Thursday, March 19, 2015

KHL Eastern Conference Semifinals: Ak Bars Kazan VS. Avangard Omsk

Welcome to the eastern conference semifinal round for the 2015 Gagarin Cup Playoffs. This post will act as a reference for the entire series between Ak Bars Kazan and Avangard Omsk.

Game 1: TatNeft Arena, Kazan, Russia. In goal: Konstantin Barulin for Omsk and Anders Nilsson for Kazan. Kazan began with an unassisted goal by Alexander Svitov. Omsk tied it on a Sergei Shirokov penalty shot goal, coming after he was slashed by Stepan Zakharchuk. Avangard took the lead in the second period with an Alexander Perezhogin goal, with a lone assist by Chad Kolarik. Ak Bars tied it on a Sheldon Brookbank goal, guided in by Justin Azevedo. Omsk retook the lead in the third period on a Kirill Semyonov goal, coming off of Roman Berdnikov. Kazan tied it again with another Svitov goal, fueled by Oscar Moller and Igor Mirnov on the power play. Avangard won 4-3 in the second overtime on a Shirokov goal, made possible by Erik Gustafsson. The three stars belonged to Shirokov, Svitov, and Semyonov. Avangard leads the series 1-0.

Game 2: TatNeft Arena, Kazan, Russia. In goal: Denis Kostin for Omsk and Anders Nilsson for Kazan. Kazan struck first in the first period on a Konstantin Koltsov goal, fueled by Alexander Svitov and Ilya Nikulin. Ak Bars added on with a Stepan Zakharchuk goal, assisted by Koltsov and Artyom Lukoyanov. Kazan extended the lead in the second period as Igor Mirnov scored a power play goal, powered by Justin Azevedo and Nikulin. Ak Bars finished it at 4-0 in the third period on a Lukoyanov goal, guided in by Svitov and Yakov Rylov. The three stars went to Nilsson (33 save shutout), Koltsov, and Lukoyanov, while Svitov and Nikulin get the honorable mentions. The series heads east tied at 1.

Game 3: Omsk Arena, Omsk, Russia. In goal: Anders Nilsson for Kazan and Konstantin Barulin for Omsk. Kazan got going in the second period on an Ilya Nikulin goal, passed from Konstantin Koltsov and Alexander Svitov. Ak Bars iced it at 2-0 with a third period goal by Justin Azevedo, fueled by Yakov Rylov and Igor Mirnov. The three stars were Nilsson (25 save shutout), Nikulin, and Azevedo. Ak Bars holds a 2-1 series lead now.

Game 4: Omsk Arena, Omsk, Russia. In goal: Anders Nilsson for Kazan and Denis Kostin for Omsk. Kazan led off in the first period with an unassisted goal by Mikhail Glukhov. Ak Bars added on with a Sergei Kostitsyn goal in the second period, made possible by Glukhov. Kazan extended the lead as Stepan Zakharchuk scored, thanks to Kostitsyn and Yakov Rylov. Omsk got on the board with a Kirill Semyonov goal in the third period, passed from Sergei Shirokov and Ivan Fischenko. The final was 3-1 for Ak Bars, and the three stars went to Kostitsyn, Glukhov, and Nilsson (23 for 24 in saves). Ak Bars holds a 3-1 series lead as they head home.

Game 5: TatNeft Arena, Kazan, Russia. In goal: Konstantin Barulin for Omsk and Anders Nilsson for Kazan. Kazan dented the scoreboard in the second period with an unassisted Oscar Moller goal. Ak Bars added on with an Alexander Burmistrov goal, going in unassisted. This stood for a 2-0 win, with the three stars given to Nilsson (21 save shutout), Moller, and Burmistrov. Ak Bars faces Sibir in the Eastern Conference final.

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