ZAG 1:0 JAR | Medvescak Zagreb - Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (KHL)

KHL

Admiral – Salavat Yulaev	3:2 (end)	\|	Khabarovsk – Neftekhimik	5:4 (1:0 after SO)	\|	Novokuznetsk – Traktor	2:3 (0:2 after SO)
Novosibirsk – Metallurg M	2:1 (end)	\|	Spartak – SKA St. Petersburg	1:5 (end)	\|	Dinamo Minsk – Mytishchi	1:7 (end)
Donbass – Cherepovets	2:3 (end)	\|	Medvescak – Lokomotiv	1:0 (end)

final

Medvescak Zagreb

1:0 (0:0, 1:0, 0:0)

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl

Saturday 25.01.2014, 17:30 • KHL

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		With now 84 points Medvescak not only have made sure their entry into the playoffs but they also came a good step closer to third placed Lev Prague (88 pts) in the West. For Lokomotiv the playoff race remains completely open with 6 points more than 9th placed Atlant and six games left to play. Both Lokomotiv and Atlant have still 4 games on home ice to end the regular season.
		Lokomotiv invested a lot more in the last 20 minutes than their Croatian opponents but in the end Medvecak were able to defend their small 1-0 lead till the very end due to a very strong performance by their goalie Mark Dekanich who earned a shoutout with 42 (!) saves! Shots on goal: Medvescak 5 (29) – Lokomotiv 18 (42)
	60:00	Game over.
	59:58	A defender finally wins the puck for the Bears and fires it towards the other end of the ice!
	59:47	The guests need far too long to free the puck inside the slot and lose valuable time!
	59:23	Long clearance by the hosts but they miss the Loko net. No icing though of course due to the penalty...
	59:15	Timeout by Lokomotiv who are playing 6 vs 4 for the remainder of the game if nothing else happens!
	59:15	Matt Ellison (Medvescak) gets two minutes for hooking.
	59:00	One minute is left on the clock and Sanford leaves the net in a risky situaton when the puck is controlled by the last Loko defender behind his own net but everything goes well! Loko have a 6th skater on the ice now!
	57:54	Mikelis Redlihs with the puck on the right wing, fails to controll the puck and then slips onto the ice...
	56:58	The hosts fire the puck out of their own zone. They are just happy to get a break from the Loko pressure.
	56:17	Patrick Bjorkstrand with a hard work to defend the puck deep inside the Loko third but in the end he escapes from his guard and almost scores against Sanford from short distance!
	55:19	Icing against Lokomotiv.
	54:32	Geoff Platt's shot from the left circle is easily caught by Dekanich. It's already his 38th (!) save this night!
	54:00	The guests from Yaroslavl try it from more or less all possible angles but still the shutout is in for Dekanich.
	52:08	Another big opportunity for Lokomotiv! Mikelis Redlihs tried to fire the puck into the left top corner from the left circle but Dekanich was able to deflect the shot wide with his shoulder!
	51:45	With every minute going from the clock Lokomotiv become more offensive and Medvescak have more space for counters. For sure something they'd like to use.
	51:03	Big chance for Lokomotiv but Gorokhov's attempt from short distance is blocked wide by Dekanich!
	50:13	Dmitry Maltsev isn't able to use the space he is given on the left wing and his shot goes wide a lot past the right post.
	49:42	Hosts Medvescak are back at full strength.
	49:28	Long clearance by the home side deep into the guest third.
	48:33	Medvescak defender Sasa Martinovic and Lokomotiv forward Daniil Apalkov have an argument that is cleared soon by the referees.
	48:33	Jonas Holos has the next opportunity for the guests but his shot from the right circle towards the right corner goes intot he gloves of Dekanich!
	47:59	A one-timer by guest defender Ilya Gorokhov from the blue line towards the left bottom corner is just kept outside by the right skate of goalie Dekanich! Great opportunity for Lokomotiv!
	47:42	Matt Ellison (Medvescak) gets two minutes for hooking. He clearly stopped his direct opponent with his stick. The home fans are furious but it really was a clear penalty.
	47:19	A guest defender fails to stop a long pass directed for Charles Linglet but the Medvescak forward was in an offside position directly afterwards...
	47:11	Again Kronwall in the center of attraction but his scoring attempt from the left wing is deflected wide by Dekanich.
	46:40	Lokomotiv defender Staffan Kronwall is left alone on the left wing but his shot from there goes straight into the gloves of Dekanich without any danger.
