SKA hang on for vital home triumph over Sibir!

29 October 2025

It wasn’t easy in the slightest, but SKA produced a much-improved display to defeat Sibir Novosibirsk 3:2 at the Ice Palace and make it two wins on the bounce in the 2025/2026 KHL regular season.

Dominant throughout, our players really should have won more comfortably, but solid goaltending from Anton Krasotkin kept Sibir in the game right until the very end.

SKA were rewarded for a positive start with the opener in the fifth minute.

Lurking on the doorstep, Matvei Korotky expertly knocked Marat Khairullin’s sharp pass in.

The visitors were certainly on the back foot during the early stages. However, against the run of play, the Novosibirsk-based outfit quickly grabbed an equaliser just three minutes after conceding.

Vladimir Tkachyov whipped a strong wrister over Sergei Ivanov’s glove after escaping his marker on the left flank.

That goal allowed Sibir to settle into proceedings. With their first line particularly threatening, the away side were pouncing on a handful of avoidable mistakes from SKA, who were looking somewhat slow and ponderous inside their own zone.

Nevertheless, SKA regrouped for the second stanza and dominated from start to finish.

Nikita Dishkovsky, Marat Khairullin and Andrei Loktionov were all guilty of wasting 1-on-1 opportunities, with the latter notably smacking the crossbar. Our pressing was incessant, though, and it finally resulted in our go-ahead goal in the 36^th minute.

And it was debutant Yegor Savikov who handed us a deserved second advantage, unleashing a firm effort which was just too hot for Krasotkin to handle.

Following an avoidable penalty taken by Nikita Zaitsev for lifting the puck up and out of play from his own zone, Sibir came close to an instant response, but Scott Wilson lashed over the right post with the goal virtually at his mercy.

Our decisive third goal arrived in the 28^th second of the third period.

Alone on the right wing when receiving an intelligent pass from Joseph Blandisi, Sergei Plotnikov charged towards the Sibir net with intent and wired the puck into the far corner with feeling.

That goal firmly put SKA in the box seat. Although Sibir did rapidly increase their urgency as the stanza wore on and defensive mistakes admittedly began to creep into our game, SKA continued to create the majority of the chances, testing Krasotkin regularly and missing the target from good positions.

Those misses almost came back to haunt us.

Sibir suddenly got back to within one out of the blue in the penultimate minute, with Ivan Chekhovich aiming his wrist shot under Ivanov’s left arm.

SKA, however, weren’t to be denied, professionally seeing out the concluding minute and not allowing Krasotkin to skate to the bench for the extra skater until six seconds from time.

Our team will now prepare to face Lokomotiv in Yaroslavl on Friday. Puck-drop is scheduled for 19:30 local time.

Match protocol:

SKA – Sibir – 3:2 (1:1, 1:0, 1:1)

Goals:

1:0 Korotky (Khairullin, Murphy), 04.55 PPG

1:1 Tkachyov (Akhiyarov, Alanov), 07.23

2:1 Savikov (Larionov, Vorobyov), 35.50

3:1 Plotnikov (Blandisi), 40.28

3:2 Chekhovich (Churkin, Nekolenko), 58.48

Goalkeepers: Ivanov – Krasotkin

Shots: 74 – 44

Shots on target: 40 – 27