Preview
Clash of the Titans - Ak Bars Kazan vs Metallurg Magnitogorsk The rivalry between Magnitogorsk and Kazan is one of the blockbuster battles of the KHL. Both teams expect to be among the contenders for top honors, and when they meet sparks tend to fly. Their last playoff showdown came last season, and ended in a surprise 4-0 sweep for Metallurg. The surprise was not so much that Magnitka won, but that Ak Bars struggled to lay a glove on its opponent, managing just four goals in four games. Two key figures from that series, goalie Vasily Koshechkin and forward Sergei Mozyakin, are still in place for Metallurg. But there are some significant changes in a season that has not always gone smoothly for the Steelmen. Head coach Ilya Vorobyov was replaced part way through the campaign, bringing Viktor Kozlov to the helm. And forward Danis Zaripov, whose decisive two-goal blast late in game three snatched victory from the jaws of defeat and set up Magnitka for its sweep, is now back in the colors of Ak Bars in a season disrupted by his problems with a doping controversy. Zaripov missed the first two games of post-season, and seemed to be feeling his way back to full fitness as Ak Bars accounted for Amur. However, a player with so much big-game experience is always capable of shaping a series like this.
Playoff progress Ak Bars, top of the Eastern Conference in Regular Season, made predictably short work of Amur. Zinetula Bilyaletdinov’s team dropped just one game in overcoming the Far East team and underlined its potential to go all the way this season. Justin Azevedo, a famous thorn in Metallurg’s side when it edged Lev Prague in the 2014 Grand Final, is in fine form once again with seven (3+4) points from five games; his erstwhile Lev team-mate Jiri Sekac chipped in with six assists. Emil Garipov looks solid in goal and the Tatar team looks well-placed for further progress.
Metallurg found things a bit more tricky against Avtomobilist. It took six games to win the series, and the battles were typically tight. There were some big moments along the way, including Mozyakin’s 500th goal in domestic competition, but there’s also a sense that this Magnitka roster is merely an older version of last year’s. The sight of Mozyakin, Jan Kovar and Chris Lee at the top of the scoring charts is all-too familiar; Metallurg is relying on a proven winning formula, but might lack for a new weapon if Plan A falls short.
Prospects
This series looks to be too close to call. These teams know each other very well, their strengths are well-documented and their weaknesses not easy to identify. Much like the Salavat Yulaev – Avangard series in round one, this could well go the distance and it would be a brave man who called a winner with much confidence. However, it’s unlikely to produce the same kind of scoring as we saw in Ufa and Omsk. These two, despite possessing some impressive firepower, are also blessed with well-organized defense and two in-form goalies. Expect tight, disciplined hockey. Expect every goal to matter. Expect a battle to the last. This could, and should, be the best match-up of the conference semi-finals. 
Vasily Koshechkin, Mikhail Glukhov
Game 1 - March 16 - Ak Bars v Metallurg 3-4 OTYou wanted a battle? They brought a battle! Ak Bars and Metallurg rarely disappoint when the stakes are high, and the opening match-up in this Eastern Conference Semi-Final had everything for a neutral fan to enjoy. There were goals, drama and intrigue a-plenty as Magnitka rallied from 0-2, forced overtime and won it on Wojtek Wolski’s second goal of the night. The winning goal, after eight minutes of the extras, came as Wolski and Sergei Mozyakin led a counter-attack after an Ak Bars attack broke down just inside the Magnitka zone. The home defense, sensibly enough, ushered Mozyakin away from the danger zone but was unable to respond when he brought the puck out of the corner and fed Wolski, largely unmolested, in front of the net. The Canadian’s finish did the rest, and Metallurg took a big psychological step at the start of the series.
It was a fine ending to an absorbing game, but Ak Bars fans cannot fail to be disappointed. The game began so promisingly for them, with the Kazan team determined to avenge its playoff failure against the same opposition last year. Jiri Sekac opened the scoring late in the first period, Stanislav Galiyev made it 2-0 early in the second. But Metallurg was level 10 minutes later. Matt Ellison reduced the deficit, then Wolski tied it up with his first of the evening. Sergei Tereshchenko’s shot was kicked out by Emil Garipov in the home net, but the goalie was hopelessly out of position as Wolski slotted home the rebound.
Ak Bars responded by regaining the lead early in the third period. Atte Ohtamaa was the scorer, taking his time to get Evgeny Timkin off balance before firing in a wrist shot that Vasily Koshechkin couldn’t reach. Timkin, though, got his revenge with the 3-3 goal, arriving at the back door to apply the finish to a dish from Oskar Osala. That sent the action into overtime, and gave Wolski the chance to win it for Metallurg.
