MYT 1:0 PET | Atlant Mytishchi - SKA St. Petersburg (KHL)

KHL

Mytishchi – SKA St. Petersburg

1:0 (end)

final

Atlant Mytishchi

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

SKA St. Petersburg

Friday 20.02.2015, 17:30 • Arena Mytishchi • KHL

		Welcome. Game starts at 17:30.
		Hello and welcome to this KHL regular season match between HC Atlant Mytishchi and SKA Saint Petersburg. This is a huge match for the hosts, as their last lingering playoff hopes are on the line.
		Atlant have been battling away bravely in the Western Conference for a playoff spot, however after falling to Jokerit 1:4 on Wednesday they are four points off where they need to be with rivals having a game in hand. Their opponents today SKA have long qualified for the post-season, and have just about secured second in the same conference with 123 points.
		These two have already met three times this KHL campaign, with Atlant winning 4:3 at home and 3:1 in Saint Petersburg, and SKA taking the one home win 5:4.
		Starting lineups: Atlant Mytishchi: Engren (Krasikov)- Korobov, Gilroy, Potapov, Soshnikov, Shmelyov- Novopashin, Babchuk, Khlopotov, Bodrov, Levitskiy- Yarullin, Tyulyapkin, Kozlov, Tatarukhin, Chernov- Sorokin, Voronin, Yunkov, Pugolovkin, Leshchenko SKA St. Petersburg: Ezhov (Koskinen)- Kalinin, Rukavishnikov, Kovalchuk, Ericsson, Cervenka- N Belov, Kuteikin, Ketov, Shipachyov, Dadonov- Chudinov, Khafizullin, Thoresen, Martensson, Tikhonov- Ermakov, Yudin, Burdasov, Kablukov, Khokhryakov Referees: Alexey Belov, Andrey Rogachyov, Ivan Sazonov, Konstantin Chubykin.
		The teams are now out on to the ice, and after the Russian national anthem we'll be getting underway!
	00:01	Game started.
	00:33	Here we go! Atlant have to win, while they are facing opponents of the highest class!
	01:48	Tikhonov! The puck is worked to the doorstep, Viktor Tikhonov takes a swipe at it, and defenceman Albert Yarullin gets back in time to block it!
	04:31	The Atlant defence goes missing as Tony Martensson has all the time in the world on the left faceoff circle, wrists high, and Atte Engren flashes leather to catch well
	06:45	Ilya Kovalchuk does a full 360 on the tip of the crease, backhands, and it trickles past the left post! SKA are looking dangerous constantly!
	06:48	Just seconds later Dmitriy Kalinin is left alone, takes aim between the circles, and Atte Engren shuts the five hole in time! He's coming under some pressure!
	09:35	We now have the first penalty of the game and it's gone against the visitors, as young defenceman Andrey Ermakov for throwing his stick illegally
	10:01	Shipachyov! Even on the penalty kill SKA had a golden chance to take the lead! It's a two on one, Evgeniy Ketov on the right feeds Vadim Shipachyov far post, and his effort from an awkward angle is stoned by Atte Engren!
	11:35	Atlant didn't cause SKA too much trouble during that time, and the visitors are back at full strength. They've been good so far, moving the puck with real flair!
	13:23	Anton Burdasov pulls back to the point, thrashes it in with Pyotr Khokhryakov lurking, and the netminder takes it into his glove to freeze
	14;53	Talented Atlant forward Nikita Soshnikov takes on a wrister when closing down to the right of the slot, and Ilya Ezhov watches it fly wide as it wasn't too far away
	16:01	Ilya Ezhov now at the second attempt covers up a potentially panic causing effort blocker side. He hasn't had much to do today, however he has to keep his concentration
	17:40	Dmitriy Korobov dumps in from the blue line, a brief goalmouth scramble erupts as everyone scrambles away for it, and eventually it's cleared! And just seconds before that SKA defenceman Dmitriy Yudin lost his helmet while attempting a huge slapper!
	19:43	The final seconds of the first period are already upon us, with the game levelling out as we move on!
	20:00	1st period finished.
