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27 April 2018, 14:03 News

Ak Bars. The 2018 champions, hero by hero
A champion team is not only an experienced head coach, a solid goaltender and a recognized sniper. The reason it is such a cliché to say, “Hockey is a team game,” is because it is true, and Ak Bars of 2018 is no exception to the rule. Every player in the Kazan collective contributed to the eventual victory, so we at KHL.ru devoted this page to all of the actors in the heroic Ak Bars drama.
22 April 2018, 22:19 News

Dmitry Chernyshenko: Congratulations to Ak Bars, a worthy winner
The 10th anniversary season of the Kontinental Hockey League reached its climax on Sunday in Kazan, when Ak Bars won its fourth and decisive victory in the final series, thus clinching a 4-1 win over CSKA Moscow and becoming a three-time winner of the Gagarin Cup – an achievement unmatched in the KHL. After the hooter signalled the end of the game, KHL President Dmitry Chernyshenko shared his thoughts on the League's jubilee season and congratulated the Kazan club on its victory.
22 April 2018, 21:20 News

“It’s the best feeling in the world!”
After Ak Bars secured its Gagarin Cup triumph with Sunday’s 1-0 victory over CSKA, players from the Kazan team spoke about what it meant to them. Meanwhile, CSKA’s players reflected on what went wrong for the team after losing the Gagarin Cup final 4-1.
22 April 2018, 19:30 Daily Round-up

Ak Bars wins the Gagarin Cup. Final, Game 5, April 22
Ak Bars wrote its name into the history books with its third Gagarin Cup triumph. Fittingly, in this 10<sup>th</sup> anniversary season, the biggest prize went back to the first time to lift the cup, while the Kazan team’s success puts out in front of the competition. No other team has won it all more than twice; head coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov claimed his third triumph to move level with Oleg Znarok (Dynamo and SKA) as the most successful KHL coach.
20 April 2018, 23:56 News

“Nothing is decided yet”. Players about Game 4
Ak Bars moved to within one victory of lifting the Gagarin Cup thanks to a 3-1 success at CSKA on Friday. But after the game, players from both teams were adamant that this final series is far from over, even if it could all be wrapped up in Kazan on Sunday.
20 April 2018, 22:31 Daily Round-up

Lander’s double puts Ak Bars on the brink of victory. Final, Game 4, Apr 20
Ak Bars is just one step away from claiming its third Gagarin Cup following a 3-1 victory in Moscow. Two goals from Anton Lander and two points from Justin Azevedo led the way as the Kazan team claimed a 3-1 verdict on Friday night. Emil Garipov also impressed, making 40 saves as another fine display of counter-attacking hockey secured a vital win for Zinetula Bilyaletdinov’s men.
19 April 2018, 00:05 News

“It’s the playoffs, it doesn’t matter how you win”. Players about Game 3
Game three of the Gagarin Cup final brought the action back to Moscow – and CSKA enjoyed its first victory on home ice to close the gap on Ak Bars in the series. Here’s what the players thought about it.
18 April 2018, 22:50 Daily Round-up

Back in the game. Playoffs, Final, Game 3. April 18
CSKA handed itself a priceless lifeline in this year’s Gagarin Cup Final, snatching an overtime victory to move within one game of Ak Bars.
18 April 2018, 19:00 News

Notes from the Underground: Gagarin on the Metro
As the action in final series switches to Moscow, the Gagarin Cup must also be in attendance. Following its travels in chauffer-driven cars in trucks, and on long-distance trains, for Game 3 the trophy chose for its method of transport one of the architectural wonders of the world – the Moscow Metro.
17 April 2018, 00:32 Refereeing Department clarifies

Refereeing Department on Kazan's goal and no-goal
In the 37th minute of Monday's match in Kazan, Game 2 of the Gagarin Cup final series between Ak Bars and CSKA, a goal from Kazan's Rob Klinkhammer restored the home team's lead, but the referee referred the episode to the video goal judge to ascertain whether Ak Bars had too many players on the ice. The video showed that no such violation of the rule had occurred, and so the referee awarded a goal.
16 April 2018, 23:46 News

“Now we are able to bring home the wins” Players about Game 2
Ak Bars took a 2-0 lead in the Gagarin Cup Final series, defeating CSKA 2-1 for the second time in three days. After the game, players from both sides shared their thoughts on the action.
16 April 2018, 21:41 Daily Round-up

Canadian double act puts Ak Bars on top. Playoffs, Final, Game 2. April 16
It’s an odd stat, but home ice victories for Ak Bars in the Gagarin Cup Final aren’t as common as you might expect for a team with two cup wins already in the record books. In three previous grand final appearances, Kazan had seen just three home wins for Ak Bars. Back-to-back wins, as seen at the start of this series, are unprecedented in the KHL era. With Zinetula Bilyaletdinov’s team historically even more impressive on the road, it might suggest that CSKA faces an even more challenging task than usual if it is to recover from 0-2 in the series.
16 April 2018, 12:30 Weekly Round-up

