KHL December 5th 2012

Big day for KHL, with twelve games going on. We begin in...

Omsk, as Avangard hosts Dinamo Minsk. Kevin Lalande for Dinamo and Eduard Reizvikh for Avangard receive the starting nods. Omsk got going in the second period with a power play goal by Alexander Perezhogin, powered by Anton Kuryanov and Nikita Nikitin. Avangard added on as Alexander Frolov scored a goal with a lone assist from Sergei Kostitsyn. Minsk got on the board as Teemu Laine scored, via Zbynek Irgl. Omsk replied with an Oleg Piganovich power play goal, set up by Kostitsyn and Frolov. Dinamo shot back on a shorthanded goal by Alexander Kulakov, passed from Alexander Kitarov. Avangard answered as Matti Kuparinen scored, with the help of Nikitin and Tomas Zaborsky. Minsk chipped away in the third period as Joe Pavelski netted a power play goal, made possible by Tim Stapleton and Cory Murphy. Omsk iced it at 5-3 when Dmitry Syomin scored, and the assists were credited to Frolov and Nikita Pivtsakin. The three stars belong to Frolov, Nikitin, and Kostitsyn.

Northwest to Ufa, as Salavat Yulaev hosts Amur Khabarovsk. Alexei Murygin of Amur and Iiro Tarkki of Salavat Yulaev are in front of the nets. Khabarovsk started in the first period on a Dmitry Tarasov goal, coming off of Perttu Lindgren and Jakub Petruzalek. Ufa tied it on a Denis Khlystov goal, assisted by Sergei Zinovyev and Tomas Rolinek. Salavat Yulaev added on as Antti Pihlstrom scored, with the help of Igor Mirnov and Alexei Kaigorodov. Amur tied it in the second period with a power play goal by Petruzalek, guided in by Topi Jaakola and Alexander Osipov. Ufa took the lead back with an Igor Musatov goal, with a lone assist coming from Alexei Glukhov. Salavat Yulaev extended the lead with a power play goal scored by Vitaly Proshkin, powered by Vitaly Atyushov and Denis Parshin. Khabarovsk got one back in the third period as Mikhail Fisenko scored a shorthanded and unassisted goal. Ufa replied as Pihlstrom scored again, with the help of Andrei Konev and Kaigorodov. Salavat Yulaev padded the lead on a Proshkin power play goal, with assists provided by Atyushov and Alexander Pankov. Amur pulled back on an Alexander Yunkov goal, fueled by Evgeny Korotkov and Dmitry Shitikov. This was as close as it got, making the final 6-4, with the three stars going to Pihlstrom, Proshkin, and Petruzalek, while Kaigorodov and Atyushov get the honorable mentions.

Backtracking to Chelyabinsk, where Traktor brings in Donbass Donetsk. Jan Laco for Donbass and Vladislav Fokin for Traktor play in goal. Chelyabinsk began in the second period with a power play goal by Evgeny Kuznetsov, powered by Dmitry Ryabykin. Donetsk tied it as Vaclav Nedorost scored, with a lone assist from Sergei Varlamov. Donbass took the lead in the third period as Jani Tuppurainen converted a penalty shot after being tripped on a breakaway. This stood as the game winner in a 2-1 final. The three stars went to Tuppurainen, Laco (24 for 25 in saves), and Nedorost.

Southwest a touch to Magnitogorsk, where Metallurg hosts Dinamo Riga. Maris Jucers for Dinamo and Ari Ahonen for Metallurg have the green light to start. Riga was first on the board in the first period as Gints Meija scored an unassisted and shorthanded goal. Magnitogorsk tied it with a power play goal by Sergei Mozyakin, powered by Sergei Gonchar and Evgeny Malkin. Metallurg took the as Gonchar scored, with the help of Nikolai Kulemin and Malkin. Dinamo retied it in the second period as Roberts Bukarts scored, with a lone Meija assist. Magnitogorsk retook the lead on a Kulemin power play goal, set up by Mozyakin and Malkin, the latter getting a sock trick. Metallurg struck again in the third period on a Malkin power play goal, and Mozyakin had the only helper. Magnitogorsk added on with another Kulemin power play goal, passed from Gonchar and Malkin. Metallurg padded the lead with another Mozyakin goal, guided in by Denis Platonov. Magnitogorsk finished the scoring at 7-2 on an Enver Lisin unassisted goal. The three stars were given to Malkin, Mozyakin, and Kulemin, with Meija and Gonchar receiving honorable mentions.

