Leader claims seventh straight win, Sibir rallies to win. November 1 round-up

Lokomotiv was pushed all the way in Kazan, but edged the verdict thanks to Artur Kayumov. He scored in regulation before deciding the shoot-out. Ak Bars’ Alexander Barabanov scored twice but finished on the losing side. In the East, Avtomobilist survived a Neftkehimik fightback to win 3-2 and Sibir came from two down to beat Metallurg. Friday’s other game ended in a comfortable win for Severstal over Kunlun.

Early goals set up Avto win

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 3 Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 2 (2-0, 0-1, 1-1)

A fast start from the home team set Avto on the road to a fourth win in five games, while Neftekhimik fell to a third successive loss. The Motormen had to rejig the roster following an injury to Anatoly Golyshev, which forced head coach Nikolai Zavarukhin to reshape his newly-formed top line of Golyshev, Da Costa and Macek. That led to a reshuffle throughout the top six.

Zavarukhin’s opposite number Oleg Leontyev also made several changes after Neftkehimik lost 0-3 at home to Lada. Riley Barber made his debut for the club and went straight onto the first line.

Despite the loss of captain Golyshev, Avto made a great start. In the fourth minute, Nick Ebert claimed the opening goal when his intended pass to the slot deflected of Artyom Serikov and into the net. A minute later it was 2-0 thanks to Vladimir Kuznetsov and the home team seemed to be in control. Leontyev responded with a time-out and a goalie switch, replacing Artyom Zagidulin with Filipp Dolganov. Steadied, the visitor managed to complete the first period with no further damage, but also made no inroads into the deficit and could not force a single save out of Evgeny Alikin.

There wasn’t much to excite the fans in the early stages of the second period either, but gradually Neftekhimik began to ask questions. Midway through the game, the visitor got its first power play of the night and Vyacheslav Leshchenko managed to pull a goal back on only his team’s third shot of the game. He exchanged passes with Evgeny Mityakin and placed his shot between Alikin’s pads to halve the deficit. Subsequently, the home goalie found himself more active but Avtomobilist carried its 2-1 lead through to the second intermission.

Early in the third period, the visitor killed a penalty then got another power play chance and claimed another goal: Barber’s shot came back off the glass and Mityakin was there to dispatch the rebound. However, it only took a couple of minutes for Avtomobilist to get back in front. Semyon Kizimov’s defense-splitting pass set up Macek in his preferred spot in the circle and the home forward made no mistake to score the winning goal.

Sibir fightback stuns Magnitka

Metallurg Magnitogorsk 3 Sibir Novosibirsk 4 (2-0, 0-1, 1-3)

Metallurg led 2-0 and 3-1 in this game, yet ended up losing out to a Sibir team that was relieved to halt a five-game skid. The win sends Vadim Yepanchintsev’s team shooting up to fifth in the Eastern Conference. However, in a jam-packed section, Sibir and Metallurg are part of a group of five teams locked on 21 points, stretching from fifth to ninth in the standings.

Yet at first everything seemed to go well for Magnitka. The home team got ahead on a goal from defenseman Artyom Minulin, playing his first game since Sep. 16. And before the intermission, Alexander Petunin increased the lead on the power play, winning a battle on the slot and stuffing a loose puck past Denis Kostin. The lead was deserved; Metallurg had the better of the play in almost all areas.

However, at the start of the second period it was Sibir’s turn to get on the power play and the visitor needed just 10 seconds to punish Roman Kantserov’s foul. Sergei Shirokov’s shot wrong-footed Ilya Nabokov to get his team back in the game. That ushered in a middle frame that gave the visitor rather more satisfaction. Although Sibir could not tie the scores, it had the better of the game and created the bigger chances.

At the start of the third, Metallurg restored its two-goal cushion thanks to a great goal from Nikita Mikhailis. The forward took a pass from Danila Yurov and outwitted Kostin to score from behind the Sibir net. For a time, Magnitka looked to have the game well under control, but penalties helped Sibir get back into it. In the 49th minute, Shirokov got his second power play goal of the night to make it 2-3 and change the flow of the game.

Within 90 seconds, the scores were level: Vladislav Kara might have been surprised to see the puck drop for him, but he reacted perfectly to find the open corner of Nabokov’s net. And Kara followed his captain’s example by potting a second, putting Sibir ahead for the first time with less than three to play. That was enough to win an absorbing encounter and end the visitor’s slump.

Kayumov settles hard-fought clash

Ak Bars Kazan 2 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 3 SO (1-1, 0-0, 1-1, 0-0, 0-1)

A shoot-out winner from Artur Kayumov extended Lokomotiv’s hot streak and put the Railwaymen nine points clear at the top of the Western Conference. For Ak Bars, a point strengthens its position in third in the East after a compelling game in Kazan.

This was a clash between two in-form teams. Lokomotiv, fuelled by six successive wins, has moved out in front at the top of the KHL standings. Ak Bars, meanwhile, is up to third in the East after four wins from five. That has prompted some to suggest that Anvar Gatiyatulin is starting to get the play he wants from the club he took over in the summer and set up this encounter in Kazan as Friday’s big game.

However, it wasn’t always a spectacle that would appeal to lovers of high scoring hockey. Both Gatiyatulin and his opposite number Igor Nikitin are noted for playing a disciplined, structured game. There isn’t always much room for improvisation or devil-may-care offense, and that was the story of the first period. The teams managed just nine shots on goal between them – six of them for Loko.

Despite that defensive masterclass, we still saw two goals in the opening frame. Lokomotiv got in front in the 13th minute when Martin Gernat finished a lovely combination by redirecting Alexander Yelesin’s feed to the slot.

By that time, Ak Bars had yet to trouble Daniil Isayev in the visitor’s net. His first save came a couple of minutes later, a routine stop from Dmitry Yudin. But in the 16th minute, the home team was level. Dmitrij Jaskin went behind the net and Kirill Semyonov spun to send a pass for Alexander Barabanov to score from close range.

The play remained tight in the second period. Ak Bars had a great chance to force the pace late on when Maxim Shalunov took a major penalty for checking to the head. However, there were only a couple of chances on that long power play as Lokomotiv’s PK did its job diligently.

The teams were back to equal strength for the third period and the Railwaymen celebrated with a quick goal from Artur Kayumov. He started with a surge down the right, beating Barabanov along the way. His initially shot was blocked by Mitchell Miller, but the rebound went back to Kayumov who scored at the second attempt.

Midway through the period, Ak Bars had the puck in the net when Jaskin followed up a Barabanov shot. However, a review found that the home captain’s stick was high and the play was whistled off. A couple of minutes later, the home team had another power play and this one led to Barabanov’s second of the night. He got the final touch on Nikita Lyamkin’s point shot to make it 2-2 with seven to play in regulation.

Loko almost got a winner in regulation when Georgy Ivanov redirected a point shot against Amir Miftakhov’s post. However, the game was destined to go all the way to a shoot-out after Ak Bars killed a penalty in overtime.

The shoot-out was also absorbing. Byron Froese converted the first attempt for Lokomotiv, but when Maxim Beryozkin stepped up for the visitor final effort, he had to score to save the game. Beryozkin delivered, and in sudden death Kayumov got the decider.

Severstal powers to revenge win