Lowly Neftekhimik stuns in-form Magnitka.

There were goals galore in Magnitogorsk as Neftekhimik shocked Metallurg with a 6-5 win. Lokomotiv and Severstal also played out an entertaining game, with the Railwaymen getting a 5-3 verdict. Spartak rallied from 0-3 to beat Torpedo, Salavat Yulaev blanked Traktor and there was a shoot-out win for Vityaz at home to Admiral.

Traktor fires blanks

Traktor Chelyabinsk 0 Salavat Yulaev 3 (0-1, 0-1, 0-1)

Salavat Yulaev defeated Traktor for the second time this season as the home team continues its inconsistent form. The visitor, meanwhile, improves to four wins from five and moves to fifth in the East. Ufa also spoiled Anvar Gatiyatulin’s big day: the Traktor head coach marked his 300^th game behind the bench in the KHL, but could not even find a goal to celebrate from his team.

Traktor handed a debut to Canadian goalie Andrew Hammond, while Salavat Yulaev was missing the suspended Ryan Murphy on defense. Young D-man Alexander Komarov came into the team for the first time this season, while Sergei Shmelyov returned from illness.

Hammond was in for a busy debut. He faced 18 shots in the first period, and was beaten once. Shakir Mukhamadullin was the scoring, firing home from the blue line on the second power play of the game.

In the middle frame, Traktor improved – as it needed to, if it was to get anything from the game. However, it was Ufa who scored again, and once again it was a defenseman on the scoresheet at Mikhail Naumenkov scored through traffic in front of Hammond.

Two power plays came and went, but there was no breakthrough for the home team. At the other end, Salavat Yulaev continued to create opportunities, twice hitting the piping before Pavel Koledov joined the attack to complete the scoring. Andrei Kareyev, back in the team after four games, made 25 saves for his shut-out.

Neftekhimik edges a thriller at Magnitka

Metallurg Magnitogorsk 5 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 6 (1-1, 1-2, 3-3)

This game had it all. 11 goals, three of them in the last 91 seconds, and a shock win as struggling Neftekhimik halted Metallurg’s winning streak.

The home team made several changes ahead of this game. Arkhip Nekolenko returned, just in time to replace fellow center Josh Currie who is still feeling the after effects of Alexei Emelin’s hit. Vladislav Yeryomenko and Valery Orekhov took the places of Pavel Akolzin and Ilya Khokhlov, with young Nikita Grebyonkin named as 13^th forward. By contrast, Neftekhimik head coach Oleg Leontyev rewarded the players who secured the teams first win of the season and named an unchanged team.

There was little indication of what was to come in the early stages. Metallurg, as expected, took the early initiative and opened the scoring through Semyon Koshelev midway through the first period. Anthony Camara tied it up in the 17^th minute and the game was level at the first intermission.

Cody Curran was one of the best players on the ice for Metallurg in the first period. In the second, though, his penalty helped Neftekhimik get in front when Vyacheslav Leshchenko converted the power play chance. Almost immediately, another penalty saw the visitor extend its advantage as Yohann Auvitu shrugged off the attentions of two opponents to fire in a wrist shot.

Ilya Vorobyov responded immediately, replacing Vasily Koshechkin with Eddie Pasquale and exchanging angry words with his team in a bid to fire up a response. It worked. Yegor Yakovlev set up Yegor Korobkin and it was 2-3 at the second intermission.

The third period turned into a scramble. Three times, Neftekhimik extended its lead, and three times Metallurg got back to within a single goal. However, the home team could not bridge that final gap. In the closing moments, with Pasquale benched in favor of an extra skater, Curran got it back to 4-5. Then came an empty net goal from Pavel Poryadin on 59:06, which seemed to be the final word. Magnitka wasn’t quite done, though, and Nekolenko’s second of the game made it 5-6 with 12 seconds left. Neftekhimik held on until the final hooter to record its second win of the season in memorable fashion.

Railwaymen rally to sink Severstal

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 5 Severstal Cherepovets 3 (1-3, 1-0, 3-0)

Lokomotiv snapped a two-game losing streak, but had to work hard to overcome Severstal. It took three unanswered goals in the third period to settle this game, with the visitor blowing a 3-1 lead.

Severstal started fast and got ahead in the second minute through Alexander Suvorov. Loko enjoyed the better of the subsequent play and deservedly tied the game when a 5-on-3 power play helped Pavel Kraskovsky get a shooting chance from the faceoff circle.

