LEV 4:3 NNO | Lev Praha - Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (KHL)

KHL

HC Yugra – Barys	2:6 (end)	\|	Avtomobilist – Avangard	4:1 (end)	\|	CSKA – Ak Bars	2:0 (end)
Riga – Dynamo	3:2 (2:0 after SO)	\|	HC Slovan – Vityaz	1:4 (end)	\|	Lev – Torpedo	4:3 (2:0 after SO)

after shootout (2:0)

Lev Praha

4:3 (1:1, 0:2, 2:0 - 0:0)

Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod

Thursday 19.09.2013, 19:00 • Tipsport Arena, Prague • KHL

		What a wild game in Prague, particularly the third period, and despite looking not so great for two periods and part of the third Lev takes 2 points on home ice and they now get quite an ovation from their fans in the handshake. (21:43:12)
		Game over.
		MICHAL BIRNER is credited with the game-winning goal in the shootout.
		Tim Brent tries to go forehand but misses the net, and the game is over.
		Martin Thornberg scores for Lev on the backhand deke, so Torpedo needs to score to keep this going.
		Sakari Salminen for Torpedo tries to go five-hole on the backhand but Vehanen makes a pad save.
		Michal Birner is the first shooter for Lev, he scores on the forehand high to the stick side.
		Start of shootout.
		So no scoring in overtime though Lev had their foot to the pedal and were going for it, hitting the post twice. Shootout coming up now. 3 on 3, then sudden death.
	65:00	Overtime finished.
	64:42	Thornberg the long shoot in from the neutral zone, easy stick save Gelashvili.
	63:55	Klepis winds up and his slapper hits a stick and goes out of play. Faceoff in the Torpedo zone.
	62:40	Lev hits the post for the 2nd time in OT! I think it was Nemec who was pinching in from the point who shot that one.
	62:29	Puck goes out of play as we reach the halfway point of overtime. Faceoff in the Torpedo zone.
	60:52	Salimen steps out of the box and tries to take a breakaway pass, but can't catch it and it goes for icing against Torpedo.
	60:27	Oystrick fires wide, then Kapanen hits the goalpost.
	60:01	Overtime began.
		A wild third period, especially the last 12 minutes, and we're tied 3-3 after 60 minutes of hockey so we'll play up to 5 minutes more. It'll be 4 on 4 hockey, though it'll start 4 on 3 as :45 remains in the Torpedo bench minor. Lev scored twice to tie it there and were clearly going for the regulation win and 3 points on that late power play, but couldn't score before the horn. Shots on goal in the 3rd period (and game) Lev 15 (28), Torpedo 4 (34). Sudden-death overtime will begin in less than one minute.
	60:00	3rd period finished.
	59:46	Now Gelashvili goes down and so does Sevc, who was standing in front of the net on the power play, We're going to get coincidental minors here to Martin Sevc and goaltender Georgy Gelashvili, and just now sorting out who will serve the goalie's penalty.
	59:19	Repik with the one-time slapper along the ice, nice toe save by Gelashvili.
	58:45	Now Torpedo is being called for too many players on the ice -- that's the third time it's been called today but the first time against Torpedo. Lev back to the power play.
	58:30	Nakladal shoots from the point, Gelashvili gets a glove on it and it goes to the corner.
	56:10	Klepis from a weak angle, stick save Gelashvili. Lev has all the momentum right now.
	54:02	Klepis shoots from the corner and Gelashvili gloves it. We've got more extracurricular activities but nothing comes of it and we're 5 on 5 for the first time in a while.
	53:07	Goal for Lev! MARTIN THORNBERG ties this game on the power play with a bullet to the top corner and then immediately goes down as he took a high stick as he shot. Assists: Patrik Zackrisson, Jiri Sekac.
	52:09	Nemec with the one-timer from the point, Gelashvili stops it through traffic with 1:22 left in the penalty.
	51:43	Puck goes out of play in the Torpedo zone. Faceoff outside with 1:48 left in the Wolski major.
	50:50	Now Gelashvili covers the puck and we've got more pushing and shoving after the whistle, which should surprise no one. 2:41 left in Wolski's major.
	50:40	Nemec's shot from the point is tipped by Sekac, deflected wide.
	49:50	Michal Birner sneaks out of the corner and tries a backhand, pad save Gelashvili. The atmosphere in the building right now is unreal following the goal and that fracas.
	48:31	This just gets more bizzare as Wojtek Wolski has been kicked out of the game with a major and a game misconduct for something that happened just before they were about to drop the puck. It wasn't him who hit Novotny. They're calling it spearing and it happened just as they were about to drop the puck.
