For Spartak Moscow, a run to the playoffs is long overdue. The Red-and-Whites, despite their fanatical support, haven’t featured in post-season since 2011. Back then, Spartak was swept by SKA. The last series victory came in 2010 against Dynamo Moscow, and Milos Riha’s team’s win against Lokomotiv on March 22 of that year was the last time Spartak celebrated victory in a playoff game. In a nutshell, it’s been far too long.
This season, Vadim Yepanchintsev carries the team’s hopes. The newly-appointed head coach is well-known as a player whose long career took him from his breakthrough into top-flight hockey as a teenager at Spartak to spells with the likes of Ak Bars, Dynamo and CSKA before retiring in 2011 after helping Atlant to the Gagarin Cup final. Since then, he’s coached in the MHL youth league with Spartak, and was an assistant coach for the Red Stars touring team in 2014-15, before heading to Kazakhstan for his first role as head coach of an adult team with Saryarka Karaganda in the VHL. Spartak’s modest budget means Yepanchintsev’s experience of working with youngsters is likely to be all the more important. He is well-acquainted with the current generation of prospects emerging from the Spartak system, and that is likely to be one of the key reasons why he was hired for the job. In recent seasons, the Red-and-Whites have had a strong youth program, winning the Kharlamov Cup in 2014 and producing players of the caliber of Igor Shestyorkin. Tapping into that resource could be crucial for Spartak this season.
Vadim Yepanchintsev
But Yepanchintsev also has some interesting summer signings to work with. Ville Lajunen, an effective two-way D-man with Jokerit, has joined the club with a brief to replace the free-scoring Matt Gilroy on the blue line. On offense, the vastly-experienced Stanislav Chistov arrives from Avtomobilist. The 34-year-old has never been prolific, but has earned renown as a valuable member of rosters at Traktor and Lokomotiv in recent seasons and can serve as a good influence on the roster’s younger faces. He’s likely to partner Ben Maxwell, a Canadian who spent the last two seasons at HC Sochi. Spartak will be hoping the change of scenery does him good after his progress rather stalled by the Black Sea last year. Home-grown talent Sergei Shmelyov and former SKA defenseman Dmitry Yudin are two young players worthy of attention. Yudin, 21, can claim two Gagarin Cup wins and a silver medal at the World Juniors, but would be the first to admit that his playing time at SKA was limited. A move to Spartak gives him a chance to kick-start his career and gain some serious ice time. Shmelyov, meanwhile, is now 23. He earned a good reputation as a youth team player at Atlant, and made a successful step up to KHL hockey in 2014-15, scoring well in a struggling Atlant team. But after moving to Spartak following Atlant’s demise, Shmelyov has struggled to live up to his potential. Just 10 points from 45 games last season was a disappointment for all concerned. The potential is undoubtedly there, but now he has reached an age where he needs to start delivering. A new start under a new head coach might be the trigger for a long-awaited break-out season.
Vadim Yepanchintsev
KHL Drug Bans
The anti-doping program in the KHL Championship 2016-17 season was conducted jointly with the IIHF and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in accordance with the SportAccord Convention – DFSU (Doping Free Sport Unit), and other international agencies accredited by WADA and concerned with the collection of tests and laboratory analysis of results. A total of 377 tests were conducted during the 2016-17 Championship. The IIHF has informed the KHL that three players - forward Danis Zaripov (then with Metallurg Magnitogorsk), defenseman Andrei Konev (Admiral Vladivostok) and defenseman Derek Smith (Medvescak Zagreb) - have tested positive for banned substances.
Derek Smith tested positive for a category S6.а stimulant.
Andrei Konev tested positive for a category S6.b stimulant.
Danis Zaripov tested positive for a category S6.b stimulant plus category S5 diuretics and masking agents.
