For many Pens fans, today was the beginning of a new hockey journey. Superstar Evgeni Malkin and former teammate/roommate/surrogate father Sergei Gonchar made their return to the KHL with Metallurg Magnitogorsk. After days of debating where to find an online stream (apparently everywhere according to Google) and what the time difference was (Moscow is 8 hours ahead of EST), it was time to sit down and watch a KHL game for the first time.
MATCHUP
Metallurg Magnitogorsk (2-0-0-2)*
vs.
Salavat Yulaev Ufa (2-0-2-2)*
*I'm still trying to learn the standings, but that reads (W, OT W, OT L, L). I'll do a KHL post this weekend.
My initial thoughts about the KHL were the expected ones: a larger ice surface leads to more skating, less hitting, and fewer stoppages. Once you get past those small changes, watching KHL hockey is just like any other type of hockey (except I can't understand the announcers).
Salavat clearly looked like the better team through most of the game. Their passing was crisper and they had more chances than Metallurg did. Despite this, Magnitogorsk made a game of it and was very opportunistic with their chances.
Final Score: Salavat 4 Metallurg 3 (OT)
Evgeni Malkin
Evgeni Malkin looked like he was more in pre-season form than regular season form in his first professional game of the season. He finished with 22:37 of ice time, 3 shots, 1 assist, and went 9 for 13 in the faceoff circle. Despite the regular ice time, he wasn't able to take control of the play as we have seen on so many occasions. I noticed that the KHL defenders were much more comfortable closing in on him and taking away his time and space in comparison to NHL defenders. Also, multiple Salavat players were always ready to take him on at the same time.
Despite the new (old) environment, Malkin adapted well as the game went on. He received regular powerplay AND penalty kill time on the first lines. He also drew a tripping penalty trying to cross the blue line and eventually assisted on the game-tying goal with 39 seconds left in the game. He (or coach Paul Maurice) may need to adjust on the powerplay though - he is positioned on the right half boards which creates a sharper-angled shot than it would in the NHL.
Geno's regular linemates were Dmitry Kazionov (4th round pick in 2002 for Tampa Bay) and Yaroslav Kosov (5th round pick in 2011 for Florida), so he might miss James Neal just a little bit right now. I'm looking forward to the inevitable game where he turns into dominant Geno and just crushes a team by himself.
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| Faceoff right before Metallurg tied the game. |
Sergei Gonchar
It appears Sergei Gonchar will probably take longer to transition back to the KHL game than Malkin will. The abundance of open ice does not play well to Gonchar's skating with his career is on the decline. He finished with 23:38 of ice time, 2 shots, and 1 assist. Unfortunately, he was on for 3 goals against, including the overtime winner. Gonchar tried to bat the puck out of the air as the last defenseman back, but missed it and a Salavat forward took it in for a breakaway goal in overtime.
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| Isn't it nice seeing those 2 together again? |
Misc. Thoughts
- It was awesome seeing former Ducks (amongst other teams) defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky. I was a huge fan of his in the NHL and I had no clue he was still playing. He wore #90 for Magnitogorsk.
- On the other hand, I was shocked to see Cal O'Reilly playing (and taking a tripping penalty). I'm not really sure how his game translates well to the KHL, but I guess we'll find out as the season progresses.
- Though it was only a one game sample size, I didn't see a single dangerous or dirty hit, or anything near the head. Again, only a one game sample size.
- Finally, both teams went through a full handshake line at the end of the game. It was a nice gesture of respect in comparison to how the Pens and Flyers end every game.
I probably won't post/live-tweet about every KHL game, but we will see how long this lockout goes. I'll try to tweet out a link to watch for every game, or you can always check out thepensblog.com because they will surely have links as well. Looks like it's time we all got adjusted to the KHL together...
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