Thriller length of 103 minutes: how CSKA snatched victory from SKA in the third overtime of the opening match of the semifinals of the Gagarin Cup

The semifinal series of the Gagarin Cup started on Saturday with a match in Kazan. "Ak Bars" and "Avangard" gave a stunningly heated game, in which there was a place for beautiful goals, and incredible saves of goalkeepers, and a rescue three seconds before the final siren and the winning shot in overtime.

After such a meeting, SKA and CSKA in the Northern capital simply had no right to demonstrate a less vivid spectacle. Especially since both teams were eager to start the Western Classic with a win. The Muscovites intended to break the six-game winning streak of opponents in the playoffs and start as well as a year ago, when they were stronger in the Ice Palace and eventually made it to the next round. In turn, the charges of Roman Rotenberg sought to show that this time they are the favorites.

A great help for the hosts was the return to action of Dmitry Yashkin. The striker, who scored seven points in the current Gagarin Cup (5 + 2), was injured in the second match with Torpedo. He habitually took his place in the top three with Nikita Gusev and Marat Khusnutdinov. In this regard, the composition of the third tier has changed, where the company of Valentina Zykova was Zakhar Bardakov and Emil Galimov. But Sergei Fedorov, unlike his colleague, did not make a single castling compared to the last meeting with Lokomotiv.

The opening period remained for CSKA. It seemed that the SKA hockey players, who had rested for more than a week, should come out on the ice fresher, but in fact they seemed to lack tone. In addition, the visitors scored in the first attack. In the effective combination, Mikhail Grigorenko did everything perfectly. After receiving a pass from Darren Dietz on the starboard side, he shifted closer to the center, showing that he intended to shoot, but gave a pass to Maxim Mamin in an empty corner. Even Alexander Nikishin, who lost his balance, bought into the feint. And the forward calmly struck the target and scored his sixth goal in the playoffs.

In the future, Fedorov's charges continued to attack. They boldly threw the puck into someone else's zone and immediately raced towards the goal in the hope of closing the passes of teammates. The visitors looked much fresher and faster than their opponents. Had it not been for Dmitry Nikolaev, who had made several saves, CSKA's advantage in the score could have been larger.

Only in the middle of the segment, St. Petersburg came to their senses and organized several trademark quick attacks. Yashkin, who returned to action, looked especially great. The powerful striker constantly climbed on the spot and created serious difficulties for defenders. At one point, he almost pushed the puck into the near corner in the fall, and in another he hit the post. Now Adam Reideborn had to spin like a squirrel in a wheel.

However, CSKA soon regained its advantage and itself missed several excellent chances. The Muscovites also did not do without a shot into the post of someone else's goal. After a powerful click by Anton Slepyshev from the left circle, a projectile with a ricochet from Nikolayev's shoulder almost flew on target. Overall, the goalie recorded nine saves in the first period.

However, after the break, SKA turned the tide of the game. First, the hosts began to act at completely different speeds. Secondly, they sharply added to the aggression, for example, they made seven power plays against one of the visitors.

But if it were not for the gross mistakes of the capital's army men, st. Petersburg residents would not have been able to quickly recoup and feel confident in themselves. The fourth line was allowed to calmly build the return goal. It is difficult to explain how CSKA allowed a failure in defense and left Svyatoslav Grebenshchikov completely alone in his zone. After Nikita Komarov's pass, the striker ran one-on-one with Reideborn. The puck at the decisive moment came off his hook and seemed to go to the Swede who was spreading on the ice. But he managed to let it pass right under him on target.

Less than three minutes later, Rotenberg's men took the lead and again questions arose for the goalkeeper. On the one hand, Nikishin made a powerful click, and Yashkin tried to block the view on the spot. On the other, the shot came almost from the blue line, and Adam managed to set a trap, but from its edge the puck ricocheted into the net.

Sensing that the legionnaire was out of place, the hosts began to throw the puck at the first opportunity in the hope of bouncing. To the hockey player's credit, he coped with nerves and did not make any more mistakes, and in a number of episodes he helped out his partners. For example, Grebenshchikov had a great opportunity to score a brace, again breaking into the rendezvous after a classy pass from Damir Zhafyarov, but failed to beat the Swede.