On the 21st of July, 2017, having investigated all the available evidence related to the case outlined above, the IIHF Disciplinary Committee ruled that Danis Zaripov should be banned from competitive hockey until the 22nd of May, 2019; that Andrei Konev should be banned until the 19th of November, 2017; and that Derek Smith should be banned until the 2nd of September, 2018. The Kontinental Hockey League has formally excluded all three players from paricipation in the Championship for the terms set down by the IIHF Disciplinary Committee.
Sibir
Last season was a huge disappointment for Sibir. Plagued with injury problems, most notably the loss of goalie Alexander Salak for much of the campaign, the team missed out on a playoff spot for the first time in five years. Indeed, 19th place in the overall rankings represented the worst ever result for Sibir in the KHL, just two years after it reached the Eastern Conference final and claimed a bronze medal overall. Sibir’s playoff fate was sealed on the final day of the regular season when a defensive error gifted Avtomobilist a third-period equalizer in Yekaterinburg. Sibir knew that only a regulation-time victory could keep its top-eight hopes alive; that late goal prolonged the game but curtailed the season. Head coach Andrei Skabelka left the club soon after, heading to Omsk where Avangard will hope for a repeat of his early successes in Novosibirsk. That brought Pavel Zubov to the hot seat. The 44-year-old, whose playing career was largely divided between Lada Tolyatti and Energia Kemerovo, moved into coaching with Belarusian team Metallurg Zhlobin before joining the coaching staff at Sibir in 2015. His promotion to the top job is an attempt at maintaining continuity within the club, an acknowledgement that last season’s problems do not, in themselves, represent a fundamental flaw in the way the organization goes about its business. It also fits the template drawn up by GM Kirill Fastovsky – identify emerging talent and potential, and give it a chance to shine. When Sibir was flying high, Fastovsky was hailed as the shrewdest GM in the league; now the pressure is on to prove that point once more.
Pavel Zubov
Zubov, a blue liner by trade in his playing days, inherits a team with a miserly defense. Despite all last season’s problems, the goals allowed tally of 138 was the fifth lowest in the East. With young Alexei Krasikov bidding to cement his status as a top goaltending prospect, there’s every reason for confidence at the back. The continued presence of Adam Polasek, a solid Czech two-way D-man, gives further cause for optimism. Polasek was the only defenseman to play in all 60 games last time round, and his 28 (6+22) points made him the third highest scorer at the club. Fastovsky points to this signing as a model import; it’s no surprise that Sibir was keen to keep him on.
Up front, though, things are different. A raid by CSKA saw three top forwards – Sergei Shumakov, Maxim Shalunov and Konstantin Okulov – head to Moscow. Only Stepan Sannikov remains of the club’s leading marksmen of recent seasons. It’s not the first time Sibir has needed to reconstruct an offense that, in recent years, has incubated the talents of players such as Vladimir Tarasenko and Jori Lehtera. This year’s rebuild has a Swedish accent. Patrik Zackrisson returns to the KHL, where he previously spent a season with Atlant before helping Lev Prague to the Gagarin Cup final in 2014. He’s joined by Alexander Bergstrom, something of a late developer, who arrives from Karlskrona. Bergstrom, now 31, made his Swedish top-flight debut just two seasons ago after helping Karlskrona to win promotion from the Allsvenskan. He continued to score well in the top division, earning his first call-up to the Tre Kronor last season, and represents one of the more intriguing summer arrivals in the KHL. The arrival of Sergei Konkov, a Gagarin Cup winner with Dynamo, adds more depth to the offense.
Vladimir Tarasenko and Jori Lehtera
TUESDAY 25/07
Traktor vs. HC Sochi: 5-1 (2-1, 0-0, 3-0)
Traktor Chelyabinsk and HC Sochi, both at camp in the the Pajulahti Sports Complex in Finland, are already experiencing a preseason of wild ups-and-downs after a mere two games each. On the previous Tuesday, Traktor saw a 1-0 lead turn into a 1-5 defeat at the hands of Neftekhimik, but last Saturday the men from Nizhnekamsk in turn suffered a convincing 2-5 loss to HC Sochi. In the Traktor–Sochi match-up on the Tuesday of this week, however, it was the men from the Black Sea who were brought down to earth with a bump when Traktor recovered from going 0-1 down to triumph 5-1. Yury Alexandrov opened the scoring for Sergei Zubov's side, before a double from Igor Polygalov followed by third-period strikes from Nick Bailen, Andrei Yerofeyev and Artyom Penkovsky gave Anvar Gatiyatulin's team a convincing win. Traktor's joy was tempered by a knock sustained by Canadian forward Paul Szczechura, who failed to finish the match after a collision with an opponent.