	48:31	At the end of it all there will be no power play and the teams are five-on-five on the ice. The penalties haven't been announced yet but I assume the original penalty to Torpedo was offset by an instigator penalty to Lev.
	48:31	We'll get to the Lev goal in a minute, but Jiri Novotny was absolutely hammered at the Torpedo blueline just after play resumed and we've got a line brawl now. I'll try to sort it all out ASAP.
	48:00	Goal for Lev! JAKUB KLEPIS shoots from the boards after a nice passing play, it looked like the shot might have been deflected along the way, and Lev is back in this game. Assists:Niko Kapanen, Martin Sevc.
	47:10	A pair of Canadians collide as Ryan O'Byrne rocks Tim Brent in the slot and knocked his helmet off, just as the Torpedo forward was shooting.
	46:48	Icing Torpedo.
	46:32	Icing Lev.
	46:23	Torpedo 3 on 2, a one-timer from Sakari Salminen and Petri Vehanen slides across to make a nice save.
	45:54	Icing Torpedo.
	45:16	Offside Torpedo.
	44:43	Puck deflected out of play in the Torpedo zone, faceoff outside.
	24:17	Icing Torpedo.
	23:14	Well Gelashvili appears ready to play again. He's hearing it from the Czech crowd a little bit, who might suspect he's acting a bit to gain a whistle while Lev was putting on pressure.
	23:14	A shot from the point by Nathan Oystrick hits Gelashvili up high, and he goes down again. The trainer is out again, just like in the 1st period.
	22:58	Icing Torpedo.
	22:52	Puck out of play in the neutral zone, faceoff at the Torpedo blueline.
	22:07	Gelashvili with the save and covers, and Spencer Humphries comes on to the ice for the first time since the middle of the 2nd period, paired with Jakub Nakladal on the Lev defence.
	22:00	Big hit by Brent on Nemec, probably repaying him for that first-period check.
	21:23	Now Salminen the shot, blocker save Vehanen.
	20:50	Vladimir Galuzin fires a hard slapper high on a Torpedo rush.
	40:01	Start of 3rd period.
		The teams are returning to the ice, and the 3rd period faceoff is moments away.
		Torpedo scores twice in that 2nd period to open up a 3-1 lead. They've looked very impressive tonight, following up on their impressive outing in Bratislava on Tuesday. Shots on goal in the 2nd period (and game): Lev 6 (13), Torpedo 13 (30). 3rd period begins at 20:44 CEST, 14:44 EDT.
	40:00	2nd period finished.
	39:54	Sevc shoots from the point, stick save Gelashvili.
	39:35	Offside Lev.
	38:53	Icing Torpedo.
	38:47	Offside Lev on the rush.
	38:15	Humphries now standing at the Lev bench, leaning on the boards. We'll see if that means he's ready to play. Likely not this period.
	38:15	Now we've got a stoppage at the Lev net among a crowd. Faceoff inside.
	37:45	Ryan O'Byrne with the punishing check on Alexander Makarov into the end boards. You could see that one lined up.
	36:52	Icing Lev.
	36:12	Vehanen catches a hard shoot-in from outside the blueline and is forced to hold on.
	34:06	Goal for Torpedo! Hietanen again shoots on the power play, right pad save Vehanen, and WOJTEK WOLSKI fires the rebound top shelf to give Torpedo a 2-goal lead. Assists: Juuso Hietanen, Vadim Krasnoslobodtsev.
	33:30	Heitanen shoots from the point, looks like it was deflected along the way but Vehanen stops it, play continues.
	32:46	Torpedo goes offside on a delayed penalty and Lev's Petr Vrana is now going to the box for tripping. Torpedo 1/5 tonight.
	31:10	Lev Defenceman Spencer Humphries looks to be in some discomfort at the bench, favouring his knee. We'll update his status for family and fans following in Western Canada.
	31:10	Offside Lev on the shoot-in, faceoff at centre ice.
	30:48	Birner-Vrana-Repik line putting on pressure in the Torpedo zone, the puck goes back to the point to Marc-Andre Gragnani, whose low slapper through traffic is stopped and covered by Gelashvili. We've got pushing and shoving after the whistle, but no penalties.
	30:04	Now Jiri Novotny shoots on a Lev rush and Gelashvili makes the glove save. Great end-to-end action right now.
	29:28	And back the other way, a big scramble in the Torpedo crease but nobody can put it home and finally Geogry Gelashvili covers.
	28:46	Torpedo 2 on 1 and Petri Vehanen comes cross to make a great save on a one-timer from Vadim Krasnoslobodtsev.
	27:13	Icing Torpedo.
	27:03	Repik with a hard wrister, blocker save Gelashvili.
	26:55	Vehanen freezes the puck to get a faceoff in the Lev zone.
	26:10	Goal for Torpedo! Vadim Krasnoslobodtsev wins a battle for the puck in the corner and cuts in front on a wraparound attempt, Vehanen stopped it, but DANIIL ZHARKOV was there to put in the rebound on the far side. Assist: Vadim Krasnoslobodtsev.
	24:45	Icing Lev.