Northeast into Yekaterinburg, with Avtomobilist welcoming Spartak Moscow. Sergei Borisov of Spartak and Evgeny Lobanov of Avtomobilist guard the cages. Yekaterinburg struck first in the third period with a Rastislav Spirko goal, set up by Sergei Gusev and Alexei Simakov. This was the game's only goal, with Avtomobilist winning 1-0. The three stars went to Lobanov (32 save shutout), Spirko, and Borisov (15 for 16 in saves).

South into Kazakhstan, as Barys Astana hosts Severstal Cherepovets. Vasily Koshechkin for Severstal and Vitaly Yeremeyev for Barys are all padded up. Astana opened in the first period with a Dustin Boyd goal, assisted by Nigel Dawes and Fyodor Polishchuk. Barys added on with a Brandon Bochenski goal, courtesy of Nikolai Antropov. Astana iced it at 3-0 in the third period when Roman Starchenko scored, via Konstantin Rudenko and Dmitry Upper. This was the final, with the three stars being Yeremeyev (23 save shutout), Boyd, and Bochenski.

Back into Russia, as Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk welcomes Vityaz Chekhov. Ivan Kasutin for Vityaz and Edgars Masalskis for Yugra play between the pipes. Khanty-Mansiysk led off in the first period as Anton But scored, with the help of Anton Krysanov and Tomas Starosta. Chekhov tied the game with an Alexei Badyukov goal, fueled by Georgy Belousov and Dinar Khafizullin. Vityaz took the lead as Belousov potted the puck, and the only assist came from Badyukov. Chekhov added on with a second period goal by Badyukov, courtesy of Evgeny Timkin. Vityaz extended the lead when Sergei Lesnukhin scored, and the only assist was credited to Vyacheslav Kulyomin. Yugra got one back in the third period as Igor Magogin scored a power play goal, powered by Igor Skorokhodov and Vitaly Sitnikov. Chekhov answered with an Artemy Panarin goal, passed from Andrei Markov and Alexander Korolyuk. Khanty-Mansiysk chipped away with an Andrei Kuzmin goal, guided in by Kirill Dyakov. Yugra pulled closer as Krysanov scored a goal, thanks to But and Starosta. They failed to tie the game, falling 5-4, with the three stars being Badyukov, Belousov, and But, while Krysanov and Starosta get the honorable mentions.

To the west, Ak Bars Kazan brings in Sibir Novosibirsk. Sergei Gaiduchenko of Sibir and Emil Garipov of Ak Bars are in the creases. Novosibirsk got going in the first period as Sergei Shumakov netted an unassisted goal. Kazan tied it with a Dmitry Obukhov goal, courtesy of Ilya Nikulin and Jarkko Immonen. Sibir retook the lead on an Alexander Kutuzov power play goal, made possible by Nikita Zaitsev. Novosibirsk padded the lead with a Viktor Drugov power play goal, powered by Arturs Kulda and Alexei Kopeikin. Ak Bars got one back in the second period on an Alexei Tereshchenko goal, guided in by Kirill Petrov and Lauris Darzins. Kazan tied it in the third period on an Evgeny Medvedev power play goal, assisted by Janne Pesonen and Alexei Yemelin. Sibir edged ahead again on a Konstantin Alexeyev goal, helped along by Jonas Enlund. Ak Bars tied the game again on a Danis Zaripov goal, pushed through by Denis Kulyash and Alexei Morozov. The game required a shootout to determine the winner, and the game went to Ak Bars after Darzins and Immonen's goals overpowered the lone tally from Enlund. for a 5-4 final score. The three stars belong to Immonen, Darzins, and Enlund.

