Strike iron while it is hot

The lineup was back to its original form, except for the experimental line with three centers in Sharov, Pestunov and Roy. Vasya Demchenko was the starting goalie for this one.

Lokomotiv began this game at a quick pace and quickly acquired a power play opportunity. However, the black-and-white masterfully killed it off. Closer to mid-period, hosts finally started evening the game out, and two penalties helped Traktor a great deal. During one of the power play chances, Dmitri Pestunov found a very small hole between the near post of Alexei Murygin’s net and the goalie himself.

Pestunov would not stop at one goal, and a minute or so into the second, he beat Murygin again. For the great justice, it should be noted that the goalie was not to blame here because he was caught completely off guard as the puck deflected off of a D-man’s stick. Trailing now by two, visitors started attacking vehemently; however, Demchenko was intent on keeping a clean sheet as he thwarted one scoring chance after another. The second twenty ended with two-goal differential for the black-and-white.

The third period was the most explosive one of this game. First, Yuri Petrov and Ilya Zinovyev rolled out a two-on-one breakaway, and the former used his partner as a distraction for the defenseman and beat Murygin from close range. Despite the increase of the goal differential, both teams were gnawing the ice and were ready to drop the gloves any second, and if it was not for quick work of the linesmen, blood might have been spilt. Five minutes before the horn, Yegor Korshkov spoiled a shutout forVasili Demchenko. The ending was very intense and included a goalie pull, but Traktor withstood the pressure to claim the first win of this home series.

Game details

TRAKTOR vs. LOKOMOTIV – 3:1 (1:0, 1:0, 1:1)
Goals: Pestunov (Szczechura), 18 (1:0 – PP goal); Pestunov (Roy), 22 (2:0); Yuri Petrov, 42 (3:0); Korshkov (Kraskovsky), 55 (3:1).

TRAKTOR
Demchenko;
Belov – Borodkin, Kruchinin – Szczechura – Yakutsenya;
Koltsov – Denisov (A), Chernikov – Yuri Petrov – Zinovyev;
Shinin (C) – Klimontov, Sharov – Pestunov (A) – Roy;
Alexei Petrov, Gubarev – Penkovsky – Afonasyevsky.

LOKOMOTIV
Murygin;
Kronwall (C) – Gavrikov, Talbot – Kontiola – Kozun;
Rafikov – Pashnin, Apalkov (A) – Kadeikin – Mosalyov (A);
Lyubushkin – Koledov, Chistov – Loktionov – Kartayev;
Manukhov – Ilyenko, Polunin – Kraskovsky – Korshkov.

Shots on goal: 27 (10+9+8) – 49 (11+16+22).
Faceoffs won: 21 (6+5+10) – 40 (9+18+13).
Shots blocked: 12 (3+2+7) – 7 (3+4+0).
Hits: 10 (3+5+2) – 11 (4+5+2).
PIM: 10 (2+2+6) – 8 (4+0+4).
PP goals: 1-0.
TOI: Belov (22:36), Denisov (21:17), Klimontov (19:29) – Kronwall (25:10), Talbot (21:04), Kozun (19:32).

Referees: Denis Bondar, Viktor Birin.
Linesmen: Pyotr Alyoshin, Alexander Nesterov.

November 25, 2016. Traktor Arena n.a. Valeri Belousov, Chelyabinsk, Russia. Attendance – 7300.