Traktor - HC Sochi
In the day's second match, Slovan welcomed Spartak to Bratislava. It was the first preseason outing for the Muscovites, under new head coach Vadim Yepanchintsev, and the third for Milos Riha's Slovaks, who last week lost two games in successive days at Dynamo Pardubice in the neighboring Czech Republic. A total of 4,346 spectators turned up to see the home team edge a close contest, with Slovan eventually securing a 3-2 win via the shootout. Moscow's “Gladiators” drew first blood with a 14th-minute strike from Ryan Stoa, but Bratislava's “Eagles” leveled in the 23rd minute via Pavol Skalicky. The visitors were back in front a little over five minutes later, thanks to Vyacheslav Leshchenko, but the lead only lasted until the 46th minute, when Slovan's Tommi Taimi tied the game at 2-2. In the shootout, Milos Riha's men successfully converted all three attempts.
WEDNESDAY 26/07
The Minsk Cup, the 2017 preseason's first official tournament to feature KHL clubs (five in total: Dinamo Minsk, Dynamo Moscow, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, Dinamo Riga and Ugra Khanty-Mansiysk, with local youth side Yunost Minsk completing the list of participants) got underway on Wednesday, and will run until Saturday.Lokomotiv vs. Dinamo Riga: 3-1 (1-0, 1-0, 1-1)
Having beaten Severstal behind closed doors on Sunday, the men from Yaroslavl continued their winning start to the preseason with another modest victory, this time against Sandis Ozolins's Dinamo Riga. The Railwaymen went in front in the 18th minute through Denis Alexeyev, and that is how it stayed for more than twenty minutes until Denis Mosalyov, who assisted on Alexeyev's goal, scored in powerplay just four seconds before the second interval. Ninety seconds after the restart, Gunars Skvorcovs struck for the Latvians to ensure a tense final period, and the result stayed in doubt until Yegor Korshkov's empty netter settled the affair seven seconds before the siren.
Games in this tournament also feature a shootout, regardless of the final score in regulation time, and the results in yesterday's encounter were as follows:
Shootout:
Kozun (saved), Kraskovsky (saved), Cherepanov (saved), Kayumov (missed), Apalkov (goal) - Kristo (goal), Jelisejevs (saved), Lessio (goal), Galoha (saved), Jevpalovs (saved).
Dinamo Minsk vs. Dynamo Moscow: 3-6 (0-1, 2-3, 1-2)
For several weeks, Dynamo Moscow's off-ice problems have been dominating the sporting headlines, but at last Vladimir Vorobyov was able to assemble a roster of 33 players to take to Belarus for the Minsk Cup. This was doubtless a relief for the head coach, and his players gave him plenty of cause for optimism with their performance as they stormed to an exhilarating 6-3 win over the hosts. The Minsk Men played their part, dominating in the opening period and taking a deserved 19th-minute lead with a powerplay goal from Evgeny Lisovets. The tables turned dramatically in the second period when experienced Minsk defenseman Vladimir Denisov was sitting out a 10-minute penalty. The Muscovites hit the back of Mikhail Karnaukhov's net no fewer than four times in that spell, from the 26th to the 35th minute, thanks to strikes from Mikhail Varnakov, Andrei Alexeyev, Ivan Igumnov and Yakov Rylov, although between the third and fourth goals Rob Klinkhammer hit back with a goal for Minsk to keep the result in doubt. The score stayed at 4-2 until the teams entered the final ten minutes, when two goals in quick succession - Daniil Tarasov for the visitors, and less that 30 seconds later, Evgeny Kovyrshin for the hosts – were followed by another from Tarasov 70 seconds from the end.
