Winning the race

On February 13, after refreshing themselves with pilaf at Fetisov Arena, the fans watched the fourth confrontation between Admirals and Automobilists. The home team's lineup underwent minimal changes: only Zavgorodny replaced Rodewald.

The Sailors started the game eagerly, at high speeds, with plenty of chances at Galkin's net. There were two-on-one breaks by Zavgorodny and Prince, a number of long shots and even a lacrosse attempt by Petukhov, which didn't work out, but added the thrill to the period. The course of the game changed in the middle of the period, when Admirals got two penalties a minute apart, but stood firm in the 3-on-5 play. As soon as all five Primorsky players were on the ice, the partners found Shen on the slot, but he failed to beat Galkin. Another infraction of the home team prevented the success from developing: Gutik went to the sin bin. And this time there was no early release. Mishurov played reliably.

At the end of the period, the hosts had another great opportunity, which they failed to seize. Soshnikov intercepted the puck at the opponents' net, but didn’t manage to push it in. It was Muranov who did what his partners couldn’t do. In the 18th minute, the forward hit the puck into the far top corner – 1:0. The scoreboard remained unchanged until the break.

At the start of the second period, Automobilists tried to forecheck the Sailors, and they succeeded. At the same time, Starkov was very persistent on the counterattack: first he threw a backhand shot above the crossbar, and then asssisted Gutik, who scored his 20th goal and 40th point in the season. The goal was the only one in the period. Admirals had advantage, but the intense struggle led to another infraction: five seconds before going to the locker room, Gutik broke the rules, giving Automobilists the opportunity to begin the third period on the power play.

And if someone missed the start of the period waiting in line to buy some hot dogs, he missed a lot. Within the first three minutes, the teams scored three goals. First, Merkley and Macek scored a double 25 seconds apart, and then the Sailors took the lead again. Starkov managed to found the key to Galkin's net, throwing a powerful shot close to the goalpost. Admirals were in the lead until the final five minutes. Macek found an opportunity to extend his exciting game, tying the score with a shot from the high slot just under the crossbar.

The teams were about to begin the shootout, but seven seconds before the buzzer, Admirals’ third offensive line put an end to the game in overtime: Gutik passed the puck to Shen on the far goalpost, and Shen was accurate. Result – 4:3 OT.