		Statistics after the opening period of play: Shots: 15-21 Shots on target: 7-10 Faceoffs: 8-6 Hits: 5-5 Penalty minutes: 0-2
	20:01	Start of 2nd period.
	20:23	The second stanza is go! SKA have been excellent so far, and their hosts need to step it up!
	20:25	Kovalchuk! That was so close immediately! Ilya Kovalchuk speeds down the left, and smacks the near post! The netminder was helpless!
	21:08	It's going to be a four on four hockey game now for a while, as Albert Yarullin of Atlant has been penalised for hooking, with SKA's Patrick Thoresen also being called as a result of high sticking
	22:23	Shmelyov! It was Atlant's best chance of the day so far! Sergey Shmelyov is free to the left of the slot, wrists near corner, and Ilya Ezhov gets something on it to keep it out!
	23:36	As the team's fifth players skate back out to the ice Evgeniy Dadonov fires not once but twice, and by the goalkeeper's blocker he fails to hit the jackpot! Chances are coming more thick and fast now!
	26:14	Atte Engren fields dump from deep into his crease, and carefully covers it up. His back line is looking more solid now than earlier on
	27:28	Mikhail Tyulyapkin breaks into the attacking zone, wrists straight away after crossing the blue line, and Ilya Ezhov confidently sticks it well wide
	30:23	Atlant's Igor Levitskiy now draws his stick back from the high slot, and his shot crashes off Ilya Ezhov's mask and out of play! That would have been painful!
	32:31	Chudinov! Maxim Chudinov winds up at the blue line, slaps as hard as he can, and the netminder shuts the five hole in time to deny him! And Roman Cervenka just couldn't reach the ensuing rebound!
	34:01	Soshnikov! The home crowd get excited for that as Nikita Soshnikov pulls glove side, wrists with pace, and Ilya Ezhov pushes it out of reach pf the incoming Atlant forwards!
	35:09	Wow, that was a controversial moment! Ilya Ezhov keeps out a one on one, and the rebound is potted to the joy of the Arena Mytishchi! But no! Much to the dismay of the home fans it's been ruled out for interference against the SKA goaltender!
	36:06	The hosts will have a powerplay now though, as for slashing Dmitriy Kalinin has been handed a two minute minor
	37:06	Dmitriy Korobov pulls down the left wing, flashes it across the face of goal, and the lying Nikolay Belov takes the sting out of it
	37:23	Babchuk! Anton Babchuk lets a slapper rip at the point, and Ilya Ezhov sees it all the way to catch! He's really involved in the action now!
	37:54	The puck is being played pinball with on SKA's crease, several attempts are wristed, and in the end Ilya Ezhov traps it between his pads to cover! Atlant are putting on the pressure hard!
	38:06	To their relief, SKA are back at full strength. The tide has turned in this period, with the hosts upping the tempo with every passing minute!
	39:11	Burdasov! Out of virtually nothing it's a three on one, Anton Burdasov opts to go to the right, and the finds the goaltender midriff from a promising position!
	39:37	Just as the second frame is drawing to a close SKA have taken another penalty, as Nikolay Belov has been found guilty of tripping
	40:00	2nd period finished.
		Statistics after the first two periods: Shots: 44-34 Shots on target: 29-19 Faceoffs: 21-19 Hits: 10-11 Penalty minutes: 2-8
	40:01	Start of 3rd period.
	40:01	The puck has dropped for the third and deciding period! And remember that Atlant have a man's advantage for a following 01:37!
	41:37	Nothing was really created during that time though, and SKA are at full strength again. The first goal will surely prove to be crucial today, with the price for any mistake being very high!
	41:51	A bobbling puck from the blue line bounces all the way through to Tony Martensson by the right post, and he's denied by the solid Atte Engren! His defence went missing there again!
