen will enter the game fresh after an eight-day pause, with the last game taking place on Oct. 6, a shutout win over Avangard (4-0). Avtomobilist is currently the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference’s standings, but has one or two games in hand and can potentially climb much higher.
The action then moves to the Western Conference for three games. First, Dinamo Minsk hosts Metallurg. The Belarusians continue to lack consistency, alternating wins and losses. After a heavy defeat to Lokomotiv on Saturday (1-6), the Bison collected a much-needed win in St. Petersburg over the Shanghai Dragons on Monday (3-2), with Christopher Tierney netting the game-winner for the Belarusians. With the Eastern Conference’s standings being so tight, Dinamo can still aim a top-four finish at the end of the matchday, but the team has somewhat struggled against contenders, and today they face table-topping Metallurg. Magnitka leads the league with 25 points and has now three straight wins after Andrei Razin’s suspension, with Vladimir Vorobyov at the helm of the team.
In Moscow, CSKA will look to claim an eleventh straight win in a Moscow derby against Dynamo. It will be the third such meeting in the current campaign, with CSKA claiming both matches so far, including a 5-2 win on Friday. After that loss, the Blue-and-Whites returned to winning ways after six straight losses, celebrating an extra-time win on home ice over SKA (4-3 OT). CSKA currently leads the Western Conference’s standings tied with Lokomotiv at 22 points, while Dynamo Moscow is still outside the playoff places, well above HC Sochi and Lada, but trailing eighth-placed Spartak by two points.
Closing out an exciting matchday is a showdown between the Shanghai Dragons and Traktor. The Dragons have three wins in the last five matches, having defeated Metallurg (4-1), Lada (5-0), and Dynamo Moscow (3-2) and lost games to Severstal (1-2 OT) and Dinamo Minsk (2-3). Mitch Love’s men found some consistency and showed good hockey, and are now in fifth place, with two games in hand on the teams in the Western top four. The Chelyabinsk side has now three losses in a row, to Amur (twice, 1-2, 0-2) and Sibir (1-2) and is currently at the bottom of the Eastern Conference’s standings. Scott Gordon’s team will face a serious challenge in St. Petersburg, but Traktor needs a win to return into playoffs contention.
12:00: Amur (8-5-1, 3rd E) vs Spartak (7-5-2, 8th W)
About the game
Amur enters the second game of a five-match home series on a four-game winning streak.
Spartak enters the third game of a four-match road trip following two straight wins in Sochi.
Amur’s goalie Alexander Trushkov is on a 122:52 shutout streak.
Amur’s goalie Maxim Dorozhko is on an 89:57 shutout streak.
Spartak’s goalie Ivan Fedotov is on a 74:28 shutout streak.
Injury list
Amur: Alexander Dergachyov, Danila Galenyuk, Andrei Krutov, Vasily Machulin, Yegor Rykov.
Spartak: Denis Bryntsev, Daniel Mansurov, German Rubtsov.
Milestone alert
Amur’s goalie Maxim Dorozhko may line up for his 200th career appearance and record his 20th league shutout.
Amur’s goalie Alexander Trushkov may record his 10th career shutout.
Spartak’s defenseman Christian Jaros lines up for his 200th league appearance, while forward Danil Pivchulin reaches 100.
Spartak’s forward Maxime Comtois may record his 100th KHL point (currently at 99).
17:00: Salavat Yulaev (8-6-1, 4th E) vs Sibir (5-7-3, 8th E)
About the game
Salavat Yulaev ends a two-game home series following a win over Neftekhimik on Monday (4-3).
Sibir wraps up a three-game road trip after winning the last couple of matches.
The teams traded wins so far in the current campaign (2-4, 5-4 OT).
Sibir’s defenseman Darren Dietz is on a three-game scoring streak, with 6 (1+5) points over that stretch.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Alexander Alexeyev, Nikita Bogdanov, Artyom Gorshkov, Gleb Kuzmin.
Sibir: Mikhail Abramov, Maxim Osipov, Daniil Valitov.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s defenseman Nikita Zorkin lines up for his 300th league appearance.
Sibir’s defenseman Darren Dietz may score his 100th goal in the KHL (currently at 99).
17:30: Barys (8-6-0, 5th E) vs Avtomobilist (6-5-2, 7th E)
About the game
Barys ends a three-game home series after a loss to Sibir on Monday (2-3).
Avtomobilist starts a four-game home series after a win over Avangard on Oct. 6 (4-0).
Barys’ defenseman Logan Day had at least an assist in his last six matches, totaling ten helpers.
Barys’ forward Mason Morelli is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (2+3) points over that stretch.
Avtomobilist’s goalie Evgeny Alikin is on a 71:02 shutout streak.
Injury list
Barys: Madi Dikhanbek.
Avtomobilist: Vladimir Galkin, Nikita Shashkov.
Milestone alert
Avtomobilist’s forward Alexander Kadeikin lines up for his 800th career appearance.
Avtomobilist’s goalie Evgeny Alikin may record his 30th shutout in the KHL.
19:10: Dinamo Minsk (6-4-5, 6th W) vs Metallurg (12-3-1, 1st E)
About the game
Dinamo Minsk starts a two-game home series following a win over the Shanghai Dragons on Monday (3-2).
Metallurg ends a two-game road trip on a three-match winning streak.
Dinamo Minsk’s forward Corey Tirney is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (1+3) points over that stretch.
Metallurg’s goalie Yegor Zavragin is on an 87:31 shutout streak.
Metallurg’s forward Nathan Todd is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (2+2) points.
Injury list
Dinamo Minsk: Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Sergei Kalinin, Nicolas Meloche.
19:30: CSKA (11-3-0, 2nd W) vs Dynamo Moscow (6-8-2, 9th W)
About the game
CSKA, who defeated Dynamo Moscow twice in the current campaign (4-3 SO, 5:2), starts a two-game home series on a ten-match winning streak.
Dynamo Moscow starts a three-game road trip following a win over SKA on Sunday (4-3 OT).
CSKA’s forward Marat Khairullin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (3+4) points over that stretch.
CSKA’s forward Prokhor Poltapov is also on a four-game scoring streak, with 7 (4+3) points.
CSKA’s forward Maxim Sorkin is on a four-game scoring streak, with 5 (3+2) points.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Nick Merkley is on a five-game scoring streak, with 6 (5+1) points over that span.
Dynamo Moscow’s forward Pavel Shen is on a three-game scoring streak, with 4 (3+1) points.
Injury list
Dynamo Moscow: Yegor Rimashevsky, Nikita Tertyshny.
Milestone alert
CSKA’s forward Ivan Drozdov may reach 100 KHL assists (currently at 99).
Dynamo Moscow’s goalie Maxim Motorygin may record his 10th league shutout.
19:30: Shanghai Dragons (8-3-1, 5th W) vs Traktor (5-8-0, 11th E)
About the game
The Shanghai Dragons are in the middle of a three-game home series following a loss to Dinamo Minsk on Monday (2-3).
Traktor starts a three-game road trip on a three-match losing streak.
Injury list
Shanghai Dragons: Martin Frk.
Traktor: Vitaly Kravtsov, Sergei Telegin.
Milestone alert
Shanghai Dragons’ forward Dmitrij Jaskin may score his 350th point in the KHL (currently at 349).