	24:05	Vrana with a wrister on Lev rush that hits Gelashvili in the chest, play continues.
	23:31	Finally the puck goes over the glass in the Lev zone, faceoff inside.
	23:15	Lev penalty killers currently doing a good job of keeping the puck in the Torpedo zone, they killed about the last 30 seconds with the play never going to their side of centre.
	21:55	Hietanen fires a slapper from the point, Vehanen gets a piece of it to send it wide.
	21:11	Play is whistled as Lev is again called for having too many players on the ice. So Birner steps out of the box and linemate Michal Repik steps in to serve the penalty.
	20:23	Kapanen fires a backhander high and wide in the dying seconds of the power play.
	20:01	Start of 2nd period.
		The teams are returning to the ice and the 2nd period will begin shortly. Lev still has another :26 to go on the power play, which Ilya Lamkin is serving, and both Birner (1st whistle after :26) and Galuzin (1st whistle after 2:26) have more time to serve in the box before they're set free.
		Each team scores once in a penalty-filled opening period -- Lev 4 on 4 and Torpedo on a 2-man advantage. On the basis of having 4 power plays that period, Torpedo held the edge in play, though 5 on 5 and 4 on 4 it was pretty even. Shots on goal in the 1st period: Lev 7, Torpedo 17. 2nd period begins at 19:53 CEST, 13:53 EDT.
	20:00	1st period finished.
	19:54	Jarkko Immonen with the shorthanded partial breakaway in the dying seconds, countryman Petri Vehanen stays with him and gives away nothing to shoot at.
	19:00	Offside Lev.
	18:37	Torpedo rushes shorthanded but shoots the puck high and out of play. Faceoff outside.
	18:26	It seems that Galuzin is getting 4 minutes and Birner 2, so Lev going to the power play late in the period.
	18:26	Now Denisov dumps Vrana in the corner, no call, and now everybody gets involved around the Torpedo net. The biggest combatants seem to be Juuso Hientanen and Michal Birner.
	17:25	Nemec shoots from the point, Birner tries a screen/deflection in front but it hits Gelashvili and is cleared.
	15:50	Tomas Kubalik throws a big hit on Denisov in the end boards. The physical play starting to puck up.
	15:35	Galluzin with the shot on a Torpedo rush, pad save Vehanen and he covers.
	15:09	Lev goes offside again, this time on the shoot-in so the faceoff is going to centre ice.
	15:02	Offside Lev.
	14:47	Wojtek Wolski attempted a centering pass but it was intercepted by Petr Vrana, who led a rush the other way. Birner ripped a shot high just as the penalty expired.
	14:20	Offside Torpedo with :27 left in the power play.
	14:01	Torpedo buzzing in the Lev zone, finally Denisov with the low wrister from the point, scooped up by Vehanen with :46 left in the penalty.
	13:02	Slapper from the point by Grigoryev, pad save Vehanen, then the puck is cleared just outside the line and brought back in. Offside Torpedo with 1:45 left in the power play.
	12:47	The linesman has blown down play and is indicating too many players on the ice for Lev, so Torpedo will go to the power play for the 4th time already this game. Jiri Sekac is going to serve the bench minor.
	12:25	Michal Birner wins a race for the puck in the Torpedo zone and gets a shot from a weak angle, kicked away by Gelashvili.
	11:59	The puck goes out of play in the Torpedo zone, faceoff inside.
	11:17	Niko Kapanen with the shot on the Lev rush, pad save Gelashvili and then the rebound lied dangerously in front but no Lev players could reach it and it's cleared away.
	10:09	Breakaway for Pyotr Schastlivy, he tried to make a move on Vehanen but the Finnish goalie outwated him. Martin Sevc got back and may have hooked the stick a bit.
	09:45	Lev has killed off the rest of Nemec's penalty, and now play is in the neutral zone.
	08:05	Goal for Torpedo! They cash in on the 2-man advantage, as PAVEL VALENTENKO winds up from the point and fires a bullet over Vehanen's shoulder to tie this game. The power play continues for another 1:38. Assists: Maxim Potpov, Jarkko Immonen.
	07:43	Lev is going to be 2 men short for 1:04 as Ondrej Nemec hammers Tim Brent into the boards. Brent popped back up quickly and got into the play before the whistle goes, which is probably why it's only a minor. Looked similar to the hit that shook up Nemec on Tuesday night.
	06:47	Torpedo goes back to the power play as Jakub Nakladal is whistled for tripping in his own zone.
	06:28	Torpedo 2 on 1, Alexei Potapov elects to shoot and misses the near post.
	06:10	Torpedo ices again as the penalty expires. Both teams 0/1 on abbreviated power plays.
	05:40	Lev on the power play now, Nemec's shot from the point is stopped by Gelashvili and the puck is cleared.
