It seemed that there were no surprises to be expected in the SKA-Torpedo series. The Nizhny Novgorod team approached the playoffs in a disassembled state, and the army team is one of the main favorites of the Gagarin Cup. However, Igor Larionov’s team made it clear from the very beginning that they were not going to give away a ticket to the second round just like that.

The club from Nizhny Novgorod achieved a confident victory in the first meeting of the confrontation – 5:2. Then Torpedo sensationally could have taken the second match on the road, but the opponent made a comeback and equalized the series score, scoring the decisive goal in the second overtime. It seems that the Nizhny Novgorod team has already proven that it will not be easy for the army team. However, when the teams moved to Nagorny, SKA regained their status as an absolute favorite, confidently beating the hosts.

And then again there was talk that “Torpedo” had fallen apart and there was no more intrigue in the series. It was vital for the guys from Nizhny Novgorod to prove the opposite before returning to St. Petersburg. But SKA left no chance for Larionov’s players to please their home stands. Moreover, the army team harshly stopped the opponent’s attacks. So, in one of the episodes, Alexander Nikishin caught the 17-year-old defender in the mill.

I was scared for Anton Silaev’s knee.

“Torpedo” is one step away from departure

The saddest spectators in Nagorny after nine minutes of the meeting were Torpedo fans and fans who were half a period late. During this time, SKA scored three unanswered goals against Ivan Kulbakov. First, in the 7th minute, Alex Galchenyuk opened the scoring with a pass from Zakhar Bardakov. A few shifts later, Arseniy Gritsyuk supported his teammate with an effective throw.

Alex Galchenyuk / Photo: © HC SKA

Just 17 seconds later, Bardakov lit the red lantern over Kulbakov’s gate for the third time. Larionov quickly responded to the unsuccessful segment: Ivan went to the bench, and Adam Guska took his place in the frame. Many Torpedo fans considered the coaching staff’s decision to be premature, because Guska played his last match on February 26 and has looked insecure lately.

However, the Slovakian keeper entered the game without hesitation and stopped the visitors’ attacks time after time. The change of goalkeepers affected the field players: the hosts noticeably increased their movement and upset Nikita Serebryakov in the 16th minute: Arseny Varlakov reduced the gap to two goals with a pass from Bobby Lynch.

And 21 seconds later, the Nizhny Novgorod team again celebrated the goal at Serebryakov’s goal. True, SKA took a coaching challenge regarding offside situations, and the judges, after briefly studying the video replay, rendered a verdict in favor of the guests.

In the second period, the teams were unable to please the fans with scored goals, as was the case in the opening 20 minutes. And the highlight of the game segment was the episode with the participation of the SKA captain.

During the next Torpedo attack, 17-year-old Anton Silaev burst into the opponent’s zone at full speed, but he was immediately stopped by Nikishin: the army defender took Silaev to the wind, striking him in the knee area. From the collision, Anton turned over in the air and landed hard on the ice.

Anton Silaev and Alexander Nikishin / Photo: © HC “Torpedo”

The home team’s player held his leg with both hands until his teammates helped Silaev get up and roll to the bench. Interestingly, the hard hit was performed according to the rules and Nikishin did not receive a deletion. Fortunately, there were no injuries, and soon the Torpedo defender returned to the court.

In the third period, the hosts had enough chances to turn the tide of the match: in the final period of the game, SKA received four deletions, but each time the guests coped with the opponent’s special team.

In the 58th minute, the Nizhny Novgorod team changed the goalkeeper to a sixth field player in the hope of carrying out a final assault, but in the end they scored into an empty net. Marat Khairullin’s pass from Nikolai Polyakov put an end to the match – 4:1.

Thus, SKA at home can get a ticket to the second round. To do this, the army team has only one victory left to earn.