	45:29	After a won face off the hosts try it with a blue line shot but miss the net to the left.
	44:23	Janis Sprukts has a lot of open space in front of him but his fast solo ends after deking out home goalie Dekanich when his shot from just left to the net went just wide!
	43:30	Currently both teams have a lot of trouble keeping the puck for more than a couple of seconds. The playing level decreases.
	41:48	Kirill Kapustin and Daniil Apalkov try to break through the Bears defense but their counter ends early at the Medvescak blue line.
	41:00	Good start by home side Medvescak with a couple of shots towards the Lokomotiv net already in the first minute of the third period.
	40:01	Start of 3rd period.
		A goal early in the middle period that was not undeserved but rather strange in the way it happened, gives Medvescak the small 1-0 lead after 40 minutes in a game that is very even between two teams that hope to qualify for the playoffs at the end of the regular season. Two great goalies and power play lacking efficiency are the main reasons we just saw one goal by now. Shots on goal: Medvescak 10 (24) – Lokomotiv 11 (24)
	40:00	2nd period finished.
	39:37	Daniil Apalkov's shot from the right circle almost finds its way past Dekanich despite the sharp angle but in the end just hits the side netting.
	39:18	Icing against Lokomotiv. Currently there is not much happening and it looks like both teams are just waiting for the intermission to get fresh legs.
	37:41	Lokomotiv are back at full strength. Power play doesn't seem like the most dangerous weapon on either side in this game.
	37:28	After a long passing combination Bill Thomas finally went for a shot on goal but his one-timer from just in front of the left post went wide and the rebound by Jonathan Cheechoo was blocked by Sanford!
	36:27	Matt Ellison has a lot of time to look for a corner and tries to fire the puck into the right one but his shot lacks accuracy and ends up in the gloves of the goalie.
	35:41	Igor Musatov (Lokomotiv) gets two minutes for high-sticking. So far Medvescak are 0 for 1 with the man advantage this evening.
	34:21	A series of desperate shots from all possible angles by Lokomotiv to the end of their power play but they fail to beat Dekanich yet and Medvescak are 100% in their penalty killing in four opportunities.
	33:31	A long solo by Geoff Platt over the right wing, he skates towards the right circle and gives a pass back to the blue line where Ilya Gorokhov waits but the following powerful shot misses the net to the right!
	32:21	Kurtis Foster (Medvescak) gets two minutes for boarding after hitting a player from behind into the boards with the head first... and he is even discussing with the referees. It's obviously not his day...
	31:55	Mike Glumac crashes with his against the head of Loko goalie Sanford in the attempt to reach a pass from behind the net by Mike Iggulden. The net is pushed away but both players are able to continue wihtout problems thankfully.
	31:24	A long distance shot by the guests from the left wing goes straight into the pads of Dekanich who avoids a rebound.
	30:04	On the other side of the ice Dmitry Maltsev failed to beat Mark Dekanich in a 1-on-1 situation after escaping from his guard before the Bears goalie was also able to keep out the rebound!
	29:46	Mike Glumac – the only goal scorer so far this evening – tries it from a sharp angle close to the left circle but his shot towards the left top corner is somehow deflected by Sanford out of play!
	28:52	One of the Medvescak players crashs into the referee assistant who falls to the ice. The strange situations continue.
	28:07	Funny side fact. They are having a competition during the commercial break where the fans have to scream loud and they have more than 130 decibles on the video screen!
	27:28	Daniil Apalkov tries to use a fast attack by Lokomotiv for a distance shot but a defender blocks the puck with his skates.
	26:38	Matt Murley with a pass from the left circle for Jonathan Cheechoo who deflects the puck towards the right bottom corner but Sanford is able to block the shot!
	25:30	It's a very fast and open goal from the very beginning and it's only getting more interesting in the middle period – the 15,200 fans in the arena like it.
	25:09	Huge opportunity for Lokomotiv to score the fast equalizer. Alexander Chernikov forces his way through the home defense on the left wing but his shot from the left circle then only hits the upper part of the right goal post! Dekanich would have had no chance at all!
