Mozyakin from Malkin Isn't Enough for Magnitogorsk

The Matchup:

Metallurg 

Magnitogorsk 

(21-0-9-6)

vs

Sibir

Novosibirsk

(13-5-4-13)

NHL/Former NHL Players You May Recognize

Petr Skudra (assistant coach)

Pregame Notes

A little electric guitar and a Malkin jersey for the anthem.

• Here's a little Magnitogorsk fun to start off the day (link courtesy of @MarkFrane)
• The full All Star teams have been announced.  Paul Maurice has been named one of the coaches for Team East, joining players Evgeni Malkin (starter), Sergei Gonchar (starter), and Sergei Mozyakin (2nd line) from Metallurg.
• Other (former) NHL players added: Aleksey Morozov and Victor Hedman to Team East.  Artem Anisimov, Mikhail Grabovski, and Nicklas Backstrom to Team West.
• Standings Update: Magnitogorsk sits in 3rd place in the West with 72 points.  Sibir is in 8th in the East with 53 points.
• KHL Scoring Race Update:  Mozyakin entered tonight's game with the lead (53), 4 points ahead of Malkin (49) and 9 points ahead of Alexander Radulov (44).
• Starting goalies: Sergei Gaiduchenko for Sibir and Ari Ahonen for Metallurg.
• Injury report remains the same: Cal O'Reilly, Oleg Tverdovsky, and Evgeny Biryukov out.

Recap

Might as well have been an empty net.

In what has become an alarming trend as of late for Metallurg, they fell behind early for the 3rd straight game.  Unfortunately, they would not be able to come from behind for a victory this time.  The teams played physical from the start and it led to the first big chance for Sibir as Georgi Misharin was sent to the penalty box for high sticking.  Sibir capitalized on the chance for a 1-0 lead when Viktor Drugov received a pass across the slot and quickly wristed a shot into the net before Ari Ahonen could slide into position.  Magnitogorsk tied the game shortly afterwards on their first powerplay when, let's all say it together: Sergei Mozyakin one-timed a pass from Evgeni Malkin.  It started with Sergei Gonchar at the point passing to Malkin on the right half boards.  Malkin then threaded a pass to Mozyakin on the other side of the ice and Gaiduchenko wasn't even close to getting in front of the one-timer.

Metallurg gained a significant amount of momentum off of Mozyakin's goal and the crowd continued to go wild as defenseman Sergei Bernatsky dropped the gloves with Arturs Kulda.  The air would be sucked out of the arena quickly though after Viktor Bobrov gave Novosibirsk a 2-1 lead.  Bobrov entered the Magnitogorsk zone 1 on 1 with a defenseman and fired a wrist shot from just inside the blue line.  Ahonen appeared to misread the puck and missed the save for a weak goal against.  Magnitogorsk fought back towards the end of the period, but couldn't find an equalizer before the horn sounded.

The second period started as dismally as everything has been starting for Magnitogorsk lately.  12 seconds into the period, Magnitogorsk lined up in the defensive zone for a faceoff.  Malkin was waived out and Nikolai Kulemin stepped in to lose the draw cleanly.  In a matter of three seconds, Jori Lehtera skated behind the net with the puck and fed Sibir captain Maxim Krivonozkhin in front.  His shot went unchallenged by any defenseman and he beat Ahonen for a 3-1 Sibir lead.

Luckily for Magnitogorsk, Ivan Velichkin was given a 4 minute double minor for high sticking just a minute later and Metallurg had a chance to get back into the game.  Though the first line was unsuccessful on the first powerplay, Dmitri Kazionov found a way to jam the puck in towards the end of the second powerplay to bring the score back to 3-2.  The teams spent the majority of the period trading chances back and forth with Metallurg getting quite a few more shots on net (19-8).  It finally paid off with three minutes left in the period when, together again: Sergei Mozyakin one-timed a pass from Evgeni Malkin.  This time, Malkin stood behind the net with the puck and waited patiently as Mozyakin steamrolled through the slot.  The pass and shot happened so fast that the slow motion camera angles even had issues picking it up on the stream.

Maurice was livid as he watched the game
slip away in the 3rd.

With a 3-3 tie after 2 periods, momentum favored Metallurg heavily and it looked like they were well on their way to yet another come from behind victory.  Krivonozkhin had other ideas though, as did Ari Ahonen apparently since he allowed a very weak short-side goal to the Sibir captain, who had taken a bad angle shot from the boards below the faceoff circle.  Magnitogorsk fought through the period trying to tie it up and had quite a few chances in front of the net but couldn't get a lucky bounce.  With less than 3 minutes left in the game, Sergei Bernatsky took a necessary but brutal hooking penalty in front of Ahonen to save a goal.  Jonas Enlund scored just 16 seconds into the Sibir powerplay, all but assuring Magnitogorsk of defeat.  Ahonen was pulled in favor of an extra attacker, but Gaiduchenko stood strong in net.

Final Score:  Sibir Novosibirsk 5  Metallurg Magnitogorsk 3

Magnitogorsk drops to 21-0-9-7 and Novosibirsk improves to 14-5-4-13.

Player Notes

A pair that should never be broken up...
(hint hint, Ray Shero)

Evgeni Malkin - The chemistry between Sergei Mozyakin and Evgeni Malkin is something very special to watch.  The two have an enormous amount of trust in each other and read the play quite well together.  Malkin finished with 2 assists, 6 shots, and an astounding 19 for 24 (79.2%) in faceoffs in 25:23 of ice time.  He looked healthy and dominant again to put away any worries from last game.  Of course, continually feeding Mozyakin also means he didn't gain any ground in the scoring race.