But CSKA did not create almost anything, although more often it was in someone else's zone. But this possession was usually sterile. The Muscovites had just seven shots in 20 minutes. The only thing I remember was Andrei Svetlakov's dangerous raid on the starboard side with a subsequent attempt to push the puck under Nikolayev into the near corner, but Dmitry exemplary blocked it with a shield.

In the final period, the red and blue were forced to go forward, and St. Petersburg withdrew to the defense and began to defend calmly. Powerful defenders competently blocked all free zones and practically did not allow opponents to penetrate the spot. Moreover, on occasion, the guests organized their own counter-attacks. So, Khusnutdinov could remove all questions about the outcome of the confrontation, running almost one-on-one with Reideborn, but he competently reduced the distance.

If the Muscovites managed to create a truly dangerous moment, it was thanks to the mistakes of the hosts. For example, Andrei Pedan made a bad pass in his own zone and the puck with a ricochet from the board bounced straight to Vitaly Abramov. Partners should be grateful to Nikolaev that he rolled out of the net in a timely manner and caught the puck in a trap. And in general, he acted extremely reliably.

It seemed that everything was going to a strong-willed victory of SKA in normal time, but in the end CSKA managed to escape. A little more than two minutes before the end, Fedorov took a timeout and then took off the goalkeeper. And in the majority, the capital's team distinguished itself almost immediately. Rotenberg's charges could not throw the puck out of the zone, and Nikita Nesterov clicked almost from the blue line into the far corner. Already on the replay it turned out that Vladislav Kamenev tweaked the projectile into the net and became the author of the goal.

And with 50 seconds to go, the striker almost turned into an anti-hero. The referees, who had not previously sent off a single hockey player, gave him two minutes for knocking the stick out of the opponent's hands in his zone. But, after watching the replay, they changed their verdict and deprived the hosts of the opportunity to play in the majority.

If in Kazan on the eve of overtime turned out to be short, then in St. Petersburg the game dragged on. Although at first it seemed that SKA would quickly end the match in its favor. It was felt that the residents of St. Petersburg had more strength left. They pinned the opponent to the goal and forced him to throw without a hint of counter-attacks. However, in these difficult moments, Reideborn was reliable. He competently blocked the target and, having made 13 saves, did not allow yashkin, Ozhiganov, or Khairullin to penetrate himself.

Closer to the equator of the first extra period, the game unexpectedly leveled off. In many ways, this was facilitated by the brawl between Dietz and Komarov. The referees finally gave the first sending-offs, and the Muscovites took advantage of the pause to rest and knock down the mood of the opponent. Moreover, they managed to seize the initiative. And now Nikolaev had to help out his partners. And at his goal, chances were even sharper. So, Svetlakov after an amazing save from Grigorenko on the right was right in front of the goalkeeper, but could not break it. A couple of minutes later, Plotnikov tried his luck with a click from close range and also did not succeed.

In the second overtime, the game became even more accurate. Realizing that any mistake risks being fatal, the hockey players began to act as cautiously as possible. The puck was increasingly at the sides. However, it also came to shots on goal. And closer to the victory were muscovites. However, Nikolaev acted beyond praise, who caught the courage and time after time came out victorious from head-to-head duels with rivals. The main thing is that when shooting, he almost always took the puck tightly and did not allow it to be finished. The most obvious chance was missed by Konstantin Okulov. After a cross on the spot, he was right in front of the goalkeeper, but failed to beat him.

A little earlier, Dmitry caught the puck after Mamin's click. SKA also had opportunities to snatch victory, but not so obvious. I only remember Reideborn's double save after Khairullin's shots. In parallel, the teams set a small achievement. Their match was the longest in the current KHL season. The previous record belonged to Lokomotiv and Vityaz, who played more than 95 minutes.

And yet, in the third overtime, CSKA got its way. Once again, Nesterov's most powerful shot became fateful. The capital's army men won the faceoff in someone else's zone, and the experienced defender, having received a discount from Grigorenko, sent the puck into the near corner from long range. Nikolaev did not have time to close it at the shift. Perhaps Dmitry could only be punched that night. As a result, the red and blue left the defeat 127 seconds before the end of regular time, and in the 103rd minute they put a point and took the lead in the series.