	24:50	Almost the next goal for the Croatians but the shot from short distance goes just wide!
	23:49	A shot from the right wing is deflected by the skates of Mark Katic towards his own net and Medvescak goalie Dekanich has to show all his class to block the fast puck to the side with his pads!
	21:54	Goal for Medvescak Zagreb! The home side gets the 1-0 lead early in this second period! MIKE GLUMAC tried it with a pass from the left circle that came to Michael Ryan who wasn't able to controll the puck and after skating from behind the net Glumac had the puck again on his stick and deflected it into the right bottom corner past the surprised guest goalie Sanford! What a strange goal! Assisted by Michael Ryan.
	20:50	The guests are back at full strength. The Medvescak power play was interrupted too much by the intermission and they couldn't even get a shot on goal during the remainder of their power play.
	20:01	Start of 2nd period.
		In the first half of the first period Medvescak was the clearly better and more aggressive game which earned them a lot of good scoring opportunities. A series of unnecessary penalties though brought Lokomotiv back into the game and gave them a couple of high calibre chances. In the end the draw after the first 20 minutes is deserved but it seems a bit surprising that we didn't see any goals yet. Shots on goal: Medvescak 14 – Lokomotiv 13
	20:00	1st period finished.
	19:57	A pass from behind the net is just missed by Jonathan Cheechoo. Good opportunity for Medvescak!
	18:50	Mikhail Pashnin (Lokomotiv) gets two minutes for interference after he blocked Matt Ellison to the ground just before he could reach the puck just in front of guest goalie Sanford! We are going to see the first Medvescak power play today!
	17:51	The hosts are back at full strength and already survived three power plays.
	17:49	Mark Popovic slips in front of his team's net and guess what, the net is pushed away another time...
	17:17	Lokomotiv defender Staffan Kronwall tries it from the left wing at height of the blue line but his shot misses the right top corner...
	16:29	After a blue line shot three guest players appear alone in front of Dekanich but somehow he can block all their scoring attempts...
	15:51	Kurtis Foster (Medvescak) beats Dmitry Maltsev into the face with his first when the Russian forward just turned around and gets two minutes for roughing. Not the first time that Foster left an highly over aggressive impression in this match.
	14:53	The Bears also survived their second penalty killing without any harm.
	14:48	A hard shot from the right wing is blocked by Dekanich but no real danger once more.
	14:09	Lokomotiv gain security in their passing but they don't get more than a harmless shot on goal from the second row...
	12:53	Sasa Martinovic (Medvescak) gets two minutes for interference for the the situation just described in the previous post. Second power play this evening for the guests from Yaroslavl.
	12:53	After a powerful shot by Mikhail Pashnin that is stopped easily by Dekanich, the home net is again out of its position as one of the Lokomotiv forwards was pushed into the right post by a defender...
	12:15	One thing is sure. The guests are becoming more aggressive now and see their chance.
	12:15	After a very long pass Kirill Kapustin received the puck on the right wing, skated fast towards the net and tried to deke out Dekanich but he was stopped by the last defender and the chance was gone when the net was pushed out of its position by the following crash!
	11:47	Medvescak's Kurtis Foster first checks Lokomotiv's Emil Galimov into home goalie Dekanich and then punishes him for his "actions" by throwing him to the ground... Weird situation.
	11:14	The hosts are back at full strength.
	11:03	Finally Lokomotiv increase their pressure with a man more on the ice and after a series of shots from the right wing, Janis Sprukts almost is able to use the following rebound allowed by Dekanich to score from short distance but Dekanich throws his body in the way and saves his team the "0" against!
	10:27	Lokomotiv's Yegor Yakovlev tries it from the blue line but his shot lacks power and acccuracy and goes straight into the gloves of Dekanich – just the second shot on goal for his side.
	09:47	Just for your information: at this point the shots on goal are 11-1 in favour of home side Medvescak! Very impressive!
	09:14	Michael Ryan (Medvescak) gets two minutes for tripping after coming too late in the fight for the puck int he left corner of the Lokomotiv third. It's the first penalty of the game.