The results of the post-match shootout were as follows:
Shootout: Pavlovich (saved), Sharangovich (goal), Vasilchuk (saved), Materukhin (missed), Stepanov (goal) - Tarasov (goal), Sidlyarov (saved), Komarov (saved), Varnakov (saved), Igumnov (saved)
Away from the Minsk Cup, Ak Bars, Lada, Salavat Yulaev and Traktor were also in action.
Neftyanik vs. Ak Bars: 2-3 (0-0, 0-1, 1-2, 0-1)
Ak Bars, with its ranks reinforced by several new arrivals from Metallurg Novokuznetsk, were in the town of Almetyevsk for a mach against local side Neftyanik. Defenses were on top for most of the game, with only Albert Yarullin's 34th-minute goal for Ak Bars troubling the scoreboard operator until Nasybullin for the hosts leveled the score with under 6 minutes left on the clock. Rafael Batyrshin restored the Kazan Men's one-goal advantage a minute later, but the Almetyevsk Men refused to lie down. A goal by Adamchuk with 31 seconds of regulation remaining was enough to take the game to overtime, but Justin Azevedo has a habit of grabbing goals at crucial moments, and he scored in the first minute of added time to give the Kazan Men a 3-2 victory.
Lada Togliatti had its first dress rehearsal for the new season with a match against VHL team Toros. The game took place in Ozolnieki, Latvia, where both teams are at camp, and the result was a 3-1 win for the KHL side. All the goals arrived in the third period, with Daniil Zharkov, Charles Genoway, and Kirill Dyakov scoring for the Togliatti Men.
Traktor vs. Salavat Yulaev: 0-1
Finally, returning to Pajulahti, Finland, where we began, there was another all-KHL encounter. Traktor Chelyabinsk, playing its third match of the preseason and its second in successive days, faced off against a Salavat Yulaev team playing its first game of the preseason. In stark contrast to the goal feasts of the previous practice games in Finland, this match turned out to be exceptionally close. The score remained at 0-0 until the final period, when Salavat defenseman Denis Kulyash settled the game with a powerful shot to give new Finnish coach Erkka Westerlund a winning start on his home soil.
Kunlun
Kunlun Red Star goes into its sophomore season with a much-titled head coach and a new-look roster. And, in Olympic year, our Chinese colleagues are also looking ahead to 2022, when Beijing will host the games. Can the Dragons improve on last year’s encouraging debut? Mike Keenan is a unique coach. The only man to win the Stanley Cup and the Gagarin Cup. The only North American to win a title in Russia. Now, a career of impressive longevity is about to embark on a new chapter – and perhaps the most exotic yet. Keenan was hired by Kunlun at the end of last season, following the unexpected departure of Vladimir Yurzinov. If Yurzinov’s experience made him a safe pair of hands for a newly-formed club, Keenan offers that sporting ‘X’ factor, the indefinable something that might – just might – transform a promising fledgling into a championship contender. That’s certainly the head coach’s brief: reaching last year’s playoff was a good start, but in the People’s Republic, there’s a craving for greater success. Improving on a first-round exit against Metallurg Magnitogorsk is a major priority. It might not be the top priority, though. The club charged Keenan with success, but laid down a condition. Ideally, there will be at least five players with Chinese origins getting regular ice-time in the coming campaign. The challenge for Keenan and GM Vladimir Krechin is to tap into the Chinese diaspora in North America and seek out local talent to fulfil that quota as Beijing gears up for its Olympic adventure in 2022.
Mike Keenan
All change Few familiar faces remain from last season. The club’s eight leading goalscorers have all moved on, captain Janne Jalasvaara and popular Finnish D-man Tuukka Mantyla also decided one year in China was enough. It adds up to a big rebuilding job, one that Keenan embraced from day one. In his first interviews after joining Kunlun, he likened his task to that of a coach at an expansion team; GM Krechin added: “Mike played a crucial role in that [recruitment] process. We did not sign a single player without his agreement. You could write a book about the work we did, the whole process was long, painstaking and detailed.”
