The KHL gameday kicked off in Khabarovsk with a sensation: Amur secured a long-awaited home victory over CSKA, their first in almost six years. The undisputed hero of the match was goaltender Maxim Dorozhko, who “shutout” the Moscow army men by stopping all 28 shots on his net.
Pre-Match: Lineup Changes and Expectations
For Amur, this game concluded a challenging home series that had seen one win against three losses. Nevertheless, head coach Alexander Galchenyuk Sr. decided against radical experiments with the roster. Only two specific changes were made: Yaroslav Dyblenko took his place in the third defensive pairing, and Kirill Urakov skated in the fourth forward line.
CSKA, arriving in Khabarovsk after two road games with contrasting results (a 4-5 loss in Magnitogorsk and a 5-4 win in Vladivostok), also made minimal adjustments. Vitaly Abramov replaced Denis Zernov, and Yaroslav Yapparov entered the game in place of Vladislav Provolnev. Special attention was drawn to the return of Spencer Martin to CSKA`s net, whose KHL performance had so far lacked consistency.
Game Play: Confident Amur and Scoreless CSKA
CSKA`s recent victory over Admiral had left a mixed impression: although it ended a three-game losing streak, the team still conceded four goals. However, a slight improvement was noted, as in the previous three matches, the army men consistently allowed five goals. Yet, in Khabarovsk, where CSKA had not lost since January 2020, the team quickly found themselves trailing.
In the first period alone, the Muscovites conceded twice. Alexander Galchenyuk Jr. opened the scoring, and Ignat Korotkikh capitalized on a power play after Ivan Drozdov`s penalty. Nikita Evseev assisted on both goal-scoring plays.
CSKA had several power-play opportunities, but these attempts proved unconvincing. Moreover, at one point, the army men even found themselves defending in their own zone shorthanded against Amur`s four-man unit. In the third period, the visitors successfully killed two consecutive penalties, including a challenging stretch where they played 3-on-5 due to overlapping infractions.
Amur, despite not converting on all their power-play advantages, looked extremely confident. They continued to actively attack at even strength, without attempting to passively defend their hard-earned lead. CSKA, on the other hand, struggled greatly to penetrate the offensive zone, and it was virtually impossible for them to establish puck control there for any significant amount of time.
CSKA`s Unsuccessful Late Surge
Only five minutes before the final siren, during concurrent penalties to Roman Abrosimov and Rhett Gardner, CSKA head coach Igor Nikitin called a timeout and replaced goaltender Martin with an additional skater. The ensuing offensive surge on Amur`s net was unsuccessful, and the army men were penalized for delaying the game. Spencer Martin briefly returned to the net but soon left it again. However, the score remained unchanged until the end of the match, solidifying Amur`s historic 2-0 victory.
Three Stars of the Game
- Maxim Dorozhko: Amur`s goaltender stopped all 28 shots from CSKA, becoming the main star and hero of the match.
- Alexander Galchenyuk: Scored a crucial goal, opening the scoring, and played 19 minutes, delivering an excellent performance.
- Nikita Evseev: Distinguished himself with two assists, making a significant contribution to Amur`s victory.