	09:03	The guests are able to free themselves a bit from the high pressure but aren't able to get a chance themselves on the other side of the ice.
	07:21	After his team won the face off in the right corner of the Lokomotiv third, Bill Thomas skated behind the net, turned around and tried it with a wrap-around which was blocked by Sanford, then the puck came to defender Popovic whose one-timer from within the slot was blocked aswel before the situation was finally cleared when the folling scoring attempt from the right circle was stopped by the guest goalie! What a series of chances for Medvescak!
	06:23	Mark Katic's blue line shot goes straight into the left glove of Curtis Sanford. No danger at all.
	05:58	A blue line shot by the guests is blocked but the home offense failed to go for the following 3-on-3 fast enough...
	05:30	It becomes more and more visible that Medvescak are taking over the initiative in this match. They are attacking via all possible lanes while the guests from Western Russia stay deep in defense and wait for counters.
	04:25	Sanford has a bit trouble stopping a distance shot with his left glove after the puck was deflected by a Medvescak forward and made a couple of strange bounces.
	04:09	The play is stopped after the Lokomotiv net is pushed out of its position.
	03:17	Patrick Bjorkstrand tries it from the right wing for Medvescak but his shot misses the right bottom corner.
	02:05	Another good opportunity for the Croatians after winning a face off in the Lokomotiv third, fast reaction by guest goalie Sanford!
	01:57	Fast attack by the home side over the left wing but the following shot from the left circle is deflected by the stick of a defender and the chance is gone.
	01:30	The atmosphere in a well-filled Arena Zagreb – temporary home of the Bears for a couple of special games also this winter – is great as we know it.
	00:17	The guests from Yaroslavl already had their first shot on goal with their very first attack but Dekanich was there to block the opportunity from short distance.
	00:01	Game started.
		The national anthems of Russia and Croatia have been played. After a short ceremony the game is about to start in a few moments.
		Starting lineups: Medvescak Zagreb: Dekanich (Westlund) – Popovic, Martinovic, Svarny, Foster, Klubertanz, Katic, O'Connor – Thomas, Cheechoo, Murley, Linglet, Vesce, Ellison, Glumac, Ryan, Iggulden, Nystrom, Murray, Kane, Bjorkstrand Lokomotiv Yaroslavl: Sanford (Kolesnik) – Lyubushkin, Gorokhov, Kronwall, Yakovlev, Holos, Peretyagin, Pashnin, Vasilyev – Plotnikov, Averin, Apalkov, Redlihs, Platt, Sprukts, Chernikov, Petrov, Galimov, Musatov, Kapustin, Maltsev Referees: Zakharov, Kadyrov – Sadovnikov, Shelyanin
		Medvescak Zagreb are 7th in KHL's Western Conference with 81 points in 48 games, playing an extraordinary first season in Europe's Russian-based elite hockey league. Today they receive conference rivals and direct neighbours in the standings, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl who earned 72 points in 47 games for the 8th spot in the West. While the Croatians can count fully on a first-time playoff participation, Lokomotiv still have a long way ahead of them. Currently they have a six-point advantage towards 9th placed Atlant Mytishchi with one game less played. In a month of January with many ups and downs, Medvescak started their current home stand with a 4-2 win over Atlant Mytishchi on Thursday. Lokomotiv started their road trip with a 3-1 away win against Spartak Moscow the very same day. A close game can be expected in any case with Medvescak being in the position as favourites in front of their own fans!
		Welcome. Game starts at 16:30 GMT / 17:30 CET (which is also the local time in Zagreb) / 20:30 MSK.

Commentary by

Dennis Mende

Goals & lineups Match log

Goals and assists: 22. Glumac (Ryan)

Medvescak Zagreb: Dekanich (Westlund) – Popovic, Martinovic, Svarny, Foster, Klubertanz, Katic, O'Connor – Thomas, Cheechoo, Murley, Linglet, Vesce, Ellison, Glumac, Ryan, Iggulden, Nystrom, Murray, Kane, Bjorkstrand

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl: Sanford (Kolesnik) – Lyubushkin, Gorokhov, Kronwall, Yakovlev, Holos, Peretyagin, Pashnin, Vasilyev – Plotnikov, Averin, Apalkov, Redlihs, Platt, Sprukts, Chernikov, Petrov, Galimov, Musatov, Kapustin, Maltsev

Referees: Zakharov, Kadyrov – Sadovnikov, Shelyanin

1st period
	09:14
	12:53
	15:51
	18:50
1st intermission
2nd period
	21:54
	32:21
	35:41
2nd intermission
3rd period
	47:42
	59:15
Final