The SKA Report: The Long Vacation

Going into the holiday break, SKA was looking to break a recent two game slide with a game against Metallurg Magnitgorsk on December 11.  Unfortunately Metallurg had other plans.  The game started out scoreless after one period, but a Chris Lee goal in the second period changed that and Metallurg was up 1-0 after two periods.  SKA could not solve Vasily Koshechkin, as SKA went scoreless for the second time in the now three game losing streak, as Tim Brent would add an insurance goal to send SKA to a 2-0 loss and searching for answers during the break.

SKA returns from break this Wednesday with a road game at Severstal and will wrap up the week with a home game against Salavat Yulaev.

The SKA Report: Strong Beginning, Not So Good End

SKA was on the road this week, as they went through more of the Eastern Conference.  On Wednesday, they paid a visit to last year's Gagarian Cup finalist Traktor, who were without Evgeny Kuznestov.  You can bet they missed his presence, as SKA proved to be rude guests, with goals from Viktor Tikhonov, Vadim Shipachyov, Evgeny Skachkov, Patrick Thoresen, Igor Makarov, Andrei Sigaryov, and Tony Martensson, making it seven different players to have scored en route to a 7-0 romp that also saw Ilya Ezhov get a shutout.  Friday meant a game at Magnitorosk and a date with Metallurg Magnitorosk.  Makarov and Danis Zaripov exchanged goals to make it an even game after one period.  However, it was all SKA, as Ilya Kovalchuk, Alexander Kucerhyavenko, and Maxim Chudinov scored to allow Ezhov and SKA to leave Magnitorosk with three points and a 4-1 win.  Sunday, SKA traveled to Ufa and met up with Salavat Yulaev.  Unfortunately, things didn't quite go as planned, as former SKA player Kiril Koltsov kicked off the scoring for Salavat Yulaev.  Thoresen tied it, but Yegor Dubrovsky would score to make it a 2-1 lead for the home team after one period.  A scoreless second period gave way to a Nikita Filatov goal for Salavat Yulaev.  Alexei Ponikarovsky pulled SKA within one, but that would be as close as they get, as Alexander Pankov would add an insurance goal and hand Ezhov and SKA a 4-2 loss.

SKA concludes the road trip on Tuesday at Neftekhimik before coming home for a game against Dinamo Riga on Saturday.

Kharlamov Division

In an effort to get on time for the 2013-14 NHL season preview without too many things going on at once, today and tomorrow, I will run down the rest of the KHL by division as opposed to individual teams.  Today is the Kharlamov Division of the Eastern Conference in the KHL.

Ak Bars plays their home games in Kazan, Russia and was the first KHL champion, as they would go on to win the first two Gagarian Cups in the KHL's existence.  The team's origins date back to 1956, and the team has played under the Ak Bars name since 1995.  Their current roster features WHL alumni such as Shaun Heshka and Tomas Vincour, as well as Alexander Burmistrov.

HC Avtomobilist plays their home games in Yekaterinburg, Russia, and is a relatively new franchise, starting play in 2006 and joining the KHL in 2009.  Players such as Eric Belanger and Sami Lepisto are on the current roster.

Metallurg Magnitogorsk plays their home games in the Chelyabinsk Oblast region of Russia and has been a hockey team since 1955.  The team is notable for the fact that former NHL coach Mike Keenan is the current coach of the "Foxes."

HC Neftekhimik plays their home games in the city of Nizhnekamsk, located in the Tatarstan area of Russia, and have been a team since 1968.  The "Petrochemists" feature players such as Martin Cibak and Nikolai Belov on their current roster.

Torpedo Nizhny Novogorod plays their home games in Nizhny Novogorod, Russia, and is one of two franchises in the Eastern Conference to have been founded in the 1940's (they were founded in 1946).  Tim Brent and Wojtek Wolski are among the players on the current roster.

HC Traktor plays in Chelyabinsk, Russia, and is the second oldest franchise in the Eastern Conference, having been formed in 1947.  They were the runners-up in the Gagarian Cup Finals last season, losing to HC Moscow Dynamo.  The current roster is set to include the likes of Andrei Kostitsyn, Stanislav Chistov, and Jan Bulis.

HC Yugra plays their home games in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, and has been in existence since 2006.  Their KHL debut happened in the 2010-11 season, and their current roster features the likes of Jonas Andersson and Mikhail Yakubov.