The first “green derby” took place in Ufa. The teams approached the reporting game in different moods. Ak Bars achieved two victories in their last games (Kunlun and Dynamo Minsk), while the hosts lost to Metallurg Magnitogorsk in a very nervous match. But the match was special, all the previous situations took a backseat. Fans are accustomed to the fact that if it is a duel between a team from Ufa and Kazan, then there must be a real sports battle.
Johnson’s puck gave Metallurg victory over Salavat Yulaev in KHL away game
SHIPACHEV CATCHED MOZYAKIN
Even more surprising was the deafening “Salavat Yulaev” fiasco at the beginning of the first period. First, Dmitry Kagarlitsky threw the puck with a parachute into the home goal. One of his assistants was Vadim Shipachev, who equaled Sergei Mozyakin in points scored in the KHL regular season (756 each)! Less than three minutes had passed when Stanislav Galiev fired the second bullet at the target. This happened at a time when the guests were mostly playing. It seemed that you could only sympathize with the Ufa team, but they caught the wave and quickly pulled a goal back – Vyacheslav Leshchenko took advantage of the opportunity that presented itself during the 5-on-3 game. Everything is logical, this is a derby.
RIA Novosti
The rapid flow of the first segment was interrupted… by blood. Pimenov raised his stick and hit Petrov in the face: a five-minute penalty in favor of Ak Bars. Did anyone expect something different? These teams were prepared for this. However, the guests were unable to take advantage of such a great opportunity to increase the score. The tough match between the two teams meant that the teams almost did not play evenly in the first half. As a result, forty seconds before the end of the segment, Ak Bars again took three of them. Without hesitation, Viktor Kozlov’s team also decided to withdraw.
CHIEF SNIPER OF UFA – LESCHENKO
The second half started calmer in terms of goals, but not in emotions. Bilyaletdinov’s team continued to put more pressure on Salavat’s defense. The locals tried not to fall behind and not miss the moment in the game when it would be too late to change anything. As at the beginning of the match, in the second half the situation with constant eliminations did not change. One by one, the hockey players went to rest for two minutes. The Ufa players were luckier: Leshchenko, who took the fight more seriously than anyone else, scored his second goal into Bilyalov’s goal, the second in the most and at the same time the fourth in a row in the last matches.
HC “Salavat Yulaev”
Immediately after scoring the goal, apparently out of inertia, Kozlov’s charges continued to besiege the Ak Bars goal with quick attacks. But he only seemed that way. The Ufa team came to its senses and took the initiative. The Kazan team allowed Ufa to breathe the air of hockey and they, in turn, took advantage of the opportunity. As always, the “green derby” did not tire, showing the quality of national hockey.
FRESH AIR OF KAZAN
The start of the third period was expected for Salavat, despite having a numerical advantage. And then, as usual, over the next few minutes the hosts continued to escalate the situation around Biyalov’s goal. At this time, Kazan was difficult. All threads of the game were lost and the Ufa hockey players, hungry for victories, especially in important matches, attacked with all their might to take the game into their own hands. Not even the presence of Radulov or Yashkin on the ice made any difference.
HC “Ak Bars”
As a salvation, closer to the middle of the third segment, Ak Bars received another majority – the opportunity to level the situation that was beyond Kazan’s control. It was not possible to notice the excess, but the game slightly moved away from Bilyalov’s possessions. And that was useful. But Kozlov’s players returned to the Kazan field and continued their unprecedented pressure. At such times, Radulov almost never left the ice. A real fighter!
INTERNATIONAL IN DROZDOVSKI
Five minutes before the end of the third segment, Ivan Drozdov did something incredible. Great offer. Ivan hit Shipachyov’s stick, beautifully left Yudin, shook Bilyalov and sent the puck into the empty corner of the goal. An unexpected goal minutes before the siren sounded forced Ak Bars to activate all internal reserves, but Ufa could no longer be stopped. The arena was waiting for the long-awaited victory.
HC “Salavat Yulaev”
“Salavat Yulaev” – “Ak Bars” – 3:2 (1:2, 1:0, 1:0)
Goals: Kagarlitsky (Yashkin, Shipachev, Bol.), 03:45 – 0:1, Galiev (Zhuravlev), 6:24 – 0:2, Leshchenko (Khmelevsky, Shmelev, Bol.), 10:04 – 1:2 , Leshchenko (Khmelevsky, Khafizullin, Bol.), 32:04 – 2:2, Drozdov (Biryukov), 50:01, – 3:2
