Welcoming the big boys to town

20 October 2024

There are no easy games in the KHL, but this week’s schedule is surely tougher than most. The Dragons entertain Metallurg, SKA and CSKA, three teams, including the defending champion, with eight Gagarin Cups between them. But it’s not all bad news. We’ve already beaten SKA this season and the past couple of years have brought some memorable victories over CSKA and Metallurg. Can we spring more surprises? Let’s see!

Metallurg (h), Monday, Oct. 21, 1930 Moscow Time

Last season: Metallurg’s last visit to Mytishchi was a memorable one for us. The Dragons recovered from 0-2 to tie the game in the third period on goals from Brandon Yip and Zac Leslie. The latter struck just two minutes before the end, setting us on the way to an eventual shoot-out win secured by Luke Lockhart.

Familiar faces: None

Setting the scene: Metallurg’s title defense has not been all that impressive so far. Andrei Razin’s team had injuries to several key players at the start of the season, although the likes of Daniil Vovchenko, Danila Yurov and, most recently, first-line center Denis Zernov have returned to action.

But results are not coming consistently. Magnitka has lost 10 out of 19 games so far, most recently going down 0-2 at Vityaz on Saturday. That was the second time in three games that the Steelmen failed to score. It also means that for the last six games, Metallurg has alternated wins and losses; a stuttering sequence at odds with a four-game hot streak in early October that hinted at a team hitting its stride. Naturally, this is still a dangerous opponent. But right now, this might not be quite the remorseless Metallurg machine we saw powering through last year’s playoffs.

SKA (h), Wednesday, Oct. 23, 1930 Moscow Time

Last time out: September’s trip to Petersburg was probably the highlight of the season so far. The guys turned in a sensational performance to lead 5-1 in the 52^nd minute, with goals from both Foo brothers, Nail Yakupov, Adam Clendening and Ryan Merkley. Then we withstood a huge SKA fightback to secure a 5-4 verdict. That makes it back-to-back wins over SKA, following a 3-2 home win in our final meeting last season. Can we get three in a row?

Familiar faces: Nail Yakupov is the stand-out after joining SKA on his return to the KHL in 2018. He played two seasons there, with 53 points in 111 games. Goalie Konstantin Volkov was also on the books, but never got on the ice for his first club. And defenseman Yury Pautov briefly played in Petersburg at the start of the 2021/22 campaign.

Setting the scene: Right now, it’s all about Tony DeAngelo. The American defenseman has taken the KHL by storm since he joined SKA last month. He had a trio of assists on his debut and now has 15 (2+13) points from nine games so far. Only once has he left the ice without scoring at least one point. His scoring includes two assists when we met on Sep. 29.

Despite that powerful contribution, and an effective, earlier-than-expected return to fitness for Evgeny Kuznetsov (six points in four games since his recovery from injury), SKA’s form remains inconsistent. In DeAngelo’s nine games, SKA has three losses and three wins in OT, as well as three regulation successes. Although the victories include notable successes against table-topping Lokomotiv, Eastern Conference high-flyer Avtomobilist and traditional powerhouse CSKA, those losses came against Severstal, Dinamo Minsk and, of course, your very own Dragons. Head coach Roman Rotenberg has a stacked roster, but may not yet have a full understanding of how to get the most from it.

CSKA (h), Friday, Oct. 25, 1930 Moscow Time

Last season: Our first home game with CSKA last term ended in a shoot-out win, making it three in a row against the Muscovites in Mytishchi. Admittedly, we suffered a further three losses after that but it’s a fact that our recent home form against this opponent has been strong.

Familiar faces: None

Setting the scene: This will be our first meeting with Ilya Vorobyov’s CSKA. He replaced Sergei Fedorov in the summer and has overseen a substantial change on the team. The summer transfer activity was based on bringing Russian talent back from North America: goalie Ivan Prosvetov, defensemen Nikita Okhotyuk and Dmitry Samorukov, and forwards Denis Guryanov and Ruslan Iskhakov led the Trans-Atlantic charge.

But so far, Vorobyov’s team has been powered by a line comprised of homegrown prospects. CSKA’s scoring leaders are Vitaly Abramov (7+9=16 points), Prokhor Poltapov (6+9=15) and Maxim Sorkin (8+5=13). Next on the list is another rising star, Ivan Drozdov, who arrived from Salavat Yulaev. It seems clear that this team is still a work in progress, and results also reflect that. Ahead of Sunday’s game against Sochi, CSKA was on a three-game losing streak. However, all three games went to overtime, suggesting that this roster is not far away from hitting form.