The new-look strike force will be led by familiar names. Richard Gynge, a Swedish forward, arrives from Neftekhimik to replace Chad Rau, last year’s leading scorer. Gynge, 30, has extensive KHL experience, and has developed into a dangerous forward at this level. Belarusian international Andrei Kostitsyn also offers renewed fire power, while Wojtek Wolski, a player Keenan knows well from his time at Magnitka, also joins. Wolski will look to prove that he has shaken off the effects of a horrific neck injury last season and has half an eye on an Olympic call-up: when the NHL announced its players would not be made available to go to Korea in February, Polish-Canadian Wolski was quick to tweet his tongue-in-cheek gratitude that he, and other European-based players, now had a shot at going to the Games. On defense, the big arrival is Latvian international Arturs Kulda. Geoff Kinrade (ex Neftekhimik) and Marek Daloga (Slovan) also come with KHL experience.
Richard Gynge
The local angle
And what of the Chinese connection? One of those five ‘local’ spots on the roster will surely be occupied by Zach Yuen, a versatile warhorse of a player who can play on defense or as a center and who was the most effective of last season’s Chinese contingent. Progress from him will be important for the team and the development of Chinese hockey as a whole. Rudi Ying, who showed some scoring form in the first pre-season game of the year, is another returnee.Those two carried the weight of local expectation last season, but this time that load is set to be shared. New recruits include Brandon Yip, born in Canada of Chinese and Irish ancestry, who boasts 174 NHL games from six seasons in Colorado, Nashville and Phoenix. Yip arrives from Dusseldorf, in Germany’s top flight, while Brandon Wong joins on a two-way contract after spending last season in the German Oberliga with Regensburg.
Rudi Ying
Slovan
In the cut-throat world of hockey coaching, it’s rare for anyone to get a second chance after failing to deliver a playoff place. But Slovan head coach Milos Riha isn’t just anyone. The charismatic Czech has plenty of credit in the bank after getting good results from his time at Spartak, Atlant and SKA, where he finished as regular season champion. That’s why, despite missing out last time, the bosses at Slovan still believe he’s the man for the job in Slovakia.
Falling just short
Slovan’s failure to crack the top eight last season wasn’t due to a catastrophic campaign. There were positives from a powerful offense, with Jeff Taffe, Kyle Chipchura and Jonathan Cheechoo combining for 106 points. And there was a mix of pride and frustration at a run of 10 wins from 10 games in January: evidence that the team was coming together, but still not enough to claw back the ground lost in a 16-game slump from late October through December.
Jeff Taffe
Ringing the changes
The club’s response to that campaign has been to embark on a root-and-branch rebuild. In total, 22 players have left the club. That includes the above-mentioned strike trio, the Olympic-bound Slovenian international Ziga Jeglic, long-serving Vaclav Nedorost and goalies Barry Brust and Justin Pogge. Confirmed inbound players, thus far, have been relatively few – but the names mentioned inspire some confidence. Goalie Jakub Stepanek, an experienced Czech who knows the KHL from stints with SKA and Severstal, should bring a bit more stability to the last line of defense; both Brust and Pogge had their moments, but struggled to impress consistently. In front of Stepanek, Finnish defenseman Tommi Taimi arrives from Kunlun Red Star. He only managed one goal in regular season last time, but found the net for his new club in a warm-up game against Spartak earlier this week. On offense, the task of replacing the goals of Taffe, Cheechoo and Chipchura falls to a Czech trio of Lukas Kaspar, Jan Buchtele and Michal Repik. All three bring KHL experience, but that experience has been mixed. Kaspar, well-known from stints at Barys, Donbass, Ugra and most recently Dynamo Moscow, has a solid track-record of 240 points from 356 games. He’s back at the club he represented in 2015-16, and looking to become a scoring leader. Repik was part of Lev’s Gagarin Cup final team in 2014, where he contributed 10 points in the playoff run. Last season the 28-year-old played twice for Traktor but had more joy with Sparta Prague and the Czech national team in the World Championship.
