SKA beat Spartak, and Dynamo beat Torpedo in the KHL regular championship
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The in-form SKA extended its winning streak in the KHL regular season to seven matches, defeating Spartak, which occupies the top spot in the Western Conference table, at home – 3:2. After this defeat, the Spartak team was overtaken by Dynamo, which beat Torpedo with the same score on their site.
The St. Petersburg match well illustrated the salt of the metamorphoses that took place with SKA, which was accelerating badly in the championship at such a pace that one could even think about the risk of flying past the playoffs, but then picked up a decent pace and approached the clash with the leader of the Western Conference with a series of six wins in a row. What was striking first of all was the density of the hosts’ play – previously sporadic, but now constantly present, no matter what part of the court the events unfolded on. No idling, all the time the struggle is not fictitious, for show, but quite real.
From this density was born the discomfort of Spartak with its surprisingly vigorous attack this season. The goal was born directly from this density. The entire SKA unit participated in a tough recovery of the puck in the opposing zone and achieved success. And then the “hot” Vladimir Alistrov dealt with Spartak goalkeeper Patrick Rybar in the fall. Similar episodes at the visiting gates occurred later. And, for example, Zakhar Bardakov found himself in a situation only slightly worse than Alistrov’s.
However, the St. Petersburg match showed well, and why Spartak is so good in this championship so far. It seemed a little shocked by SKA’s activity at the start, he adjusted the settings for the umpteenth time during the championship, and at some point in the second period it was impossible not to notice that the game was going completely differently from how it had gone before. to the fact that Spartak is not fussing, but is slowly and quite confidently pressing the opponent. In the end, he got the majority, and Maxim Tsyplakov famously corrected a shot from the blue line on the spot.
And soon Spartak completely took the lead when its striking trio, the brightest and most effective in the championship, fired. Pavel Poryadin, Nikolai Goldobin, and Andrei Loktionov rushed off simultaneously and in fantastic synchronicity into the counterattack – lightning fast, impeccably lined up. It was crowned by a pass from Goldobin, the championship’s top scorer, who had already scored his 50th point, to Loktionov, who had an empty corner in front of him. SKA coach Roman Rotenberg tried to get out of it by asking to review a possible play with a high stick during this jet escape, but the challenge didn’t work out.
But everything came together with a shot at the end of the period by St. Petersburg forward Mikhail Vorobyov. And in the final third of the match, SKA suddenly bit Spartak and was in the minority. Moreover, defender Alexander Nikishin ran to Rybar’s goal, confirming that in attack, if necessary, he acts no worse than elite attackers.
At the end of the meeting everything was predictable. “Spartak” pressed, and Rybar gave up his place to the sixth field player. However, SKA defended too confidently for the Muscovites to count on salvation.
The match between Spartak’s closest pursuer, Dynamo, and the now dangerous Torpedo turned out to be no less interesting. There was, perhaps, even more wit in it than in St. Petersburg.
Dynamo opened the scoring in the first period after Nikita Gusev’s cross, which was scored by Jordan Weal. The Torpedo team, increasing their speed, demonstrated that their opponents could not relax under any circumstances. And in the second twenty minutes, Vasily Atanasov spotted Nikolai Kovalenko in a killing position, and the balance was restored.
Dynamo’s shot and lucky rebounds helped Dynamo take the lead. They angered Torpedo, but Dynamo held on until the break, and after it, thanks to Gusev, they realized their numerical advantage – only to immediately run into a response from Alexei Kruchinin and survive the nervous ending. In it, “Torpedo” had wonderful chances to win back, but the luck of the Nizhny Novgorod team flatly refused to smile, once, say, sending the puck into the post.
Thanks to this victory, Dynamo equaled Spartak in terms of points. And after another win, SKA found itself close to Torpedo, which closed the top four of the conference table. Now there are only two points between them.
KHL Regular Championship
“Barys” — “Neftekhimik” 4:3 (overtime). “Metallurg” – “Traktor” 6:3. “Salavat Yulaev” — “Avangard” 3:1. “Lokomotiv” — “Lada” 2:1 (overtime). “Dynamo” (M) — “Torpedo” 3:2. “Kunlun Red Star” — “Ak Bars” 1:0. SKA—Spartak 3:2.
Tournament table
Western Conference
I IN VO VB PB ON PSH O
1. “Spartak” 35 21 2 0 1 2 9 127:93 49
2. Dynamo (M) 34 18 4 1 1 2 8 102:76 49
3. Lokomotiv 33 19 2 0 1 1 10 84:66 44
4. “Torpedo” 34 18 2 0 1 1 12 100:79 42
5. SKA 33 18 1 1 0 0 13 97:74 40
6. CSKA 33 15 2 1 0 2 13 97:74 38
7. “Dynamo” (Mn) 32 10 4 1 2 2 13 86:81 34
8. Severstal 33 12 0 2 2 3 14 109:104 33
9. “Kunlun” 37 5 3 4 2 3 20 79:124 29
10. Sochi 34 10 1 2 0 2 19 86:124 28
11. “Vityaz” 34 8 2 2 2 2 18 70:116 28
Eastern Conference
I IN VO VB PB ON PSH O
1. “Metallurg” 35 19 3 1 2 2 8 113:86 50
2. “Avangard” 34 13 7 2 0 3 9 100:91 47
3. “Lada” 35 16 1 2 1 6 9 90:85 45
4. “Salavat Yulaev” 34 19 1 0 0 1 13 92:68 41
5. Ak Bars 34 14 5 0 0 2 13 93:80 40
6. “Tractor” 34 13 4 1 0 4 12 89:78 40
7. “Avtomobilist” 35 13 3 2 3 1 3 80:78 40
8. “Siberia” 34 9 2 4 2 3 14 79:98 35
9. Neftekhimik 34 11 2 1 2 4 14 80:106 34
9. “Cupid” 33 12 0 1 4 2 14 70:86 32
10. “Barys” 35 5 2 3 2 5 18 78:106 27
11. “Admiral” 31 5 2 1 4 2 17 62:90 22
The teams that finish in the first eight places in the conference at the end of the regular season advance to the playoffs.
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