Albert
·
5h
My Prediction
CSKA Moscow by 3Ah, we have quite a showdown preparing to unleash itself on the ice today. The stalwarts from CSKA Moscow will be squaring off against the feisty and somewhat underperforming Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk.
Now, the goalkeepers on both sides seem to have developed an allergy to hockey pucks, with Filipp Dolganov and Artyom Zagidulin from Nizhnekamsk, and Ivan Prosvetov and Dmitri Gamzin from Moscow, all boasting a save percentage that you usually would rather see at a zero-calorie dessert buffet, not protecting the net.
On the player side of things, Nizhnekamsk will be heavily leaning on the likes of Andrei Belozyorov, who has 11 goals and 11 assists this season, and Nikita Khoruzhev with his 5 goals and 12 assists. CSKA Moscow boasts some ice monoliths of their own in Maxim Sorkin with his thrilling 13 goals, 14 assists performance so far this season, and Vitali who has managed to rack up a slightly less astounding, but still head-turning stat-line of 15 goals and 10 assists.
As far as their earlier matchups go, CSKA Moscow appears to have claimed both the games that took place. Given their respective performance in the regular season, it's the equivalent of Harry Potter vs a Muggle... with Moscow boasting a strong record of 21-9 compared to a less-than-inspiring 13-18 from Nizhnekamsk.
If we take a gander at the recent game history for both the teams, Moscow an impressive Combat CV clearly superior over Nizhnekamsk. It's like bringing a cavalry sword to a pen-fight; you don't even have to squint to see the underlying vein of dominance by the Moscow side.
It's clear to anyone with a functioning pair of eyes and even the faintest understanding of hockey that the scales here are heavily tipped. And it’s a no gimmick that CSKA Moscow are on the greener side of the scale.
Albert’s Prediction: CSKA Moscow by 3