PreviewFamiliar foes to meet again – SKA vs Lokomotiv It’s the third season running that SKA and Lokomotiv have clashed in playoff action – and so far the Army Men have been well on top. The stats make compelling reading, with SKA dropping just one game in two series to banish the old belief that the Railwaymen were an awkward opponent in Petersburg.
However, the action on the ice was less clear-cut than the numbers in the record books. In last year’s Western Conference final, SKA swept Loko, but needed two wins in overtime and edged another one-goal verdict to move into the Gagarin Cup Final. Since then, Vladislav Gavrikov moved from Yaroslavl to Petersburg, with the young defenseman joining Sergei Plotnikov, Patrik Hersley and Yegor Yakovlev as former Loko players on the SKA roster.
There is one historical bright spot for Loko ahead of this series: in 2014 the teams met in the Conference Semi-Final, and the Railwaymen claimed a 4-2 series victory against a SKA team that was widely expected to challenge for the big prize that season.
Playoff progress
Both teams swept through the opening round, with Loko overcoming Torpedo and SKA sinking Severstal. The latter series was tinged with controversy, particularly in respect of Jarno Koskiranta’s overtime winner in Game Three. And, in truth, SKA’s Olympic-heavy roster made hard work overcoming a Severstal team that only secured its playoff place on the final day of the regular season. Aside from a 7-4 victory in game two, the Army Men did not cut loose on offense; the contrast with last season’ powerful sweep of Vityaz was apparent in a series of awkward encounters. For Loko, that could offer some hope that a busy program of domestic and international commitments might be taking some of the venom from SKA’s stacked offense.
Lokomotiv’s progress against Torpedo also relied on some key moments – most notable a Petri Kontiola 100 seconds from the hooter in Game Two to ensure the Yaroslavl team hit the road with a daunting 2-0 lead in the series. Young forward Artyom Ilyenko also had an eventful campaign – a game-winner in the opening game, followed by an injury that saw him miss parts two and three before making a scoring return as an overtime win in Nizhny Novgorod put Lokomotiv into the next round.
Prospects
For SKA, the key will surely be getting its offense to click the way it so formidably can. If the likes of Nikita Gusev, Vadim Shipachyov, Pavel Datsyuk and Ilya Kovalchuk hit their top form, it’s hard to imagine any team in the KHL withstanding the onslaught. For Loko, though, there are grounds for optimism: the physical and emotional exertions of winning Olympic gold last month may take a toll on the defending champion, and Lokomotiv has the nous to exploit that. In head coach Dmitry Kvartalnov, it also has a man who humbled SKA in the 2016 Conference Final when he helmed CSKA to victory.
Game 1 - March 16 - SKA v Lokomotiv 4-0
Last season, the series between SKA and Lokomotiv was a bewildering affair. SKA took the verdict in a sweep, but Loko could legitimately argue it had a chance of winning every game. Twelve months on, though, and the Army Men look ready to deliver a more convincing verdict. From Vadim Shipachyov’s goal after 49 seconds to Mikko Koskinen’s shut-out, this was absolutely SKA’s day. And the impressive manner of the home team’s victory does not augur well for Lokomotiv’s prospects in the rest of the series.
Shipachyov’s opener came from some clumsy Loko defense: a half-hearted attempt to clear the puck from the slot went straight to Yegor Yakovlev, and he fed Shipachyov in the right-hand circle. The angle was tight, but the forward’s finish was flawless. 1-0.
The host maintained its dominance, and got its reward late in the first frame when Jarno Koskiranta doubled the lead. Sergei Shirokov’s feed from behind the net took the Finn away from Staffan Kronwall and Jakub Nakladal and left him with a close-range finish past Alexei Murygin.
The worry for Loko was not that it’s own performance was poor; the visitor was doing the right things, but SKA was doing it better. Midway through the second period, Vyacheslav Voynov added a third, converting a 4-on-3 power play with a powerful shot from the centre point. Then Vladislav Gavrikov’s long shot flew in off the post; a painful blow from a former Lokomotiv favorite, and a goal that pushed the game out of the visitor’s reach.
The game finished 4-0; Lokomotiv had marginally the better of the final period but the stats told a powerful story. There was just one shot between the teams, but SKA enjoyed 14 minutes of time on offense, compared with 8:33 for Loko. That extra time in front of the net enabled the home team to carve out the clear-cut looks it needed to settle the outcome decisively.
Game 2 - March 17 - SKA v Lokomotiv 1-2
Last season, Lokomotiv produced the biggest shock of the Western Conference playoffs when it knocked out regular season champion CSKA. Today, after a 4-0 loss against SKA in the opening game, Dmitry Kvartalnov’s team bounced back to inflict the first playoff defeat on the defending champion and blow the series wide open ahead of game three in Yaroslavl on Monday.