	43:41	Ilya Ezhov sees the puck being laid off on the right flank, and he doesn't have too much trouble palming it out of danger with noone around him
	43:50	Goal for Atlant! There is that opening goal, at last! With Vadim Shipachyov having been taken out IGOR LEVITSKIY is free to skate to the crease from the left, and he beats the netminder five hole! It's 1:0! Assists- Artyom Chernov and Vitaliy Novopashin
	45:21	That could prove to be such a huge goal, as in such a tight game it's SKA who need to make a comeback! They will feel capable of it however!
	45:40	SKA's number 10 spins around the net, by the left corner tries to force his backhanded wraparound in, and Atte Engren spreads himself like an eagle to take it in!
	46:01	Kovalchuk! Ilya Kovalchuk holds up the puck all the way back to the blue line, wrists devilishly, and the goalkeeper's right pad keeps him off the scoreboard for now!
	49:52	Atte Engren is making some heroic saves in Atlant's net, he's seriously on form so far! However for high sticking, Vadim Khlopotov of the hosts has been penalised
	51:52	Apart from a couple of slappers not an awful lot was created by SKA, and Atlant are back at full strength. They haven't got much time left today, with time starting to run down!
	52:02	Young Atlant defenceman Albert Yarullin takes the pressure off his team as he takes aim from the right faceoff circle, and at the second attempt Ilya Ezhov covers it with his glove crouched down
	53:04	Viktor Tikhonov backhands fairly weakly when shielding the puck on the left flank, and the goaltender isn't sleeping as he solidly sees it fly into his awaiting grasp
	54:19	Several chances are coming SKA's way as their build up play is very pretty at times, but so far they are lacking a cutting edge! Head coach Vyacheslav Bykov will demand more!
	56:59	Offside is committed by SKA. Atlant are hacking the puck away from their zone effectively, they really don't want to let this lead slip!
	57:16	Oh dear, what a needless penalty has been taken by Atlant! This could prove costly! Forward Artyom Chernov has been punished for holding, and SKA have been gifted a huge opportunity to get back on terms!
	58:53	And Ilya Ezhov has now been pulled for the extra skater! It's their final roll of the dice now!
	59:17	As Atlant come back to full strength SKA have called a timeout, they have just over half a minute to force this one into overtime!
	59:24	Ilya Kovalchuk slaps from the blue line, and with the puck threatening to bounce away from him he sweeps it up beautifully with his glove!
	59:52	With only eight seconds remaining a timeout has now been taken by Atlant! Concentration is the main thing for them now!
	60:00	Game over.
		The final buzzer has now sounded, and HC Atlant Mytishchi have beaten SKA Saint Petersburg 1:0 at home! They needed the victory dearly, and they made it count. Igor Levitskiy scored the only goal, as netminder Atte Engren grabbed a shutout for himself. Thanks for following the game with us, and see you again soon for more exciting KHL action! (19:52:01)

Commentary by

Shaun Nicolaides

Goals & lineups Match log

Goals and assists: 44. Levitskiy (Chernov, Novopashin)

Atlant Mytishchi: Engren (Krasikov)- Korobov, Gilroy, Potapov, Soshnikov, Shmelyov- Novopashin, Babchuk, Khlopotov, Bodrov, Levitskiy- Yarullin, Tyulyapkin, Kozlov, Tatarukhin, Chernov- Sorokin, Voronin, Yunkov, Pugolovkin, Leshchenko

SKA St. Petersburg: Ezhov (Koskinen)- Kalinin, Rukavishnikov, Kovalchuk, Ericsson, Cervenka- N Belov, Kuteikin, Ketov, Shipachyov, Dadonov- Chudinov, Khafizullin, Thoresen, Martensson, Tikhonov- Ermakov, Yudin, Burdasov, Kablukov, Khokhryakov

Referees: Alexey Belov, Andrey Rogachyov, Ivan Sazonov, Konstantin Chubykin

Attendance: 6900

1st period
	09:35
1st intermission
2nd period
	21:08
	36:06
	39:37
2nd intermission
3rd period
	43:50
	49:52
	57:16
Final