SKA - Lokomotiv - 1:0

regular season, emerging victorious by a score of 1:0.

SKA played on the front foot throughout the first period. Competing with pace, energy and intent, our players pinned Lokomotiv deep inside their own zone, testing Yaroslavl goaltender Edward Pasquale with several excellent attempts. On the powerplay, Marat Khusnutdinov should have opened the scoring, missing the gaping left corner as he couldn’t make firm contact on the puck after Pasquale had stopped Kirill Marchenko’s initial attempt.

Shorthanded, Joonas Kemppainen and Danila Moiseev also wasted promising chances, with Lokomotiv struggling to protect possession in our zone. Our goalkeeper Lars Johansson did indeed face only three shots in the first frame.

Lokomotiv did manage to gain themselves a foothold in the game in the second period.

Unlike the first stanza, the guests were now managing to protect the puck more effectively, spending more time in our zone and attempting to test Johansson. However, SKA soon wrestled back the initiative, once again applying pressure on Lokomotiv and eventually breaking the deadlock with 25 seconds remaining in the period.

Initially, Pasquale thought he had frozen the puck after Stepan Falkovsky had taken aim with a snappy wrister. The Canadian was mistaken, however, and Khusnutdinov reacted quickest to find the loose puck and bank it in off Pasquale’s back to hand SKA a well-deserved lead.

Now, Lokomotiv really did have to finally come out of their shell.

The away team did indeed lay siege to our goal during the entirety of the third period. Clean through, Alexander Polunin contrived to slide his attempt wide of the mark, before Denis Alexeev was then denied by the right post moments later.

At his best in our net, Johansson pulled off a series of incredible point-blank saves for us, particularly in the closing stages. In the dying seconds, after Pasquale had been pulled for the extra skater, Lokomotiv passed up a glorious opportunity on the doorstep, with a combination of Vladislav Tsitsyura and Johansson somehow keeping Reid Boucher off the board when it seemed a certain goal.

SKA will now prepare to face Barys Nur-Sultan in Kazakhstan on Friday. Puck-drop is scheduled for 16:30 Moscow time.

Match protocol:

SKA - Lokomotiv - 1:0 (0:0, 1:0, 0:0)

Goals:

1:0 Khusnutdinov (Falkovsky), 39.35

Goalkeepers: Johansson - Pasquale

Shots on target: 22 - 21

Faceoffs: 22 - 21

Hits: 17 - 15

Penalty minutes: 4 - 6

Referees: Morozov, Yudakov

05.10.2021. Ice Palace, Saint Petersburg.