Dynamo Moscow - SKA. Introducing the opponents

CURRENT STANDINGS

8. Dynamo Moscow, 51 matches, 27 regulation victories, 4 overtime victories, 15 regulation defeats, 2 overtime defeats, 3 penalty shootout defeats, goal difference 156-121, 67 points

5. SKA, 51 matches, 28 regulation victories, 1 overtime victory, 2 penalty shootout victories, 12 regulation defeats, 4 overtime defeats, 4 penalty shootout defeats, goal difference 155-109, 70 points

FORM

The Muscovites are virtually secure of their berth in the 2020/2021 KHL Gagarin Cup playoffs. With 51 games in the books, Dynamo occupy fourth position of the Western Conference with 67 points on the board, only four less than second-placed SKA.

Coached by veteran manager Vladimir Krikunov, the Moscow-based organisation are currently in the midst of an excellent run of form, winning their past three consecutive matches against Dinamo Riga (5:2), CSKA Moscow (4:1) and HC Sochi (4:0) at their newly-constructed VTB Arena. Nevertheless, before those particular three games, Dynamo had conceded successive losses to Sibir Novosibirsk (3:4 SO) and Barys Nur-Sultan (0:2) in the Russian capital.

Their deadly first line consisting of gifted forwards Vadim Shipachyov (19+39), Dmitrij Jaskin (31+16) and Dmitry Kagarlitsky (10+26) has already combined for a grand total of 141 points, with the trio often winning matches practically on their own. Defensemen Andrei Mironov (6+18), Michal Cajkovsky (11+12), Andrei Sergeev (3+20) and Juuso Hietanen (4+16) have all tallied a minimum of 20 points each from the blue line.

This will be the third meeting between these two clubs in the current campaign. On October 12, goals from Vasily Tokranov, Vladislav Kamenev and Yakov Trenin weren’t enough for SKA to beat Dynamo in Saint Petersburg, as the opponents emerged victorious by a score of 4:3. Dynamo subsequently edged past SKA 2:1 in overtime in Moscow on December 26, with Anton Belov scoring our team’s only marker in the second period.

SKA started this away series with a confident 5:0 triumph over Spartak Moscow at the CSKA Arena on Saturday, as Lukas Bengtsson, Joonas Kemppainen, Ivan Morozov, Evgeny Ketov and Anton Burdasov all hit the jackpot. Overall, SKA have now won four straight in the league, with our players having previously beaten Avtomobilist in Yekaterinburg (3:1), Vityaz in Podolsk (3:1) and Severstal Cherepovets (4:1) at the Ice Palace.

The victory against Spartak formally secured SKA’s spot in the post-season.

POINTS LEADERS IN LAST FIVE MATCHES

DYNAMO MOSCOW

Vadim Shipachyov: 7 (4+3) points

Dmitrij Jaskin: 5 (1+4) points

Michal Cajkovsky: 3 (3+0) points

SKA

Anton Burdasov: 7 (4+3) points

Ivan Morozov: 6 (3+3) points

Lukas Bengtsson: 4 (1+3) points

In goal, 40-year-old Alexander Yeryomenko has been a solid figure for Dynamo, recording a 93.1% save percentage, a goals against average of 1.91, three shutouts and one assist in 23 games. Fellow goaltenders Ivan Bocharov (26 matches, 91.2%, 2.39, 3 shutouts), Emil Garipov (6 matches, 88.1%, 3.09, 1 shutout) and Georgy Kuznetsov (3 matches, 88.3%, 4.33) have also made appearances for Dynamo throughout the season.

25-year-old Alexander Samonov (17 matches, 92.2%, 2.16, 1 shutout) was hugely impressive at the weekend against Spartak, stopping all 31 shots he faced to keep the opposing team off the board. Magnus Hellberg (17 matches, 92.8%, 1.94, 2 shutouts) and Kirill Obyskalov (0 matches) are also with the team in Moscow.

WHERE TO WATCH

Puck-drop in Moscow is scheduled for 19:30 local time. Match TV, KHL TV HD and Channel 78 (Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Region only) will provide a live television broadcast in Russia, whereas you can purchase a live video on the KHL’s official website worldwide. Text updates will be available on our Twitter account.