Game 2 - March 17 - Ak Bars v Metallurg 4-1
Danis Zaripov returned to the Ak Bars line-up for the second game in this series, with the home team hoping he could play a similarly decisive role against his former club as the game-winning performances he produced last season to help Metallurg sweep past the Kazan team. Zaripov duly repaid that faith with his first goal of this season’s playoffs as Ak Bars produced a convincing riposte to its overtime loss on Friday.
However, it was another former Metallurg man, defenseman Yaroslav Kosov, who set Ak Bars on the way to a comfortable series-tying victory. Kosov got the opening goal in the 13th minute, firing home a slap shot from from the top of the left-hand circle after Rob Klinkhammer led a counter-attack from deep in Ak Bars territory. That was the only scoring of an even first period, but the middle frame saw the home team take complete control on its way to tying this series. Justin Azevedo set the tone, sweeping home a second goal moments after the restart after Jiri Sekac tested Vasily Koshechkin and wrong-footed the defense with a pass from the rebound. Magnitka responded midway through the frame when Chris Lee forced home the loose puck after Andrei Chibisov’s point shot provoked a tussle on the slot between Matt Ellison and Atte Ohtamaa, but then came Zaripov’s big moment. Stanislav Galiyev’s East-West feed found Vasily Tokranov at the back door, Koshechkin stopped his shot, but Zaripov was on hand to tuck away the rebound. Then the veteran forward got an assist in the last minute of the second period, robbing Sergei Tereshchenko and going around the back before setting up Galiyev for the 4-1 goal.
With the outcome of the game looking fairly clear, Ak Bars spent much of the final frame concentrating on keeping Metallurg at arm’s length. Allowing just nine more shots on Galimov’s net – most of them in a desperate late flurry – the home team was able to see out a comfortable victory and bring the series level before the teams move to Magnitogorsk for game three on Tuesday.
Game 3 - March 20 - Metallurg v Ak Bars 2-5Justin Azevedo has previous when it comes to playoff scoring against Metallurg. In 2014, he got on the scoresheet in all seven games of the Gagarin Cup Final when Magnitka ultimately edged Lev Prague to lift the cup. Last season, he was unable to prevent Metallurg from sweeping his Ak Bars team, but today he took command of this game, producing 1+3 as the Kazan team picked up a second big win in three days to move in front in the series. It also keeps up Azevedo’s impressive consistency this post-season. Aside from his team’s 1-4 loss at Amur, he has been among the points in all of his playoff games to date. Today’s flurry moves him to five goals and eight assists so far – the kind of dominant scoring that teams need if they are to go deep into any cup campaign. There were just 51 seconds played when Azevedo made his first telling contribution: collecting a Nikita Lyamkin pass to the slot, he opted not to shoot and teed up the better placed Jiri Sekac for the opening goal. A perfect start, but the next big moment involving the Canadian was a frustrating one. Sergei Mozyakin’s shot flapped off Azevedo’s stick, wrong-footing everyone, and bounced into the net off the luckless Rafael Batyrshin to tie the scores at the first intermission.
After that, though, it was all about Ak Bars – with Azevedo again to the fore. His pass found Anton Lander between the hash marks and the Swede produced a fine shot over Vasily Koshechkin’s glove to reinstate the visitor’s lead. It was another lightning start to a period, and it got even better when Danis Zaripov stole the puck behind the net and got a shot away. That attempt was padded away, but Vladimir Tkachyov was following up and scored at the second attempt – albeit, only just forcing the puck over the line as the video showed. Two goals in 72 seconds, Ilya Samsonov in for Koshechkin, and the home team chasing the game. Magnitka reignited its hoped in the final seconds of the middle frame when Oskar Osala got his stick on a powerful Denis Kokarev shot and steered it past Emil Garipov. That power play goal made it a one-goal game going into the final stanza, but once again, Ak Bars made a fast start to the next period. This time it was an early power play, and the visitor cashed in when Azevedo fed Vasily Tokranov for a powerful shot to make it 4-2. Finally, Azevedo got a goal of his own, firing in a one-timer from between the hashmarks off a Zaripov feed to wrap up a convincing victory for the top seed in the East.
Game 4 - March 21 - Metallurg v Ak Bars 2-3
Ak Bars moved to within a game of avenging last season’s Conference Final loss to Metallurg, turning on the style to down its old rival in it’s own building once again. Sublime skills from Alexander Burmistrov, another point from Justin Azevedo and an assist from former Magnitka man Danis Zaripov overcame two goals from Jan Kovar. Ak Bars claimed a victory that puts Zinetula Bilyaletdinov’s team 3-1 up in the series.
