KHL - Last Day Round Up - Playoff Picture

There was plenty left to decide on the final day of the regular season, A Moscow derby where Spartak could eliminate Dynamo, Severstal were hoping to grab the final berth in the Western Conference. As for HC Ugra and Lada, it was a case of playing their final KHL games.


Ugra v Avto 0-3
There was relatively little riding on the outcome of this game but Avtomobilist’s victory ensured the Ural team will start its post season at home after pipping Metallurg to fourth place. After a goalless first period, Anatoly Golyshev broke the deadlock in the 32nd minute, and Ilya Krikunov doubled the lead soon afterwards. Andrei Obidin added a third, and goalie Vladimir Sokhatsky made 27 saves for his shut-out


Lada v Sochi 2-3
Sochi finished its regular season campaign with victory to set up a playoff match-up with Jokerit. Artyom Tomilin’s goal late in the second period proved decisive at Lada, which finishes the season second from last in the Eastern Conference. This game started in explosive fashion: Kirill Kapustin gave Lada the lead in the third minute, but his power play goal was cancelled out by Yegor Morozov just 31 seconds later. Eric O’Dell put Sochi ahead before the first intermission. intermission. Midway through the game, Shane Harper tied the scores at 2-2. However, Tomilin delivered the winning goal in the 40th minute before a goalless third period.


Spartak v Dynamo 4-3
There was everything to play for in this Moscow derby, with a playoff place at stake for both teams. Dynamo knew that victory was everything; Spartak could still progress with a defeat, depending on the result from SKA.
But the host was in no mood to jeopardize their first post-season campaign since 2011, and duly opened the scoring in the first period. Dynamo’s Ilya Nikulin was just returning from the penalty box when Alexander Dergachyov scored the vital goal.
Dynamo’s proud record of featuring in every KHL playoff was under threat, and the Blue-and-Whites responded with two quick goals early in the middle frame. Juuso Hietanen tied the scores on the power play, then Vladimir Bryukvin made it 2-1. Now it was Spartak that was out of the top eight, and Dynamo could hope for further action this season.

That hope took a hit when Lukas Radil made it 2-2 and was all but extinguished as Spartak moved into a 4-2 lead in the final session. Vyacheslav Leshchenko put the home team back in front, and a power play goal from Ben Maxwell made it a two-goal cushion. Nikulin pulled one back late in the game, but there was no reprieve for his team, meaning for the first time in 17 years, Dynamo miss out on a playoff place.


SKA v Severstal 1-0 SO
Away from the excitement in Moscow, Severstal knew that it might secure a playoff place regardless of its result at SKA – but also understood that it had to win to guarantee progress in any event. As it happened, Spartak’s win ensured Severstal would take eighth place, but the Steelmen gave a competitive performance against a SKA team that welcomed back 10 of its Olympic champions. Igor Shestyorkin, Russia’s third goalie in PyeongChang, was his team’s hero here: he made 23 saves in the game, then stopped all five shoot-out attempts to secure the win. At the other end, Nikita Gusev, star of Russia’s gold-medal game, failed to trouble Julius Hudacek in the Severstal net. After 65 minutes of scoreless play, Yegor Yakovlev produced the only successful attempt in the shoot-out. SKA gets the win, Severstal comes back to try again in the playoffs.