Ugra - SKA

Ugra - SKA - 1:9

23 September 2017

SKA travelled to Khanty-Mansiysk for a KHL match against HC Ugra. Following the 3:1 victory against Avangard, head coach Oleg Znarok made a few changes to the line-up. Sergei Kalinin replaced Alexander Barabanov in the first line, while Alexander Dergachyov made an appearance in the fourth. Igor Shestyorkin and Ilya Proskuryakov were the starting goaltenders.

After a slow start to proceedings, a powerplay managed to get SKA firing. Vyacheslav Voynov drew his stick back, slapped the puck with force and his attempt was deflected in by a Ugra defenseman. Nikita Gusev doubled SKA's advantage moments later when on a counterattack, a goal which resulted in Ugra replacing goalkeeper Ilya Proskuryakov with Vladislav Fokin. Unfortunately, that move got Ugra back into the game. The hosts killed off a 5 on 3 SKA powerplay, before Pavel Varfolomeev scored when clean through - 2:1.

Pavel Varfolomeev could have tied the game in the second stanza, but he was denied by sharp Igor Shestyorkin saves on two occasions. Those misses proved to be key. Nikita Gusev scored his second goal of the match midway through the period, as his pass across the crease was inadvertently tipped in by a Ugra stick on the powerplay. In the mood for more, SKA netted a further two goals in the frame. Anton Belov beat the goalkeeper with a powerful one timer, and Sergei Shirokov got a crucial touch to Patrik Hersley's wrist shot. 5:1 after two periods.

Despite having practically sealed the win, SKA continued piling the pressure on a frustrated Ugra team. Sergei Shirokov became the next to score two goals in the game, lashing the puck into the right corner when clear of the Ugra defence. Patrik Hersley increased the lead to 7:1 on another powerplay, thumping a trademark slapper into the net. Ugra simply wanted the buzzer to go, but SKA were ruthless. Alexander Dergachyov completed a beautiful passing play to score his first of the season, and then Alexei Melnichuk replaced Igor Shestyorkin between the pipes to make his KHL debut. He impressed too, making a few excellent saves. Ilya Kablukov rounded off the performance with a ninth SKA goal, sealing a fantastic 9:1 victory against HC Ugra Khanty-Mansiysk!

Match protocol:

Ugra - SKA - 1:9 (1:2, 0:3, 0:4)

Goals:

0:1 Voynov (Kovalchuk), 09.44

0:2 Gusev (Plotnikov, Tikhonov), 12.03

1:2 Varfolomeev (Ilin), 15.46

1:3 Gusev (Voynov), 32.53

1:4 Belov (Khafizullin, Gusev), 37.25

1:5 Shirokov (Hersley, Maltsev), 38.35

1:6 Shirokov (Kalinin, Hersley), 48.41

1:7 Hersley (Shirokov, Belov), 50.31

1:8 Dergachyov (Ketov), 52.14