Gagarin takes off in Kazan – KHL review of the week
The Grand Final gets underway with plenty of pomp in Tatarstan, its all change for Znarok and Kovalchuk, while Gordie Dwyer signs a new deal in Minsk.
14 April 2018, 20:53 News

“Now we need to make the dream come true!” Players about Game 1
Game one of the Gagarin Cup Final ended in a 2-1 victory for Ak Bars over CSKA. After the game, some of the key players shared their thoughts about the action.
14 April 2018, 19:43 Daily Round-up

Galiyev grabs the goals. Playoffs, Final, Game 1. April 14
Stanislav Galiyev struck twice to give Ak Bars victory in the opening game of the Gagarin Cup final – and reawaken a rivalry from his youth hockey days.
14 April 2018, 11:44 News

Gagarin Cup lands in Kazan
The main trophy of the KHL arrived this morning in the capital of Tatarstan, where the first match of the final series between Ak Bars and CSKA will begin at 17.00.
14 April 2018, 11:02 News

Eve of the Final – Gagarin Cup Heads for Kazan
Today, the long awaited Gagarin Cup final series, the climax of the 10th season the KHL Championship, gets underway in Kazan, and on Friday, the main trophy embarked on its train journey from Moscow to the Tatarstan capital to attend the big game
14 April 2018, 08:00 Preview

Waiting for the puck to drop
The big face-off is almost upon us. The 10th Gagarin Cup final gets underway today and the two rivals are putting the finishing touches to their plans. For Ak Bars, grand final pressures are nothing new: it’s the fourth time Zinetula Bilyaletdinov has led his team to the season’s ultimate showdown, more than any other team in the KHL. For CSKA, meanwhile, a club where recent history does not match up to an illustrious past, this is only the second attempt to hoist the big prize – and the first for head coach Igor Nikitin as he cements his reputation as one of the brightest prospects of the new generation of Russian coaches.
13 April 2018, 20:00 Preview

The top scorers – Azevedo vs Grigorenko
Justin Azevedo of Ak Bars leads the playoff scoring charts with 21 points; Mikhail Grigorenko is CSKA’s top scorer with 12. The outcome of their personal scoring race could go a long way towards shaping the destination of this year’s Gagarin Cup. Here’s a bit more about the men powering the two offenses.
12 April 2018, 18:00 News

CSKA’s Nikitin ready to make his name
The apprentice is about to face the sorcerer. CSKA’s head coach, Igor Nikitin, got his first call-up to Russia’s training staff under Zinetula Bilyaletdinov back in 2011-12. On Saturday, he faces off against his old mentor in the 2018 Gagarin Cup Final. Already this season, he’s aided and eliminated another great coach – Oleg Znarok, colleague for Team Russia, rival in the KHL. Can he outstrip one more mentor?
11 April 2018, 16:00 Interview

Zaripov bloodied but unbowed. Ak Bars prepares for showdown with CSKA
Zaripov sheds blood, Sekac returns, Bilyaletdinov schemes, Lukoyanov gives out advice and Potapov prepares for his first final – KHL.ru reports on Gagarin Cup finalist Ak Bars from the Kazan team's open training session.
11 April 2018, 09:52 News

The Champions’ Curse
CSKA’s victory over SKA in this year’s Western Conference final means that, for the 10th season running, the regular season champion will not lift the Gagarin Cup. So what happened to the top seeds in each of the 10 playoff campaigns the KHL has seen so far?
9 April 2018, 14:00 Weekly Round-up

Finals, records and old faces moving on – KHL review of the week
The Gagarin Cup final is ready to go – and all around the KHL teams are reshuffling their packs. Ilya Kovalchuk is hinting at a return to the NHL, two top Finnish coaches are moving on … and on the ice, Justin Azevedo is closing in on a scoring record.
8 April 2018, 20:41 Daily Round-up

Moscow wins the Army battle. Playoffs, Conference Final. April 8
Mikhail Grigorenko shot CSKA into the Gagarin Cup final for the second time in three seasons, bagging a late equalizer and an overtime winner as the Muscovites recovered a 0-2 deficit to beat SKA.
8 April 2018, 09:46 News

Azevedo in pursuit of points record
Awaiting the winner of the all-army Western Conference final between SKA and CSKA are the men from Kazan and their in-form forward, Justin Azevedo. The Canadian has scored points in his last eleven games, which places him just one step away from matching the record scoring streak, jointly held by legendary pair. Sergei Mozyakin and Pavol Demitra, and provides us with the perfect excuse to look back at the best scoring runs over the League's 10-year history.
6 April 2018, 22:18 Daily Round-up

Johansson steps up, backstops CSKA to victory. Conference Final. April 6
Lars Johansson has not played a big role in CSKA’s playoff campaign so far – prior to this game, the Swede had just 76 minutes of game time in this post season and had never started. Ilya Sorokin’s form had been so impressive that the young Russian was the obvious first choice. Until now.
5 April 2018, 19:36 Daily Round-up

