HC Sochi - SKA

HC Sochi - SKA - 0:4

23 January 2017

SKA began their latest KHL road trip with a test against HC Sochi. Before the flight to Sochi, the team was dealt a blow with the absence of Maxim Chudinov, Patrik Hersley, Sergei Plotnikov and Steve Moses. On the other hand, Alexander Dergachyov returned to the squad, while SKA's All-Star party were eligible to play. Mikko Koskinen and Konstantin Barulin were the starting netminders.

Both teams set a high pace right from the off inside the Bolshoi Ice Dome, skating frantically from one end to another. It was SKA who had the best early openings, with Vadim Shipachyov and Evgeny Dadonov going close. Goalkeeper Mikko Koskinen didn't have too much to do, but as the penalties built up, he was forced into a couple of neat saves at point blank range.

The action picked up in the second stanza, where SKA finally took the match by the scruff of its neck. Viktor Tikhonov, who has been in superb form in recent weeks, eventually broke the deadlock - battling hard for the puck on the doorstep, he somehow managed to squeeze it between the pads. That goal seemed to unlock the key to the hosts, as Sochi rarely got out of their own zone during the period. We didn't have to wait long for a second goal - on the powerplay, Nikita Gusev slammed home a beautiful Ilya Kovalchuk feed. It could have been three too, however Alexander Barabanov's brilliant solo effort was waved off for goaltender interference.

In the third period, SKA's powerplay continued to be the deciding factor. Evgeny Dadonov practically ended the match as a contest, giving Konstantin Barulin no chance with a fiercely whipped one timer. Just to round off events, our players netted one final powerplay goal with time running down - Pavel Datsyuk's cunning pass was deflected into his own net by a Sochi defenseman. 4:0, Mikko Koskinen collects a third season shutout and SKA get back to winning ways!

Match protocol:

HC Sochi - SKA - 0:4 (0:0, 0:2, 0:2)

Goals:

0:1 Tikhonov (Kablukov), 27.03

0:2 Gusev (Kovalchuk), 33.00

0:3 Dadonov (Gusev, Kovalchuk), 45.30

0:4 Datsyuk (Voynov), 56.35

Goalkeepers: Barulin - Koskinen

Shots on target: 27 - 36

Penalty minutes: 14 - 4

Faceoffs: 20 - 32

Hits: 16 - 4