A blue line shot is blocked and Donbass can clear the puck!

Another long clearance by Donbass gives them time to readjust their defense.

Counter attack for Dobass but they aren't able to get a shot on goal from the left circle.

After the second SKA goal Ezhov returned into this net.

Viktor Tikhonov failed twice in a row with a warp-around attempt towards the left bottom corner when Leighton covered the corner up with all his body size! He then threw himself onto the goalie and caused almost a brawl.

A long clearance gives the guest defense a moment to take a breath.

The Ukrainian guests are doing a great job currently by keeping SKA away from their own net. Now they have survived another penalty killing without harm.

With the time running out for SKA slowly but steadily the game is gaining a lot of heat!

Another short distance chance for the hosts who are getting more and more desperate.

Wrap-around attempt for Donbass but Ezhov can stop the puck with his legs!

The hosts are back at full strength.

A shot from the left wing at height of the blue line by Podhradsky is easily caught by Ezhov.

Donbass change their tactics and instead of just defending they are trying to get the decisive strike themselves.

The guests lost the puck after a 2-on-2 counter and suddenly Ketov was through with the puck at the other blue line and with one second left to play in the period his shot towards the left bottom corner was blocked with a pad save by Leighton!

The guests are back at full strength.

After the SKA power play failed to get someone into a good shooting position at the blue line, a cross-pass just in front of the net ended up in front of Thoresen but his one-timer from short distance and the following back hander by Tikhonov were both cleared by Leighton!

The guests are back at full strength and survived a crucial power play.

A one-timer by Thoresen from the right circle is blocked with a pad save by Donbass goalie Leighton!

The hosts lose the puck in a fast rush just when Kovalchuk returns from the penalty box.

After winning a faceoff at the left circle the guests tried it with a fast blue line shot which was almost deflected into the net by Oleg Piganovich from short distance but Ezhov reacted in time.

Dadonov and Bartulis aren't able to get each other in a good scoring position on the left wing during the Donbass power play and the guests lose many important seconds...

On the other side of the ice a blue line shot hit the leg of a Donbass defender and almost went in from there past the surprised Ezhov.

A shot by Alexei Ponikarovsky from the left circle is deflected wide by Donbass goalie Leighton.

Icing by Donbass.

The guests are back at full strength.

So far the hosts fail to create real danger in front of Leighton.

The firs two penatlies are over and the game continues with a 5 on 4 advantage for SKA.

SKA are completely dominating these first minutes of the middle peirod without creating big opportunities.

The hosts left the locker rooms with a completely different attitude and try to take over the initiative early in the period.

Almost the next one for Robitaille but he is stopped from short distance by Ezhov!

Offside call against SKA.

The guests are back at full strength.

Vadim Shipachyov ends a long solo with a pass towards the right circle and his team mates lose the puck...

The hosts are back at full strength and have a power play themselves now.

After a terribe pass back to the blue line the Donbass power play formation failed to keep the puck inside the SKA third and when Kaspar wanted to get the puck back into it there was an offside call.

A hard shot by Robitaille from close to the blue line is blocked to the side by Ezhov.

Razin's shot from the right wing at height of the blue line goes just wide past the left bottom corner of the SKA net.

Nice combination on the left wing between Vadim Shipachyov and Ilya Kovalchuk but the former New Jersey Devils star can't get the puck past Leighton with a shot from the left circle.

An SKA shot from the right circle is easily blocked to the side by Donbass goalie Leighton.

During a fast Donbass counter Vaclav Nedorost skated into an offside position.

Finally a dangerous goal scoring attempt by SKA but the shot from within the slot goes wide.

Tikhonov and Kovalchuk with an attack over the left wing but they lose the puck. So far the hosts have not found into the game.

The guests continue with aggressive attacks and force SKA away from their own third.

A blue line shot by the Ukrainians from the left wing misses the SKA net.

Both teams start very motivated into this match and look for a goal from the very begin.

Starting lineups:

SKA St. Petersburg: Ezhov (Nalimov) – Kalinin, Semenov, Alexandrov, Chudinov, Yudin, Ryasensky – Tikhonov, Kovalchuk, Shipachyov, Martensson, Thoresen, Cervenka, Kucheryavenko, Ketov, Skachkov, Malyshev, Ponikarovsky, Makarov, Sigaryov

Donbass Donetsk: Leighton (Shevchuk) – Wilson, Podhradsky, Bartulis, Piganovich, Kolar, Razin, Silnitsky – Nedorost, Yakutsenya, Dadonov, Wirtanen, Fedotenko, Laine, Robitaille, Kaspar, Blagoi, Kvitchenko, Varlamov, Shalimov

Referees: Buturlin, Dreyev – Streltsov, Tarasov

As expected by many hockey experts SKA St. Petersburg were able to take over the role as the top favourites for the 2013-14 KHL season after winning the regular season title – the Continental Cup – last year and losing for the second time in a row against Dynamo Mosow in playoffs who then became both times Gagarin Cup champions.

SKA won all their first 7 regular season matches and they still have a perfect record of 7-0-0-0 with impressive 33-10 goals and 21 points that makes them regular season – and off course Western Conference – leaders again already. SKA beat Avangard Omsk (5-1), Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg (6-4), HC Yugra (5-1) and Barys Astana (5-2) on the road before they won their first three matches of a four game home stint – which ends tooday – against Medvescak Zagreb (3-0), Dinamo Minsk (5-1) and Spartak Moscow (4-1). NHL top star Ilya Kovalchuk plays a more and more important role for the team from St. Petersburg and scored two goals in the last match against Spartak.

Today's opponents, conference rivals Donbass Donetsk, who joined KHL in 2012 and missed the playoffs by a very close margin in their first ever season, had a very decent start with 4-3 wins and 10 points in 7 games for a solid 7th position in the West. They so far played only against teams of their own conference and today end a four game road trip in which they were rather successful so far Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (4-3 OT), Atlant Mytishchi (0-1) and Severstal Cherepovets (4-0)

SKA are the clear favourites also in this match against Donbass but the guests from Ukraine as dangerous outsiders have the potential to become the first team to "steal" points from the Western Russians.

Welcome. Game starts at 14:30 GMT / 15:30 CET / 17:30 MSK.