	04:18	Goal for Lev! Klepis went back to the point to MARTIN SEVC, and his flutterball from the point went over the left shoulder of Gelashvili and in for the game's first goal. 4 on 4 play will continue. Assist: Jakub Klepis.
	04:07	Torpedo is off the power play as Tim Brent gets called for slashing. We'll play 4 on 4 for :47.
	03:08	Vladimir Denisov with the low shot from the point, stick save Vehanen.
	02:54	The first penalty of this game is going to Lev's Nathan Oystrick for cross-checking in his own zone. Torpedo to the power play.
	02:24	Offside Torpedo.
	01:55	It seems that Gelashvili is alright and will stay in this game. That shot by Thornberg seemed to catch him in the shoulder area close to the mask, possibly in an area that doesn't get much protection.
	01:55	Gragnani with the drop pass to Martin Thornberg and his high shot hits Georgy Gelashvili who goes down in a heap. The trainer is on the ice checking on him.
	01:00	Icing Lev.
	00:45	Viktor Galuzin of Torpedo with the game's first shot, a long wrister that Petri Vehanen easily gloves and holds onto.
	00:01	Game started.
		The national anthems of the Russian Federation and Czech Republic are complete, and the opening faceoff is moments away. Lev Praha is wearing their home red uniforms with blue and white trim, red NY Rangers-style pants and blue helmets. Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod is wearing road white with navy blue and red trim, navy pants and white helmets.
		Starting Lineups: Lev Praha: Vehanen (Lukáš) – Oystrick, O'Byrne, Ševc, Nakládal, Gragnani, Němec, Humphries – Novotný, Kapanen, Klepiš – Birner, Vrána, Řepík – Sekáč Zackrisson, Thörnberg – Ridderwall, Azevedo, Kubalík – Cingel. Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod: Gelashvili (Mashkovtsev) – Valentenko, Hietanen, Denisov, Grigoryev, Makarov, Lukin, Belokhvostikov – Potapov, Galuzin, Kulyomin – Wolski, Brent, Kulakov – Salminen, Immonen, Potapov – Zharkov, Schastlivy, Krasnoslobodtsev – Yamkin. Referees: Anisimov, Bulanov – Birin, Medvedev.
		Last season, the two meetings between these two teams came three weeks apart, with Lev winning both times. They met for the first time on November 14 in Nizhny Novgorod, and Lev´s 3-2 road victory marked a successful debut for Václav Sýkora in his first game since taking over the head coaching job. In Lev´s 4-2 home-ice victory on December 5, Jakub Štěpánek made 44 saves in goal, including 17 in an enormous third-period effort by Torpedo. Torpedo finished the season 12th in the Western Conference. This season, they´ve been moved to the Eastern Conference and have 7 points in their first five games, which has them tied for 8th place. On Tuesday, Georgy Gelashvili recorded a 20-save shutout in Bratislava over Slovan, with Wojtek Wolski scoring twice in a 3-0 win. Those two players really are the story of the team so far. With 2 shutouts in three starts, Gelashvili has the best numbers of any goaltender in the league that´s played more than 40 minutes, with a goals-against average of 0.67 and a .971 save percentage. As for Wolski, the 27-year-old veteran of 480 NHL games, mostly with the Colorado Avalanche, has 5 points in five games. That ties him for the team lead with Tim Brent, himself a veteran NHLer with 207 games under his belt, mostly with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes. To counter, Lev´s offence is currently being led by Martin Thörnberg, who led Torpedo in scoring the past two seasons. After being kept quiet in his first three games, he has now scored twice in back-to-back games and co-leads team scoring with 4 points -- all goals. The other Lion with 4 points, defenceman Nathan Oystrick, has all assists. Meanwhile, Niko Kapanen and Calle Ridderwall have 3 points each. In goal, Petri Vehanen doesn´t have the astonishing numbers that Gelashvili has, but he´s surrendered only 1 goal in each of his last three outings, and his 1.49 goals-against average and .949 save percentage are part of the reason Lev is currently 5th place in the West with a game in hand on everybody ahead of them. Meanwhile, everyone who watched Tuesday´s 4-1 win over Vityaz held their collective breath when defenceman Ondřej Němec was hammered into the boards from behind by Alexander Korolyuk with two minutes left. Though he left the ice in considerable pain, it was apparently as not as bad as it looked, and it was confirmed on Thursday morning that he will be in the lineup tonight.
		Welcome. This game starts at 19:00 CEST local time in Prague, 21:00 MSK in Nizhny Novgorod, 13:00 EDT.