Ak Bars opened up with a highlight-reel contribution from Burmistrov as Alexei Potapov got the first goal. Burmistrov, who returned from a spell at Vancouver Canucks midway through the season, produced some dazzling skills to rip through the Magnitka defense. First, a lovely drag through his own legs left Nikita Pivtsakin tied up in knots. Next, a sublime no-look pass from behind the net enabled Artyom Lukoyanov to set up Potapov for the finish. It’s play that’s likely to get heavy rotation on the end-of-season highlight compilations.
Metallurg did not take long to respond, with Kovar grabbing his first goal of the game. Atte Ohtamaa coughed up the puck behind his own net, and Wojtek Wolski fed the Czech on the right-hand play-off spot. Kovar’s shot caught Emil Garipov off guard and the scores were level. Tied at one going into the first intermission, the game remained finely-balanced in the middle frame.
Gradully, though, Ak Bars took control. Zaripov twice tested Ilya Samsonov in the Metallurg net as the pressure intensified and when the visitor got a power play chance it regained its lead. Ohtamaa and Azevedo had already created one dangerous moment on the PP, and when they combined again, Jiri Sekac finished off the play. Yet after all that pressure, Metallurg finished the period with a power play of its own and the Mozyakin-Kovar-Wolski combination repeatedly tested Garipov as the session came to an end.
However, at the start of the third period, an error from Samsonov cost Metallurg dear. There wasn’t all that much danger when Stanislav Galiyev exchanged passes with Zaripov in centre ice and looked for a shooting lane; his backhanded shot lacked venom and Samsonov had a good view of the moment of release. But the forward got lucky: his effort bounced off the glove and into the net, handing Ak Bars a game-winning – and perhaps series-winning – advantage. For much of the rest of the game, Ak Bars kept the host at bay. However, a late power play gave Metallurg one last chance to make a game of it, and the home team obliged as Wolski and Kovar combined once again. This time it was a dot-to-dot feed from Wolski, with Kovar firing home a one-timer from the left-hand spot to make it a one-goal game with four-and-a-half minutes to play. However, there was no time to stage a dramatic recovery: Matt Ellison got a shot in on goal, Sergei Mozyakin was denied by a Garipov glove save and Ak Bars ran the clock down to take a commanding 3-1 lead into Friday’s home game.
Game 5 - March 23 - Ak Bars v Metallurg 3-1
Ak Bars wrapped up its Eastern Conference Semi-Final series against Metallurg in five games, avenging last year’s playoff loss against the same opponent and moving into its sixth conference final in 10 seasons. It’s an enviably consistent record, and it was never in serious jeopardy as the team brought a 3-1 series lead to Kazan and wasted little time in asserting itself in this game.
Ak Bars could hardly have wished for a better start. After 25 seconds, the home team was on the power play; after 51 seconds, it was in front. Ak Bars won a face-off in the Metallurg zone and, after a scrummage, Danis Zaripov fed the puck back to Andrei Markov at the point. Rather than bang in a shot, Markov fed Vladimir Tkachyov and he circled around the zone before firing to the top shelf from a tight angle. It quickly got even better: in the fifth minute Ak Bars went 2-0 up through Yaroslav Kosov. Albert Yarullin’s point shot started the play, Rob Klinkhammer steered the puck back into the centre and Kosov lifted it over Vasily Koshechkin’s shoulder to double the home lead. That’s the second time Kosov has scored against his former club in this series, a step up in production for a typically stay-at-home defenseman.
Metallurg needed to respond fast if it was to stay in the game, and Wojtek Wolski did just that in the seventh minute. Sergei Mozyakin’s inviting pass from the right flank to the left was perfectly placed for Wolski to slide in and shoot a one-timer past Emil Garipov at the far post. And then, after that flurry of scoring, the first period subsided into a cautious affair, with neither side willing to commit too much early on. The goal of the game went to Jiri Sekac, who produced a stunning coast-to-coast effort as Ak Bars converted another power play early in the second period. The Czech forward saw the ice open up in front of him and went for it, sending Chris Lee the wrong way on the blue line to clear his path to the net and beating Koshechkin to make it 3-1. It all served to reinforce the feeling that this was not going to be Metallurg’s day, and Ak Bars would take its place in the conference final after winning another series in five games.
That was how it all played out. Metallurg finished the game well ahead of the shot count, but struggling to create really good looks at Garipov’s net. Even the decision to pull Koshechkin in the 56th minute had little impact: Magnitka’s surge was disrupted by a penalty for Andrei Chibisov, Ak Bars was able to run down the clock calmly and book its place in the next round. Salavat Yulaev or Traktor awaits, but right now the East’s top team in the regular season looks to be on track to represent the conference in the Gagarin Cup Final next month.
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