Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Gagarin Cup Finals: Dynamo Moscow VS. Traktor Chelyabinsk

Welcome to the final post of the KHL season, as Dynamo Moscow and Traktor Chelyabinsk compete for the Gagarin Cup and the title of Champions of Russia. This post will act as a reference for the entire series.

Game 1: Luzhniki Minor Arena, Moscow, Russia. In goal: Michael Garnett for Traktor and Alexander Yeryomenko for Dynamo. Moscow began in the first period with an Alexei Tsvetkov shorthanded goal, set up by Denis Kokarev. Dynamo added on in the second period as Sergei Soin scored, with the help of Yury Babenko and Sergei Konkov. Chelyabinsk got on the board in the third period on an Evgeny Kuznetsov power play goal, powered by Stanislav Chistov and Dmitry Ryabykin. They failed to tie the game, losing 2-1, with the three stars being Yeryomenko (17 for 18 in saves), Tsvetkov, and Soin. Dynamo owns a 1-0 series lead.

Game 2: Luzhniki Minor Arena, Moscow, Russia. In goal: Michael Garnett for Traktor and Alexander Yeryomenko for Dynamo. Moscow struck first in the first period as Jakub Petruzalek scored, via Alexei Tsvetkov and Denis Kokarev. Chelyabinsk tied it with a power play goal by Jan Bulis, powered by Dmitry Ryabykin and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Traktor took the lead in the second period on an Andrei Kostitsyn power play goal, set up by Ryabykin and Deron Quint. Dynamo tied it in the third period as Marek Kvapil scored a goal, assisted by Ilya Gorokhov and the goalie Yeryomenko. Moscow took the lead late on a Janne Jalasvaara goal, fueled by Denis Mosalyov and Kokarev. This stood for a 3-2 win, with the three stars being Jalasvaara, Kokarev, and Ryabykin. Dynamo will head east with a 2-0 series lead.

Game 3: Traktor Sport Palace, Chelyabinsk, Russia. In goal: Alexander Yeryomenko for Dynamo and Michael Garnett for Traktor. Chelyabinsk got going in the second period on a Maxim Karpov goal, assisted by Deron Quint and Anton Glinkin. Traktor added on with a Quint goal, fueled by Yegor Dugin. Chelyabinsk extended the lead in the third period on a Dugin goal, coming off of Valery Nichushkin and Vladimir Antipov. Moscow got on the board as Denis Kokarev scored, with a lone assist by Alexei Tsvetkov. This only made it 3-1, the final, with the three stars going to Quint, Dugin, and Garnett (17 for 18 in saves). Traktor chipped into Dynamo's series lead, which now stands at 2-1.

Game 4: Traktor Sport Palace, Chelyabinsk, Russia. In goal: Alexander Yeryomenko for Dynamo and Michael Garnett for Traktor. Moscow led off in the second period with a Jakub Petruzalek goal, assisted by Dominik Granak and Marek Kvapil. This was the game's only goal, resulting in a 1-0 final, with the three stars belonging to Petruzalek, Yeryomenko (25 save shutout), and Garnett (17 for 18 in saves). Dynamo has pushed Traktor to the brink, holding a 3-1 lead as they head home to try and capture the trophy on their own ice.

Game 5: Luzhniki Minor Arena, Moscow, Russia. In goal: Michael Garnett for Traktor and Alexander Yeryomenko for Dynamo. Chelyabinsk was first to score in the first period with a Stanislav Chistov goal, with a lone assist from Jan Bulis. Traktor added on as Anton Glinkin scored, thanks to Nikita Nestorov. Chelyabinsk padded the lead with a Vladimir Antipov goal, fueled by Yegor Dugin. Moscow got on the board in the second period when Marek Kvapil scored a power play goal powered by Konstantin Gorovikov and Dominik Granak. Dynamo pulled closer on a Jakub Petruzalek goal, coming off of Kvapil and Ilya Gorokhov. Moscow tied it as Sergei Soin scored, assisted by Granak and Denis Kokarev. Traktor took the lead back in the third period as Andrei Kostitsyn scored a goal, made possible by Maxim Yakutsenya and Deron Quint. This held up for a 4-3 win, with the three stars being Kvapil, Kostitsyn, and Granak. Dynamo still leads the series 3-2. 

Game 6: Traktor Sport Palace, Chelyabinsk, Russia. In goal: Alexander Yeryomenko for Dynamo and Michael Garnett for Traktor. Chelyabinsk opened in the first period with a power play goal by Maxim Yakutsenya, powered by Deron Quint. Moscow tied it in the second period as Sergei Soin scored, courtesy of Ilya Gorokhov and Marek Kvapil. Dynamo took the lead with a Dmitry Pestunov goal, coming off of Dominik Granak and Gorokhov. Traktor tied it in the third period when Petri Kontiola scored, via Andrei Kostitsyn and Gennady Razin. Moscow won 3-2 in overtime on an Alexei Tsvetkov goal, fueled by Denis Kokarev and Denis Mosalyov. The three stars went to Tsvetkov, Yeryomenko (30 for 32 in saves), and Gorokhov. Dynamo wins the series and the Gagarin Cup with a 4-2 series win. Congratulations to Dynamo Moscow on their second consecutive championship.

It has been a great pleasure working on bringing KHL hockey to my American audience since November. While this was only brought about by the lockout in the NHL, I have found that my passion for hockey has no borders. I am fully planning on continuing to recap KHL games next season, from the start in September. In the meantime, I will wrap up this NHL season, possibly run some spin-off blogs when summer really hits, and prepare to head off to college. I hope you have enjoyed this KHL season as much as I have.

No comments :

Post a Comment