Commentary by

Derek OBrien

@@Djob76

Goals & lineups Match log

Goals and assists: 5. Sevc (Klepis), 48. Klepis (Kapanen, Sevc), 54. Thornberg (Zackrisson, Sekac), rozh. náj. Birner (p.s.) – 9. Valentenko (Potapov, Immonen), 27. Zharkov (Krasnoslobodtsev), 35. Wolski (Hietanen, Krasnoslobodtsev)

Lev Praha: Vehanen (Lukáš) – Oystrick, O'Byrne, Ševc, Nakládal, Gragnani, Němec, Humphries – Novotný, Kapanen, Klepiš – Birner, Vrána, Řepík – Sekáč Zackrisson, Thörnberg – Ridderwall, Azevedo, Kubalík – Cingel.

Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod: Gelashvili (Mashkovtsev) – Valentenko, Hietanen, Denisov, Grigoryev, Makarov, Lukin, Belokhvostikov – Potapov, Galuzin, Kulyomin – Wolski, Brent, Kulakov – Salminen, Immonen, Potapov – Zharkov, Schastlivy, Krasnoslobodtsev – Yamkin.

Referees: Anisimov, Bulanov – Birin, Medvedev

1st period
	02:54
	04:07
	04:18
	06:47
	07:43
	08:05
	12:47
	18:26
1st intermission
2nd period
	21:11
	26:10
	32:46
	34:06
2nd intermission
3rd period
	48:00
	48:31
	48:31
	53:07
	58:45
	59:46
After 3rd period
Overtime
before shootout
Shootout

after shootout