SKA - Jokerit

SKA - Jokerit - 6:0

8 October 2016

SKA played their second match of this KHL home series against HC Jokerit Helsinki. Roman Rukavishnikov returned to the fourth line, while Ilya Kovalchuk, Pavel Datsyuk and Sergei Plotnikov stayed in the first. Igor Shestyorkin and Ryan Zapolski were the game’s starting goaltenders.

Matches with Jokerit are always thrilling affairs, and this was no different. Full of adrenaline, SKA came flying out of the blocks, crashing Jokerit’s net at any opportunity. Struggling to live with SKA’s intensity, Jokerit were losing their heads at the back, in turn gifting our team a number of golden chances. Eventually, we made it count – Ilya Kablukov opened the scoring with a fierce one timer at the high slot. Still in a state of shock, Jokerit promptly contrived to concede the second, as Evgeny Dadonov neatly tipped home an accurate Maxim Chudinov feed. There was only one team on the ice, and to cap off a fantastic first period, Viktor Tikhonov crushed Jokerit’s Charles Genoway in an engaging fight.

The one-way traffic continued in the second frame. The Finnish visitors were completely losing their heads, and when Topi Jaakola was chucked out of the game for spearing, their penalty minute total raised to an astounding fifty. Amazingly, SKA failed to a single goal on a number of powerplays, but at equal strength, there was no stopping our players. Viktor Tikhonov deservedly made it three, batting a loose puck over the line. Jokerit were being blown away, and we made it four before the period was out – Vyacheslav Voynov’s rasping effort cannoned in off the crossbar.

Despite already having the victory in the bag, SKA refused to show Jokerit any mercy. Sergei Plotnikov promptly made it five in the third, brilliantly nudging in a beautiful Ilya Kovalchuk pass. Jokerit were well and truly being hammered, and before they could catch the next plane out of Saint Petersburg, they conceded a sixth – Evgeny Dadonov scored an identical second goal. That concluded proceedings, and with Igor Shestyorkin picking up a stunning fourth shutout in a row, SKA have destroyed Jokerit 6:0!

Match protocol:

SKA – Jokerit – 6:0 (2:0, 2:0, 2:0)

Goals:

1:0 Kablukov (Ketov, Rykov), 12.14

2:0 Dadonov (Gusev, Chudinov), 13.59

3:0 Tikhonov (Rukavishnikov), 24.51

4:0 Voynov (Barabanov, Koskiranta), 35.47

5:0 Plotnikov (Zubarev, Kovalchuk), 47.26

6:0 Dadonov (Khafizullin, Gusev), 58.12

Goalkeepers: Shestyorkin – Zapolski

Shots on target: 44 – 20

Penalty minutes: 13 – 66