SKA - Dynamo Moscow

SKA - Dynamo Moscow - 2:3 OT

22 January 2018

SKA hosted HC Dynamo Moscow inside the Saint Petersburg Ice Palace for the final KHL match before the international break. Head coach Oleg Znarok kept the team largely the same, opting to give Igor Shestyorkin the nod between the pipes. 22-year old Ivan Bocharov was Dynamo Moscow’s starting goaltender.

Our players made the perfect start in Saint Petersburg, striking within the opening five minutes. Sergei Plotnikov sent a clever pass back to the doorstep, where Vadim Shipachyov was waiting to smash the puck beyond Ivan Bocharov – 1:0. Nevertheless, Dynamo Moscow had the right response. Martins Karsums equalised midway through the frame, tipping into the right corner at point blank range. As time rolled on, Dynamo began to increase the pressure on Igor Shestyorkin’s net, smacking the pipe in the period’s final minute.

In the second stanza, SKA began putting serious pressure on the stout Dynamo defence. To the Ice Palace’s delight, our team earned a second advantage on the powerplay. Lurking on the slot, Sergei Kalinin deflected Ilya Kovalchuk’s huge one timer into the right corner. However, following that goal, Dynamo once again slowly started to control the tempo. Unfortunately, it resulted in an equalising marker. Fighting for the loose puck, Vladislav Efremov managed to bundle it over the line. Igor Shestyorkin was the busier goaltender during the frame’s closing stages, pulling off a few solid stops.

Dynamo Moscow were largely forced into defending in the third period, killing two timely SKA powerplays. Vyacheslav Voynov came the closest to hitting the target, whacking two thunderous clappers inches off target. The visitors did have one ideal opportunity to win the match in regulation time, however Alexei Sopin was denied by a stunning Igor Shestyorkin glove stop when clean through.

Sadly, the visitors eventually got their victory in overtime. Alexei Tereshchenko beat Igor Shestyorkin on the crease, sealing SKA’s 2:3 loss to HC Dynamo Moscow.

Match protocol:

SKA – Dynamo Moscow – 2:3 OT (1:1, 1:1, 0:0, 0:1)

Goals:

1:0 Shipachyov (Plotnikov, Gusev), 04.17

1:1 Karsums (Varnakov, Tereshchenko), 12.20

2:1 Kalinin (Kovalchuk, Voynov), 26.41

2:2 Efremov (Markovin), 34.27

2:3 Tereshchenko (Nikulin, Varnakov), 62.39

Goalkeepers: Shestyorkin – Bocharov

Shots on target: 31 – 31

Faceoffs: 27 – 33

Hits: 23 – 13