Traktor Falls to Metallurg in South Urals Derby

Chelyabinsk«s Traktor lost an away derby to Metallurg. The match in Magnitogorsk on Tuesday, January 27, ended with a score of 3:2 in favor of the home team. The »Foxes«, who had already clinched a playoff spot the day before, maintain their lead in the KHL Eastern Conference.

The score was opened only in the second half of the first period. The goal was scored by Makar Khabarov, with assists from Daniil Vovchenko and Sergei Tolchinsky — 1:0.

Traktor equalized fairly quickly — in the last minute of the first period. Alexander Rykov scored, assisted by Mikhail Grigorenko and Andrei Pribylsky — 1:1.

The back-and-forth continued in the second period. First, Traktor took the lead thanks to a goal by Grigory Dronov, assisted by Joshua Leivo and Logan Day — 2:1.

After that, Sergei Mylnikov made a spectacular save for the team.

And then Metallurg managed to tie the score on a power play. Derek Barak scored, assisted by Vladimir Tkachyov — 2:2.

In the middle of the third period, Magnitka surged ahead again. Nikita Mikhailis scored beautifully, assisted by Ruslan Iskhakov and Alexander Petunin — 3:2.

The Chelyabinsk team was unable to turn the tide of the match. The final score was 3:2 in favor of Metallurg.

‘Our team played a very good match. We were just one goal short of victory,’ assessed Traktor«s head coach Evgeny Koreshkov. ‘At 2:2, the game was up for grabs. Unfortunately, the opponent scored, and we couldn’t.’

‘We really needed such a victory because many things weren’t working out,’ commented Metallurg HC head coach Andrei Razin. ‘Physically, we were a bit off: we didn’t score on a penalty shot, and our power play in recent games has, let’s say, faded. But despite all that, we played selflessly and disciplined. I want to see this continue, especially in the playoffs. So, congratulations to us on the win.’

Traktor will continue its road series. On January 29 in Omsk, the team will play against Avangard.