SKA - Traktor. Introducing the opponents

CURRENT STANDINGS

6. SKA, 11 matches, 5 regulation victories, 1 overtime victory, 1 penalty shootout victory, 3 regulation defeats, 1 penalty shootout defeat, goal difference 38-26, 15 points

5. Traktor, 11 matches, 5 regulation victories, 1 overtime victory, 2 penalty shootout victories, 2 regulation defeats, 1 overtime defeat, goal difference 32-26, 17 points

FORM

Traktor Chelyabinsk have caught the eye throughout the opening weeks of the 2021/2022 KHL regular season. Managed by former SKA coach Anvar Gatiyatulin, the Ural outfit have managed to win eight of their opening 11 games, notably defeating the likes of CSKA Moscow (2:1) at home and Avtomobilist (2:1 SO) away in Yekaterinburg. Boasting a powerful squad, Traktor are indeed considered as one of the favourites in the Eastern Conference this season, with the management having secured several excellent signings during the summer break. Experienced defenseman Albert Yarullin (3+2) and forwards Teemu Pulkkinen (6+2) and Vladimir Tkachyov (2+4) - not the Tkachyov who used to play for SKA - have been particularly impressive since making the move to Chelyabinsk in the pre-season.

Dangerous Czech forwards Tomas Hyka (2+7) and Lukas Sedlak (4+3) will certainly threaten the SKA defence at the Ice Palace, while 23-year-old Nikita Tertyshny is currently Traktor’s leading scorer with 10 (4+6) points to his name in what has been a strong start to the campaign for the forward who spent the entire 2020/2021 campaign in the VHL with Chelmet and Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk. 31-year-old defenseman Nick Bailen has stood out at the blue line for the Chelyabinsk-based organisation, picking up nine (2+7) points in 11 appearances.

We can expect Traktor to opt for a cautious, counter-attacking approach in Saint Petersburg, especially taking into account that Gatiyatulin’s troops are coming off the back of a 2:5 setback to Torpedo in Nizhny Novgorod.

SKA are also looking to bounce back after a thrilling 5:6 penalty-shootout setback to Vityaz in Podolsk on Monday. In a quite incredible duel, third-period goals from Anton Burdasov, Linden Vey, Vladislav Tsitsyura and Kirill Marchenko levelled the score at 5:5 after initially being 1:4 down after 40 minutes. However, in the ensuing shootout, Marat Khusnutdinov’s snappy effort was cancelled out by two markers from Vityaz forward Miks Indrasis. Burdasov (8+6), Andrei Kuzmenko (1+10) and Joonas Kemppainen (5+5) have all already reached double digits for SKA this season.

Last season, these two teams traded victories in the regular season, as Traktor won 1:0 in Saint Petersburg before SKA gained revenge with an emphatic 5:1 triumph in Chelyabinsk.

GOALKEEPING STATISTICS

SKA

Lars Johansson: 7 matches, 4 wins, 1 defeat, 152 saves made, save percentage 95.6%, goals against average 1.11, 2 shutouts

Alexander Samonov: 5 matches, 2 wins, 2 defeats, 77 saves made, save percentage 84.6%, goals against average 4.37

Yaroslav Askarov: 2 matches, 1 win, 1 defeat, 29 saves made, save percentage 90.6%, goals against average 1.92

TRAKTOR

Roman Will: 10 matches, 6 wins, 3 defeats, 253 saves made, save percentage 92.7%, goals against average 2.16

Emil Garipov: 2 matches, 1 win, 1 defeat, 59 saves made, save percentage 92.2%, goals against average 2.52

WHERE TO WATCH

Puck-drop at the Saint Petersburg Ice Palace is scheduled for 19:30 local time. KHL PRIME and Channel 78 will provide a television broadcast in Russia, whereas you can watch a live video on the KHL’s official website worldwide. Text updates will be available on our Twitter account.