Lokomotiv - SKA - 0:2

The fifth match of this KHL Gagarin Cup first round series against HC Lokomotiv took place in Yaroslavl. Leading 3:1 SKA had a chance to qualify for the next stage today, and Sergei Zubov didn’t make any changes to the line-up. Mikko Koskinen, who was coming off the back of two straight shutouts, kept his place in net. Alexei Murygin was his opposite number.

Things began in the series’ traditional manner – slow and nervy. Both teams held back in defence waiting for someone to make a mistake, and our players were happy to let Lokomotiv have the majority of possession. For all of their puck play Lokomotiv couldn’t get into our paint, while at the other end SKA’s infrequent counterattacks were causing the hosts problems. One of them ended with Lokomotiv taking a foul, and that proved to be very costly indeed. The puck trickled across Lokomotiv’s crease, and at a tight angle to the right Vadim Shipachyov found the net. Andrei Loktionov could have reinstated parity when in a fantastic position on the crease, however he could only fire into Mikko Koskinen’s waiting stomach.

The Yaroslavl outfit came out with more gusto in the second period, and created sustained pressure in our zone. Mikko Koskinen was much the busier goaltender, and at times our players were having trouble clearing from their own zone. Nevertheless Lokomotiv didn’t have any real chances, and their frustration began to tell. The annoyed hosts took two penalties in a row, and got lucky when Steve Moses hit the right post when all alone on the doorstep. SKA had smelt blood, and managed to make it two with time running down. Pavel Buchnevich opened up at the tip of the slot, and he wristed beautifully into the roof of the net. Lokomotiv’s fans had been silenced, and Patrik Hersley’s deflected feed from the right hand boards was the closest that their team came to a reply.

SKA were fully in the driving seat, and despite needing at least two goals to keep their season alive Lokomotiv never really played with any urgency. The hosts tried their best to put the heat on our team deep in attack, but they never got close to the crease. We were doing a fantastic job of holding their pressing off, and Lokomotiv had only two openings of note: Jiri Novotny thrashed wide of the right corner when perfectly positioned, and one on one Stanislav Chistov was denied five hole. Mikko Koskinen was on fire, and he made a few expert saves to take his third shutout in a row. His confident showing enabled SKA to cruise to a 2:0 victory, a win that clinches the series 4:1! SKA have qualified for the second round of the KHL Gagarin Cup playoffs, and will now take a short rest.

Match protocol:

Lokomotiv – SKA – 0:2 (0:1, 0:1, 0:0)

Goals:

0:1 Shipachyov (Dadonov, Gusev), 15.04

0:2 Buchnevich (Barabanov), 36.04

Goalkeepers: Murygin – Koskinen

Shots on target: 21 – 23

Penalty mintues: 12 – 8

Faceoffs: 24 – 33

Hits: 5 – 5

Referees: Buturlin, Ravodin

29.02.2016. Arena 2000, Yaroslavl. Attendance 9000.