A little southeast, Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk hosts Metallurg Novokuznetsk. Alexander Lazushin for Metallurg and Matt Dalton for Neftekhimik are in the blue paint. Nizhnekamsk started in the first period with a Yaroslav Alshevsky goal, passed from Renat Mamashev and Stanislav Alshevsky. Novokuznetsk tied it as Nikita Vyglazov scored, courtesy of Dmitry Chernykh and Vadim Mitryakov. Neftekhimik took the lead back as Stanislav Alshevsky scored, with the help of Andrei Plekhanov and Nikolai Belov. Metallurg tied it again in the second period on a shorthanded goal from Anton Lazarev, set up by Stanislav Romanov and Alexander Mereskin. Nizhnekamsk regained the lead again with a power play goal scored by Maxim Pestushko, powered by Petr Koukal and Yegor Milovzorov. Neftekhimik extended the lead in the third period with a shorthanded goal by Pestushko, guided in by Koukal. Novokuznetsk chipped back on a Dmitry Kagarlitsky power play goal, made possible by Alexander Bumagin and Randy Robitaille. This wasn't enough to avoid a 4-3 loss, with the three stars going to Pestushko, Koukal, and Stanislav Alshevsky.

In the west, SKA St. Petersburg hosts Atlanta Mytishchi. Anton Khudobin of Atlant and Sergei Bobrovsky of SKA are in the goal mouths. Mytishchi began in the first period with a Konstantin Koltsov goal, assisted by Ilya Kablukov and Mikhail Glukhov. St. Petersburg tied it as Kevin Dallman scored, thanks to Maxim Afinogenov and Fyodor Fedorov. Atlant took the lead back in the second period when Andreas Engqvist netted the puck, with the help of Nikolai Zherdev. SKA tied it again as Gleb Klimenko scored an unassisted goal. St. Petersburg took the lead as Ilya Kovalchuk scored, thanks to Vladimir Tarasenko and Dmitry Kalinin. Mytishchi retied the game in the third period on another Engqvist goal, assisted by Maxim Semyonov. SKA took the lead back as Kovalchuk scored again, a shorthanded goal guided in by Dallman and Yury Alexandrov. This stood for a 4-3 win, with the three stars going to Kovalchuk, Engqvist, and Dallman.

Into Moscow, where Dynamo hosts Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. Curtis Sanford for Lokomotiv and Alexander Sharychenkov tend the twines. Moscow led off in the first period with a Leo Komarov goal, assisted by Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Ovechkin. Dynamo added on in the second period as Denis Mosalyov scored, thanks to Filip Novak. Moscow extended the lead with a power play goal scored by Ilya Gorokhov, powered by Konstantin Gorovikov and Denis Tolpeko. Yaroslavl got on the board with an unassisted Artyom Anisimov goal. This was it for the scoring, with the final seeing Dynamo win 3-1, with the three stars being Sharychenkov (24 for 25 in saves), Mosalyov, and Anisimov.

Finally, in Prague, Lev Praha hosts Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod. Vitaly Koval for Torpedo and Jakub Stepanek for Lev will make the starts. Praha was first on the board in the first period with an unassisted Jakub Klepis goal. Lev extended the lead in the second period on a Tomas Rachunek goal, coming off of Ondrej Nemec. Praha kept going with a power play goal by Lubos Bartecko, powered by Vitaly Karamnov. Nizhny Novgorod got on the board with a third period Mikhail Varnakov goal, passed from Alexander Semin and Matt Ellison. Torpedo pulled closer as Artyom Chernov potted an unassisted goal. Lev iced it at 4-2 with an empty net goal scored by Jakub Voracek, set up by Erik Christensen and Rachunek. The three stars went to Rachunek, Stepanek (44 for 46 in saves), and Bartecko.

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