Others (Metallurg) - Ari Ahonen had a dismal game compared to his usual stellar play, allowing 5 goals on just 28 shots.  Ryan O'Reilly had another strong game but failed to get on the scoresheet despite having 5 shots.  He is quickly developing chemistry with Kazionov.  Nikolai Kulemin also played well, recording an assist on Mozyakin's second goal and 6 shots.  Kulemin deserves a great deal of credit for preventing defenders from focusing solely on Malkin and Mozyakin on the top line.

Next Game:  12/28, 8am EST vs Metallurg Novokuznetsk

Links:

Thank you to onhockey.ru (@onhockey on Twitter).  Not only have they been dependable for KHL streams, but they even named my blog on the stream for this game (as you can see in the screencaps).

Keep track of Malkin and the KHL scoring race here:  http://en.khl.ru/stat/leaders/222/.

Magnitogorsk Special Teams Thrive in 2-1 Win

The Matchup:

Metallurg 

Magnitogorsk 

(5-0-3-2)

@

Sibir

Novosibirsk

(5-3-2-2)

Players You May Recognize

None.  I didn't recognize a single player on the Siberians.  I looked up their captain (Jonas Enlund) and he was a 2006 Thrashers draft pick that never panned out.

Recap

Coming off of a 2-1 shootout loss to CSKA Moscow, head coach Paul Maurice decided to change up his first line looking for more offense.  Evgeni Malkin started the game centering Sergei Mozyakin and Nikolai Kulemin (instead of Denis Platonov).  Offense could not be found though in a very quick paced first period.  Both teams turned the puck over frequently as shifts often turned into wind sprints back and forth down the ice.  Malkin was able to draw a tripping penalty, but Magnitogorsk could not capitalize on the powerplay and the period ended scoreless thanks to solid goaltending at both ends.

Oleg Tverdovsky interview during the 1st intermission.

The second period started at a much slower pace as both teams generally kept to the perimeter.  Magnitogorsk was rewarded as soon as they tested the slot area as Mikhail Yakubov and Pavel Zdunov broke through the defense.  Yakubov passed to Zdunov skating through the right faceoff circle and Zdunov ripped a wrist shot past Novosibirsk goalie Sergei Gaiduchenko, who could not cover the post quickly enough.

Magnitogorsk drew a penalty shortly after taking the lead but could not capitalize on the opportunity.  Novosibirsk took advantage of returning to 5 on 5 though as captain Jonas Enlund sprung Stepan Sannikov on a breakaway beginning at the red line.  Sannikov deked to the backhand and beat Ahonen high over his glove to tie the game at 1.  Novosibirsk had another quick chance entering the zone with a 2 on 1, but Sergei Gonchar broke it up and took a holding penalty in the process.  Magnitogorsk killed the penalty without a problem and the period ended with a 1-1 tie.

With heavy bags under his eyes, Maurice juggled
lines like a pro.

Maurice opted for more line changes to begin the 3rd period, moving Mats Zuccarello to the top line with Malkin and Kulemin.  Zuccarello drew an early 3rd period powerplay for Magnitogorsk as the line immediately paid dividends.  Metallurg took the lead 2-1 as Zuccarello found a wide open Evgeni Malkin in the corner behind the net.  With all of the time in the world, Malkin threaded a pass between two sticks and right to Nikolai Kulemin on the crease, where the puck was tapped in for what would be the game winning goal.

The second half of the third period was a blur (literally, because the online feed kept cutting out).  Magnitogorsk killed two more penalties, including one in the final two minutes when defenseman Evgeni Biryukov was given a 2 minute minor and 10 minute misconduct for a headshot.  With Malkin centering the penalty kill in the last minute, Magnitogorsk held on to win the game.  Kulemin's powerplay goal and numerous clutch penalty kills were the major keys to their victory.

Final Score:  Metallurg wins 2-1.  

Magnitogorsk improves to 6-0-3-2 and Novosibirsk drops to 5-3-2-3.

Player Notes

Hey Bylsma, try Malkin on the PK.

Evgeni Malkin - Geno finished the game 17 for 29 in the faceoff circle, which included many key defensive zone wins.  He had 9 shots and 1 assist in 21:21 of ice time.  Despite his clear chemistry with Mozyakin, he looked very strong with Kulemin and Zuccarello, especially as Zuccarello's speed created more room in the 3rd period.  His overall shooting percentage is horrendous right now, but I imagine that will inevitably fix itself.

Sergei Gonchar - Sarge had 2 shots on net and a holding penalty in 19:49 of ice time.  The penalty was a smart one since it stopped a 2 on 1 where he was the last man back.  Aside from that, Gonchar was not very noticeable in general.

Cal O'Reilly - O'Reilly eventually inherited Mozyakin and Platonov as linemates from Malkin but showed little chemistry with them, especially Platonov.  There was really nothing else of note in his game today.

Next Game:  10/6, 6am EST vs Metallurg Novokuznetsk

Links:

Go to onhockey.ru for all of your streaming needs.  They are excellent and add feeds as they find them.

If you want highlights for the games, check out http://www.youtube.com/user/KHLofficialvideo.