Lukas Kaspar
Learning from last time
Buchtele, meanwhile, is the player with most to prove. Last season he arrived at Avtomobilist with a big reputation after potting 41 points in 47 games for Sparta. That earned him international recognition and attracted the attention of the Yekaterinburg club. Unfortunately, the move didn’t work out for him. Avto made a slow start to the season, head coach Andrei Razin was replaced and although Buchtele made 39 appearances, he contributed a disappointing nine points before returning to Prague. This time, closer to home, he also gets to link up with Repik, a familiar face from Sparta. That might be enough to bring out the best in a talented forward.
Jan Buchtele
THURSDAY 27/07
HC Yunost-Minsk vs. Dinamo Minsk: 5-2 (1-0, 2-2, 2-0)
The Minsk Cup continues to intrigue and entertain the spectators, and Thursday's program opened with a local derby and a surprise result, with Dinamo Minsk suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of HC Yunost-Minsk of the Belarusian Extraleague.
Yunost drew first blood on the 15-minute mark thanks to a powerplay goal from Viktor Turkin, but it was in the opening half of the second period that the game burst into life with four goals in 10 minutes. Slovenian defenseman
Klemen Pretnar made it 2-0 just 52 seconds after the first interval, but within three minutes, Dinamo hit back with a goal from 19-year-old Belarusian international Yegor Sharangovich. On 30.26 Former Neftekhimik and Lada forward Andrei Mikhnov scored for Yunost, but exactly 30 seconds later, young Sharangovich completed his double. The score remained at 3-2 until the 54th minute, when Yunost's two-goal advantage was restored by Mikhail Plotnikov, who played for Spartak and Admiral last season, and less than a minute later, Maxim Parfeyevets put Yunost 5-2 ahead and removed any lingering doubts about the winner.
New Dinamo Minsk boss Gordie Dwyer was gracious in defeat:
"I'd like to congratulate Yunost and their coach, Mr. Zakharov. It turned out to be a tough and exciting game, and one that was interesting to watch... Our opponents created a lot of chances, and I'm grateful that they gave us such a hard game, as it was valuable experience for us... Yunost put us under constant pressure in all zones and made it hard for us to make any quick breaks, or even to bring the puck out of our own zone," - said the Canadian specialist.
A feature of this tournament is a shootout series after each game, regardless of whether the match was tied at the end of regulation time. The results for this “Minsk derby” are as follows:
Shootout: Mikhnov (saved), Dugin (saved), Medvedev (saved), Plotnikov (saved), Razvadovsky (missed) - Sharangovich (missed), Stepanov(goal), Buinitsky (goal), Kovyrshin (goal), Klinkhammer (saved).
Ugra vs. Lokomotiv: 2-3 OT (1-0, 1-0, 0-2, 0-1)
The second game of the day in the Minsk Cup was just as intriguing. In a match littered with penalties, the casual observer would expect a one-sided game settled by Lokomotiv's formidable powerplay unit, and indeed, all the goals were scored in 5-on-4 powerplays, with the exception of the fifth and decisive strike, which came during a 5-on-3. Moreover, when given the man (or two-man) advantage, Yaroslavl boss Alexei Kudashov decided to deploy a special team comprising his starting five: Jakub Nakladal and Staffan Kronwall backing up the fearsome troika of Brandon Kozun – Petri Kontiola – Max Talbot. There was a twist in the tale, however. Khanty-Mansiysk netminder Ilya Proskuryakov clearly had no intention of following such a script, and he thwarted the Railwaymen with a string of impressive saves. Meanwhile, at the other end, Anton Korolyov opened the scoring on 14.14 and Alexander Ugolnikov gave Ugra a 2-0 lead on 32.58. It was not until the clock displayed 42.17 that
Lokomotiv had something to cheer, when Yegor Korshkov halved the deficit a mere 13 days after his 21st birthday, and then, with just 70 seconds remaining, Czech defenseman Jakub Nakladal made the score 2-2. One of the hallmarks of a leader is the ability to produce the goods at the most crucial moments, and in the second minute of overtime, Nakladal scored again to bring Lokomotiv victory and secure a place in Saturday's final.