However, penalty trouble soon struck the home team. Within a minute Yegor Korshkov was watching from the box as Robin Press restored Severstal’s lead. Then Stepan Nikulin’s interference call led to a second goal for Suvorov. The Steelmen had struggled to generate much offense, but scored from three of their six shots on goal in the first period. Loko’s starter Ivan Bocharov was replaced by Daniil Isayev.

Isayev went on to deny Severstal for the rest of the game. At the other end, Lokomotiv continued to press and Nikulin started the long journey back with a goal on the half-hour mark. Going into the third, there was still work to do. However, Georgy Ivanov’s tally early in the frame tied the scores, and from then on it felt like Loko was in charge of the game.

In keeping with what came before, penalties shaped the conclusion. Just five seconds separated offenses by Severstal’s Semyon Lugovyak and Maxim Kazakov. The double power play produced two goals for Lokomotiv, with Andrei Sergeyev and Rushan Rafikov taking the game away from Severstal at last. The visitor tried to rally in the closing stages, but Isayev kept the door closed.

Starchenko completes Spartak’s fightback

Spartak Moscow 4 Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod 3 (0-3, 2-0, 2-0)

Friday’s action in Moscow also saw a fightback. Spartak trailed by three against Torpedo, but managed to tie the game in the third period before Roman Starchenko won it with his first goal since leaving Barys.

The opening 20 minutes belonged to the visitor, despite Spartak making a lively start. Torpedo gradually assumed control of the play and after Maxim Fedotov opened the scoring the visitor steadily took charge. Kenny Agostino’s power play tally doubled the lead, and young Vasily Atanasov added a third just before the hooter.

At the start of the second period, Patrik Rybar took over from starting goalie Alexei Krasikov to make the remainder of the game a Slovak netminding battle against Adam Huska. Rybar had that better of that duel, blanking Torpedo in the second period while his team-mates set about reducing the deficit.

Two penalties early in the session put the visitor under pressure, and this time Spartak was able to build on its promising start. Oddly, though, the Red-and-Whites’ first goal was a short-handed effort after two Torpedo players collided in center ice and Maxim Tsyplakov stole the puck and skated away to score. Then the home team’s pressing brought its reward when Ilya Talaluyev made it 2-3 in the 37^th minute.

Spartak continued to press in the third, and drew level in the 48^th minute when Danila Kvartalnov followed up his own shot and buried the rebound. By now, it was almost one-way traffic and Roman Starchenko put the home team in front for the first time midway through the final frame. That was Starchenko’s first of the season after his first weeks at Spartak were disrupted by injury.

Yarovoi gives Vityaz a shoot-out win

Vityaz Moscow Region 3 Admiral Vladivostok 2 SO (0-0, 1-2, 1-0, 0-0, 1-0)

Vityaz made a spirited recovery from 0-2 to force overtime before taking a shoot-out verdict thanks to youngster Stanislav Yarovoi.

The 19-year-old was playing only his second game in the KHL after making his debut in this week’s win over Amur. But the forward was entrusted with a penalty shot to win it in sudden death for Vityaz and complete a battling fightback.

After a goalless first period, Admiral got on top with a couple of goals at the start of the second. Rudolf Cerveny struck on the power play to open the scoring, then Alexander Gorshkov doubled the lead four minutes later.

On its recent losing streak, Vityaz might have crumbled at that point. However, Vyacheslav Butsayev’s team enjoyed a morale-boosting victory in its previous game and was psychologically ready to renew the battle here. Stepan Starkov pulled a goal back late in the second period, then Tayler Graovac tied the scores midway through the third.

That was enough to take the game to overtime.

Source: en.khl.ru

Avto scores five on Ak Bars, O’Dell hits four for Dynamo. September 29

Avtomobilist won the day’s big game, defeating Ak Bars 5-2 in Yekaterinburg. Eric O’Dell had the best individual performance, scoring four in Dynamo’s 5-0 win over Amur. Defending champion CSKA suffered a loss at home to Sibir, with the visitor taking a 3-1 verdict as the Muscovites struggled to turn territorial advantage into goals.

Motormen move into top spot

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 5 Ak Bars Kazan 2 (2-0, 1-2, 2-0)

Avtomobilist’s impressive start to the season has seen the Motormen scoring freely. Nikolai Zavarukhin’s team is unbeaten on home ice and has the most potent power play in the KHL. However, there were still questions about Avto’s early form. Previously seasons have seen Yekaterinburg fade after a bright start and this term there have been few tests against the league’s recognized powerhouses.

A game against Ak Bars promised to answer some of those questions. Not only is Oleg Znarok’s team rated as one of the leading contenders to win the Gagarin Cup this season, the Kazan club also has a good recent record against Avtomobilist. The Ural team had lost its last seven games in this series and hadn’t beaten Ak Bars at home since September 2017.

