Sunday, March 19, 2017

KHL Eastern Conference Semifinal: 2) Avangard Omsk VS. 3) Ak Bars Kazan

The second round of the 2017 KHL playoffs is now underway. This Eastern Conference Semifinal features Avangard Omsk and Ak Bars Kazan.

Game 1: Omsk Arena, Omsk, Russia. In goal: Emil Garipov of Ak Bars and Dominik Furch of Avangard. Kazan got going in the second period with an Alexander Svitov power play goal, powered by Vladimir Tkachyov and Jiri Sekac. Omsk tied it in the third period with an Evgeny Medvedev goal, passed from Anton Burdasov and Ilya Mikheyev. Ak Bars won 2-1 in overtime with an Artyom Lukoyanov goal, fueled by Rafael Batyrshin and the goalie Garipov. The three stars went to Garipov (25 for 26 in saves), Lukoyanov, and Svitov. Ak Bars leads the series 1-0.

Game 2: Omsk Arena, Omsk, Russia. In goal: Emil Garipov of Ak Bars and Dominik Furch of Avangard. Kazan dented the scoreboard in the third period with a Fyodor Malykhin goal, via Justin Azevedo and Vladimir Tkachyov on the power play. Ak Bars iced it at 2-0 with an unassisted empty net goal by Michal Jordan. The three stars went to Malykhin, Garipov (24 save shutout), and Jordan. Ak Bars heads home with a 2-0 series lead.

Game 3: TatNeft Arena, Kazan, Russia: In goal: Dominik Furch of Avangard and Emil Garipov of Ak Bars. Kazan led off in the first period with an Artyom Lukoyanov goal, guided in by Rafael Batyrshin and Fyodor Malykhin. Ak Bars added on with an Andrei Popov power play goal, powered by Michal Jordan and Albert Yarullin. Omsk got on the board with an Ilya Zubov goal, fueled by Ilya Mikheyev and Jonas Ahnelov. Kazan replied with an Anton Glinkin goal, courtesy of Mikhail Glukhov and Popov. Avangard got one back with a Zubov power play goal, assisted by Evgeny Medvedev and Nikita Nikitin. Omsk tied it in the third period with a Valentin Pyanov power play goal, with assists provided by Medvedev and Zubov. Avangard won 4-3 in overtime on a David Booth goal, helped along by Nikolai Lemtyugov and Medvedev, the latter earning a sock trick. The three stars were Zubov, Medvedev, and Popov. Ak Bars still leads the series 2-1.

Game 4: TatNeft Arena, Kazan, Russia: In goal: Dominik Furch of Avangard and Emil Garipov of Ak Bars. Kazan began in the first period with an Alexander Svitov goal, passed from Vasily Tokranov. Ak Bars added on with an Andrei Popov goal, helped along by Stepan Zakharchuk and Damir Musin. Omsk got on the board in the third period with a Nikolai Lemtyugov goal, assisted by Vladimir Sobotka. This only made it 2-1, the final, with the three stars handed to Garipov (26 for 27 in saves), Popov, and Svitov. Ak Bars goes on the road with a 3-1 series lead and a chance to advance next time out.

Game 5: Omsk Arena, Omsk, Russia. In goal: Emil Garipov of Ak Bars and Dominik Furch of Avangard. Omsk opened in the first period with a Nikolai Lemtyugov goal, assisted by Alexander Perezhogin. Avangard added on in the second period with an Anton Burdasov goal, via Evgeny Medvedev and Yegor Martynov. Omsk extended the lead in the third period as Ilya Zubov scored a power play goal, with the help of Mikhail Grigoryev and Medvedev. Kazan got on the board with a Jiri Sekac power play goal, powered by Vladimir Tkachyov and Alexander Svitov. Avangard iced it at 4-1 with a Burdasov goal, with a lone helper by Vladimir Sobotka. The three stars were Burdasov, Medvedev, and Furch (31 for 32 in saves). The series heads back to Kazan with Ak Bars still ahead 3-2. 

Game 6: TatNeft Arena, Kazan, Russia: In goal: Dominik Furch of Avangard and Emil Garipov of Ak Bars. Kazan started in the first period with a Fyodor Malykhin power play goal, powered by Justin Azevedo and Vladimir Tkachyov. Ak Bars added on in the second period with a Jiri Sekac power play goal, with assists provided by Tkachyov and Malykhin. Kazan extended the lead as Artyom Lukoyanov scored, thanks to Stepan Zakharchuk and Malykhin. Ak Bars padded the lead with a Tkachyov goal, helped along by Andrei Chibisov and Zakharchuk. Kazan kept going in the third period with an Albert Yarullin goal, via Sekac and Damir Musin on the power play. This made it 5-0, the final, with the three stars awarded to Malykhin, Tkachyov, and Garipov (21 save shutout), while Sekac and Zakharchuk get the honorable mentions. Ak Bars wins the series 4-2, and will face Metallurg Magnitogorsk for the Eastern Conference Final.

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