Ak Bars is back in the Gagarin Cup Final. Conference Final. April 5
Ak Bars completed an Eastern Conference Final sweep of Traktor – and can now prepare for its fourth Gagarin Cup final.
4 April 2018, 22:15 Daily Round-up

CSKA fights back to tie the series. Playoffs. Conference Final. April 4
CSKA produced a vital victory to ensure this series remains very much alive. After the home team’s disappointment on Monday, sunk by a SKA goal blitz, game four of the series had the feel of a must-win encounter. Tie the series, and everything is up for grabs; slip to 1-3 and it’s hard to see a way back.
3 April 2018, 20:04 Daily Round-up

Tokranov’s overtime goal puts Ak Bars in complete control. April 3
Vasily Tokranov’s overtime goal earned Ak Bars a tight victory in Chelyabinsk – and put the team into a commanding 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Final.
2 April 2018, 22:16 Daily Round-up

Impressive performance puts SKA in front. Conference Final. April 2
A flurry of SKA scoring either side of the first intermission gave the defending champion the edge in this game – and put the Petersburg team ahead in the series.
1 April 2018, 19:43 Daily Round-up

Birthday bonus! Azevedo inspires Ak Bars to victory. Conf Final. April 1
Justin Azevedo celebrated his 30th birthday with a landmark goal and a game-winning assist to help Ak Bars recover from a slow start and take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Final.
31 March 2018, 19:38 Daily Round-up

SKA blanks CSKA, ties the Western Final. Conference Final. March 31
SKA hit back in game two of the Western Conference Final, blanking CSKA to claim a 2-0 victory and square the series before the teams head to Moscow on Monday. Mikko Koskinen made 25 saves for his fourth shut-out of this year’s playoffs, while Nikita Gusev and Jarno Koskiranta got the goals in the second period.
30 March 2018, 21:48 Daily Round-up

Azevedo fires Ak Bars to victory in series opener. Conf Final. March 30
Goals from Justin Azevedo and Stanislav Galiyev saw Ak Bars come from behind to win the opening game of this year’s Eastern Conference Final. The home team was slightly stronger throughout the game, but struggled to solve Pavel Francouz early on and fell behind to a Richard Gynge goal early in the second period.
30 March 2018, 12:09 Preview

A clash of generations – Ak Bars vs Traktor in the Eastern Final
It’s hard to imagine a greater contrast than the head coaches of Ak Bars and Traktor. Zinetula Bilyaletdinov is an archetype of the stern, unsmiling Russian coach, while his opponent in Chelyabinsk, Anvar Gatiyatulin, feels like part of a new generation.
29 March 2018, 22:33 Daily Round-up

Kuzmenko treble stuns SKA. Conference Final. March 29
The clash of the titans in the Western Conference got off to a flying start with a game that delivered all the excitement promised by this showdown. And, to wrap up an absorbing start to this much-anticipated series, we finished with an overtime winner from Andrei Kuzmenko. The CSKA forward completed his hat-trick in the extras, a performance reminiscent of Denis Mosalyov’s triple show for Dynamo at this stage in 2012; the Blue-and-Whites won that game 5-4 in overtime, and went on to lift their first Gagarin Cup. CSKA would be thrilled if history repeated itself and the big prize returned to Moscow draped in red and blue colors this year.
29 March 2018, 11:14 Preview

The Army Derby – SKA vs CSKA in the Western Final
Not many would have picked a different match-up for this year’s Western Conference final. The two Army clubs dominated the KHL throughout the regular season – no rival team, in either conference, lost fewer games than the two combined. And so it proved: both clubs progressed with little cause for alarm, although CSKA did endure a long, long night against Jokerit before losing out in the fifth period of overtime.
27 March 2018, 20:25 Daily Round-up

Traktor sinks Salavat Yulaev, reaches Conference Final. March 27
Traktor advances to the Eastern Conference final after edging Salavat Yulaev 2-1 in this game seven showdown in Ufa. The Chelyabinsk team got the verdict despite falling behind, with goals from Swedish duo Richard Gynge and Linus Videll turning the game around and setting up a match-up against Ak Bars as the race for the Gagarin Cup draws ever closer to its conclusion.
26 March 2018, 18:25 Weekly Round-up

Records tumble – KHL week in review
Longer than ever, more saves than ever, more prolific juniors than ever – this year’s playoffs continue to rewrite the record books.
25 March 2018, 18:04 Daily Round-up

Traktor goes goal crazy. Playoffs, Conference SF, March 25
Disastrous defense from Salavat Yulaev helped Traktor blast to an emphatic victory and send this series off to a decisive seventh game in Ufa on Tuesday.
24 March 2018, 20:09 Daily Round-up

CSKA joins SKA in Western Final. Playoffs, Conference SF, March 24
CSKA moved into the Western Conference Final, setting up another Army showdown against SKA next week. But the Moscow team had to battle hard to subdue Jokerit as the Finns led twice in this game before running out of steam in the closing stages.
News by tag #playoff
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