Igor Zakharkin's men exacted a little revenge in the shootout, in which Lokomotiv failed to find the net with any of their attempts.
Shootout: Varfolomeyev (goal), Skachkov (saved), Kuryanov (goal), Ankudinov (saved), Panov (goal) – Kapustin (saved), Ilyenko (missed), Kayumov (saved), Kartayev (saved), Ivanov (missed).
27.07.17. Minsk Cup 2017. Yugra (Khanty-Mansiysk) – Lokomotiv (Yaroslavl)
Spartak vs. Torpedo 2-1 (1-0, 1-0, 0-1)
Both head coaches, Vadim Yepanchintsev for the Muscovites and Peteris Skudra for the Nizhny Novgorod Men, rested many of their leading players for this encounter in the little Austrian town of Bruck an der Leitha. Finnish international defenseman Ville Lajunen scored the game-winner with a 26th-minute powerplay goal after his fellow defenseman, Evgeny Kulik, had put the Red-and-Whites in front at the end of the first period. Evgeny Grachyov notched a consolation goal for Torpedo on 47 minutes.
Vityaz vs. Avangard 3-1 (0-0, 2-1, 1-0)
This game took place in Fussen, Germany, and was delayed by 30 minutes because (according to the Avangard Omsk Press Office) Valery Belov's Moscow Region men were held up in traffic. The players certainly had no trouble with mobility when they finally stepped onto the ice, and they took the lead when Alexei Makeyev scored the first goal of Vityaz's preseason. The Omsk Men drew level with a strike from ex-New York Islanders forward Johan Sundstrom, but Avangard's joy was cut short – Dmitry Semin made it 2-1 and Jesse Mankinen added a third.
FRIDAY 28/07
Dinamo Riga vs. Ugra: 2-3 SO (2-1, 0-0, 0-1, 0-0, 0-1)As might be expected from a team which stepped onto the ice having enjoyed 28 hours more rest than their opponents, Sandis Ozolins's men started this Minsk Cup game with far more vigor and better movement than did Ugra, and they took a deserved lead in the 9th minute through Emils Gegeris. However, Igor Zakharkin's team stood up well to the Latvians' pressure, and a couple of minutes before the first interval Veli-Matti Savinainen managed to level the score. The Latvians' lead was restored just 10 seconds before the first siren when former Coyotes and Canadiens forward Lukas Lessio struck during a 5-on-3 powerplay. This time, the lead lasted much longer – almost 40 minutes – but with 47 seconds of regulation time remaining, Konstantin Panov scored to keep Khanty-Mansiysk hopes alive.
The 3-on-3 overtime failed to separate the sides, so the game progressed to the shootout, and this was one episode in the preseason which the Riga Men might want to forget. Not only did they not score, but they twice failed to even get their efforts on target.
Shootout: Jevpalovs (saved), Lessio (missed), Kristo (saved), Razgals (saved) - Varfolomeyev (goal), Skachkov (missed), Kuryanov(saved), Ankudinov (goal)
HC Yunost-Minsk vs. Dynamo Moscow: 4-5 OT (0-1, 2-0, 2-3, 0-1)
This mini-tournament in Minsk had already attracted plaudits for delivering exciting and entertaining games to the hockey-starved summer public, and this encounter more than matched those which had gone before.