Second-period goals from Artur Kayumov and Ilya Lyubushkin won for Loko after Kvartalnov made changes from the first game. Alexander Sudnitsin replaced Alexei Murygin as the starting goalie, and 17-year-old Grigory Denisenko made his playoff debut as Brandon Kozun missed out. Sudnitsin finished with 28 saves, despite an injury scare in the third period; Lokomotiv managed to outshoot its rival on the way to a vital victory.
It wasn’t all plain sailing, though. Vadim Shipachyov opened the scoring, just as he had in yesterday’s game. This time, the goal came from a quick response to a tussle behind the net: Ilya Kovalchuk got the puck back to Artyom Zub, the defenseman’s diagonal found Shipachyov and his one-timer went below a tumbling Loko player and through Alexander Sudnitsin’s pads.
Unlike Friday’s game, though, SKA was unable to extend its lead. The early stages of the second period were disrupted by a rash of penalties, and Lokomotiv finally converted a power play chance as Yegor Yakovlev sat out a minor. Kayumov, a young forward making only his second appearance in this year’s playoffs, got the goal, firing home Andrei Loktionov’s pass from a tight angle as Denis Mosalyov provided the screen.
The visitor continued to press, and got its reward for a dominant second-period display that saw it outshoot SKA 21-6. Loko moved in front in the 39th minute when Lyubushkin smashed home the puck after Pavel Kraskovsky won his draw against Patrick Thoresen. After a heavy loss in the opening game, the Railwaymen were right back on track. Loko might even have potted a third in the final seconds of the frame: the puck stopped almost on the goal-line, and no visiting forward was able to get a stick to it and force it over the line.
SKA responded with a fast start to the final frame, but could not find a way to ruffle Lokomotiv’s defense. Even an injury worry for Sudnitsin, struggling for a moment after Shipachyov landed awkwardly on him, could not hamper Loko’s progress. The visitor played a secure, sensible defensive game, staying out of the box and declining to gallop recklessly forward in search of a third goal but relying on efforts from the edge of the circles to keep Mikko Koskinen alert. SKA finished the game frustrated, Lokomotiv lifted.
Game 3 - March 19 - Lokomotiv v SKA 0-2A hotly-disputed video verdict and two goals from Ilya Kovalchuk provided the key incidents of a fiery Western Conference semi-final match-up – but amid all the emotion and excitement, SKA secured a valuable victory to move back in front in the series. Kovi’s double made the difference on the scoreboard, but the game also saw both teams have goals ruled out after video reviews. There was also a match penalty for SKA’s Sergei Plotnikov, while Kovalchuk inflamed the home crowd with his antics midway through the first period as he picked up a double minor penalty. Lokomotiv also got in on the act, with Max Talbot’s juddering hit on Andrei Zubarev also earning a double minor in the opening frame.
It didn’t take long for the first big incident of the game to arrive. Lokomotiv believed it had taken a first-period lead in the eighth minute when Jakub Nakladal fired a shot past Mikko Koskinen while Viktor Tikhonov sat out a penalty. However, earlier in the play, the puck left the playing field, bouncing in and out of the bench after Petri Kontiola and Vladislav Gavrikov tussled for possession. After a lengthy video review, the officials ruled out the goal, prompting anger and derision among the home crowd. However, the KHL’s disciplinary committee quickly issued a statement supporting the officials’ verdict, complete with a video image clarifying the position of the puck as it bounced back into play from the SKA bench.
After that controversy, Kovalchuk took centre stage – although not always for the right reasons. The SKA forward made some angry gestures towards Nakladal as he skated towards the sin bin to serve a 2+2 penalty, and further riled the home crowd when he seemed to mock Andrei Loktionov for avoiding a fight moments earlier. That was only part of a series of penalties in a niggly opening frame which saw both teams collect 10 PIMs apiece.
After the first intermission, Kovalchuk disappeared from view, not taking his place on the SKA bench until midway through the second period. Whatever happened in that gap, however, clearly had the right effect on Petersburg’s star forward. Back on the ice, Kovalchuk opened the scoring in the 36th minute, getting the vital touch on Yegor Rykov’s point shot to put the puck beyond Alexander Sudnitsin.
An evening that was never short of controversy got another talking point early in the third period when Sergei Plotnikov was ejected from the game. The SKA forward, once a Lokomotiv favorite, leapt into a hit on Vladislav Kartayev, catching the Loko youngster high and late after he had already lost the puck to Artyom Zub. However, the Railwaymen were unable to take advantage of their five-minute power play. Next, it was SKA’s turn to have a goal disallowed in the 57th minute. Ilya Kablukov put the puck in the net, but the officials ruled that there Evgeny Ketov had encroached on the crease and ruled out the play. For Lokomotiv it was a lifeline, but moments later that chance was snapped from the Railwaymen’s grasp. Perhaps inevitably, given all that came before, the final say fell to Kovalchuk. He moved onto Patrick Thoresen’s pass and from mid-range put a shot past Sudnitsin to settle the outcome of a game full of incident. Game 4 - March 20 - Lokomotiv v SKA 1-4
mSKA stands on the brink of reaching the Western Conference Final after a convincing victory at Lokomotiv gave the defending champion a 3-1 series lead ahead of Thursday’s meeting in St. Petersburg. But an impressive display in the first two periods was marred by a string of fights in the third as tempers spilled over in the closing stages of the game. Ilya Kovalchuk was once again at the heart of much of the action: he potted the game-winning goal early in the second period, but also dropping the gloves with Denis Mosalyov deep in the third period, shortly after Vyacheslav Voynov and Nikolai Kovalenko came to blows after a fiery hit behind the SKA net. Later there was more brawling as Loko’s Alexander Yelesin and Daniil Apalkov tangled with Yegor Rykov and Andrei Zubarev in the final minute of the game.