Avtomobilist got a power play in the first minute, but was unable to force an early goal. After that, there was little danger at either end until the game exploded into life with two goals in the space of a minute. Both had something in common as Avto’s forwards fired the puck through well-wrought triangles: Patrice Cormier finished off the first, then Anatoly Golyshev converted the second after the entire top line got involved.

Not surprisingly, the visitor tried to fight back. However, there were few moments to alarm Igor Bobkov in the home net and Ak Bars frequently ran into trouble in center ice. One such breakdown, midway through the second period, saw young forward Viktor Neuchev burst clear to score his second goal in the KHL.

That chased Timur Bilyalov from the net with Amir Miftakhov taking over. Ak Bars redoubled its pressing game, and finally got some reward with two goals late in the second period. Alexei Vasilevsky gave away possession and Kirill Petrov’s effort fell for Vadim Shipachyov to score. Soon after, Stanislav Galiyev made it a one-goal game following another defensive lapse.

That hinted at a momentum swing going into the third period, but Ak Bars was unable to complete its fightback. Avtomobilist focussed on careful defense, frustrating the visitor and running down the clock. In the closing moments, the home team got two empty net goals, with Brooks Macek and Stepan Khripunov completing the scoring to seal a memorable – and possibly significant – victory that puts Avto back on top in the East.

O’Dell hits four to sink Amur

Dynamo Moscow 5 Amur Khabarovsk 0 (1-0, 1-0, 3-0)

Eric O’Dell scored four in a game for the first time in his KHL career as Dynamo powered past Amur. Previously, O’Dell potted two trebles for Sochi in January 2019 and September 2017.

The pre-game form favored the Blue-and-Whites here: Dynamo was on a three-game winning streak, while Amur had lost five of its last six. However, for much of the first period there wasn’t all that much between the teams. It took a delayed penalty seconds before the intermission for the home team to get in front, with O’Dell enjoying a simple finish following Andrei Mironov’s shot from deep.

Early in the second, Amur’s defense allowed O’Dell too much space in the fae-off circle. As two opponents backed off, the Canadian needed no further invitation and advanced to rifle another goal past Janis Kalnins.

Amur found itself under increasing pressure in the middle frame, but managed to hold on without sustaining further damage. However, a second before the intermission the visitor took a ‘too many men’ call and that proved costly. Just 35 seconds into the final frame, O’Dell added a third to take the game away from the Tigers.

O’Dell still wasn’t done. With five to play, he added a fourth to make this his best individual performance in his 294 KHL games. O’Dell also becomes the 22^nd player in KHL history to score four goals in one game, achieving that feat just four days after Sibir’s Alexander Sharov became the 21^st name on that illustrious list.

However, the final word went to one of his team-mates. Ivan Muranov made it two goals in a minute as the game finished 5-0. Dynamo reinforces its grip on second place in the West, but remains five points adrift of early pacesetter SKA.

Kostin, Beck too good for CSKA

CSKA Moscow 1 Sibir Novosibirsk 3 (0-1, 0-1, 1-1)

Across town, CSKA faced a more challenging evening against Sibir. Denis Kostin made 38 saves in the visitor’s net and was reprieved by a first-period video review. At the other end, Sibir took its chances – Taylor Beck scoring twice – to record only its sixth regulation time victory over this opponent in KHL play.

CSKA dominated the first period, outshooting Sibir 17-4 and spending almost four times as long on the attack. However, the crucial statistic favored the visitor, which scored only goal of the frame in the eighth minute through Ilya Pastukhov. The Muscovites had the puck in the net on a power play late in the session, but Sibir’s bench challenged the play. Pavel Karnaukhov had both skates firmly on the paint in front of goalie Denis Kostin and the review whistled off the goal for interference on the netminder.

The home team’s problems got worse in the second period. First, Sibir tightened up defensively, stemming the flow of scoring chances for CSKA and building a platform from which to launch more attacks of its own. Then, midway through the session, Taylor Beck doubled the lead.

In the third, CSKA tried to raise the tempo and find a way back into the game. Anton Slepyshev got clean through on Kostin, only to be denied by the visiting goalie. However, the play continued and Mikhail Grigorenko managed to force the puck home for his 100^th goal in the KHL.

However, instead of sparking a revival that proved to be the high watermark for the home team. The final minute summed up the game: CSKA removed goalie Alexander Sharychenkov but immediately lost possession and Beck potted his second to seal the win.

Source:en.khl.ru