The first period showed little sign of the drama ahead. A solitary goal from Dustin Boyd on six-and-a-half minutes separated the two sides going into the first interval. The second period, in contrast, belonged to Yunost. On 26.02, Pavel Razvadovsky made it 1-1, and in the final minute of the middle sesion a second goal in as many days for Viktor Turkin put the Minsk Men in front. Daniil Tarasov restored parity 38 seconds into the third period, and then, after five minutes of relative calm, Yunost surged ahead with two goals in 13 seconds, first from Dugin and then from Gainetdinov. This was now a test of Dynamo's fighting spirit, and Vladimir Vorobyov's men passed with flying colors. Within minutes, Vladimir Bryukvin's strike brought them to within a goal of the Belarusians, and then Mikhail Varnakov scored in the 52nd minute to tie the game at 4-4. Following a tense final seven minutes, the game went to overtime. With the clock showing 62.18, Daniil Tarasov completed his second double in successive matches.
The final standings for the Minsk Cup group stage are as follows:
Group А: 1st. Dynamo Moscow – 5 points, 2nd. Yunost Minsk – 4 points, 3rd. Dinamo Minsk – 0 points .
Group В: 1st. Lokomotiv Yaroslavl – 5 points, 2. Ugra Khanty-Mansiysk – 3 points , 3. Dinamo Riga — 1 point.
Dinamo Riga will now meet Dinamo Minsk on Saturday at 11.30am, local time, in the match for fifth place.
Ugra will face Yunost Minsk in the battle for the bronze medal place. Dynamo Moscow face Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in the final.
Jokerit vs. Kunlun: 2-3 (1-0, 1-1, 0-2)
Not all of the day's heroics took place in Minsk. A little farther to the north, in Espoo, Finland, Jokerit faced off against Kunlun Red Star. Iron Mike Keenan's men showed an iron will to bounce back from 0-2 down to seal a hard-fought victory. Jukka Jalonen's team also deserve credit for the part they played in an exciting encounter. The Helsinki team began in a far livelier mood than were their opponents, and it was no surprise when Sami Lepisto opened the scoring in the 13th minute. The game looked to be over as a contest even before the halfway stage, when in the 27th minute Jesper B Jensen made the score 2-0, but goals from Kyle Chipchura (31 minutes), Konstantin Makarov(43), and finally, Pavel Vorobei (56) completed a highly impressive fightback on Finnish soil.
Ak Bars vs. Neftekhimik: 3-4 SO (1-2, 1-1, 1-0, 0-1)
Following the examples of Dynamo, Lokomotiv and Kunlun, Zinetula Bilyaletdinov's men also managed to claw their way back into contention after trailing by a two-goal margin, but they nonetheless found themselves on the losing side as Andrei Nazarov's Neftekhimik achieved a battling shootout victory over Ak Bars in Kazan. The Nizhnekamsk Men wasted no time in going on the offensive. A mere five minutes into the match, Andrei Sergeyev scored in powerplay, and on eight minutes an even-strength goal from Chad Rau doubled the lead. Veteran forward Alexander Svitov scored for the hosts on 18 minutes, but in the first minute of the second period, Alexander Avtsin restored the visitors' two-goal advantage. Svitov notched his and his team's second goal on 37 minutes to give his plenty of cause for optimism going into the final session. Ak Bars dominated the third period and managed to tie the game thanks to Vasily Tokranov's 52nd-minute strike, but were unable to deliver the killer blow, and eventually Pavel Poryadin clinched victory for Neftekhimik in the shootout.
There were three other games played on Friday which featured KHL teams.
In Pajulahti, Finland, Traktor was defeated 3-1 by Severstal. Alexander Sharov scored for the Chelyabinsk side, but goals from Vadim Kudako, Alexander Bumagin and Nikolai Kazakovtsev brought victory to the team from Cherepovets. Avtomobilist suffered a 4-3 shootout defeat at the hands of Pirati Chomutov of the Czech Republic. Goals from Francis Pare, Stanislav Yegorshev and Taylor Beck gave Vladimir Krikunov's team a 3-1 lead after only 22 minutes, but the home team dug deep and fought their way back to tie the match at 3-3 and later triumphed in the post-match duels. Finally, Lada Togliatti lost a lively game to HC Toros, with the latter clinching a 5-4 shootout win.
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