It was the second time in this series that the conduct of the players has attracted as much attention as their hockey skills. Before the action on Tuesday, Sergei Plotnikov learned that he would serve a two-game ban after his ejection from Monday’s encounter. And, frustratingly, it detracted from another good SKA performance as Oleg Znarok’s team dealt well with a high pressure situation to recover from going behind early on to dominate the game.
Lokomotiv, victorious 24 hours earlier, believed it had a way back into the series. When Yegor Korshkov opened the scoring in the eighth minute, that belief gained a more solid foundation. Nikita Cherepanov’s pass from the point found Korshkov all alone on the doorstep; his flick took it inside Mikko Koskinen’s post to open the scoring. The SKA had a goal ruled out when Jarno Koskiranta deflected Evgeny Ketov’s point shot into the net with his stick raised above the height of the crossbar. That incident came in the 16th minute; in the 19th SKA was level. Andrei Zubarev fired in a shot from the blue line, Alexander Barabanov got the decisive touch and this time there was no question of a high stick. Kovalchuk, SKA’s two-goal hero on Monday, then produced the game-winner here. A poor clearance from Loko handed the puck to SKA in centre ice, Vladislav Gavrikov sent Barabanov into the attacking zone and his pass sent Kovi clean through with Alexander Sudnitsin – a duel that only ever looked likely to have one winner.
Once ahead, SKA saw Viktor Tikhonov take the initiative. He began and ended a breakaway just after the midway mark, firing a wrist shot high inside Sudnitsin’s near post after a Loko attack broke down. Then, after Sudnitsin denied him with a glove save on another breakout, Tikhonov squeezed home another shot from a tight angle to make it 4-1 in the 35th minute. The game was decided, but there was still time for some needle in the final stages. Tikhonov got involved in a skirmish with Grigory Denisenko before that late flurry of fists took some of the gloss off the evening.
Game 5 - March 22 - SKA v Lokomotiv 3-1
SKA continued its impressive march through this year’s playoffs, moving into the Western Conference final after completing a 4-1 series win over Lokomotiv. The defending champion has now got through two rounds of post-season action for the loss of just one game – a demonstration of efficient progress that recalls last season’s playoffs. On the night, a goal in each period proved sufficient to defeat Loko. Ilya Kovalchuk opened the scoring, Vadim Shipachyov reinstated the lead after Ivan Lekomtsev put Lokomotiv back in the game, and Ilya Kablukov made it 3-1 early in the third. Kovalchuk and Shipachyov also collected assists on each other’s goals.
SKA told the lead in the 14th minute, with Kovalchuk claiming the goal. His point shot took a looping deflection off Pavel Kraskovsky before getting tangled in Jakub Nakladal’s skates and squirming into the net. Goalie Alexander Sudnitsin desperately tried to scoop it away with his stick but the puck remained agonizingly out of reach. Although beaten on that occasion, Sudnitsin was his team’s key player in the opening frame. The goalie made 18 saves as SKA unleashed a fusillade of shots on his net; at the other end Lokomotiv could only test Mikko Koskinen twice in the early exchanges before it was forced into a big defensive effort. However, SKA could not extend its lead and had cause to regret its profligacy moments into the second frame. Lokomotiv drew level with its first attack of the period, Ivan Lekomtsev finding the net from the top of the circle with a wrist shot; Koskinen’s view was obscured by his defenseman, Anton Belov, and he lost the flight of the puck as it flashed over his shoulder.
That was not the cue for an increased Lokomotiv offensive presence. Indeed, although the Railwaymen generated four shots in the middle frame, the visitor spent a paltry 46 seconds in possession in attacking areas. SKA, meanwhile, kept up the pressure and went back in front in the 29th minute. Artyom Zub released Kovalchuk into an attacking position with a glorious long pass, but this time the forward was unable to get into a shooting position and instead fed Shipachyov. The former Severstal man, making his 300th SKA appearance in tonight’s game, fired home with the help of a deflection of a defenseman’s skates; SKA had the lead once more. The game was taken away from Lokomotiv early in the third when SKA made it 3-1. Evgeny Ketov chased the puck down behind the net, overpowering Nikita Cherepanov and picking out a pass for Kablukov. A one-timer from the face-off spot did the rest, and the outcome was all but certain. Loko pushed forward in one final charge, seeking to save the game and the series, but could find no way past Koskinen.
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