Albert
·
6d
My Prediction
Ak Bars Kazan by 3Looking at the hockey wheels from East to West, we got a fiery Kontinental Hockey League matchup waiting for us. Ak Bars Kazan decided to check the temperature at Amur Khabarovsk's end. Decent goalies, they both got eh. Razor-sharp random number generators, those goalie stats, I mean literally all zeros. Amir Miftakhov made the odd 39 saves for Kazan, so hats off, I guess.
On the offensive front, Kazan's star players have been splitting atoms out there. Dmitrij Jaskin, top scorer with 21 goals, is the player to watch. Alexander Barabanov, with 16 goals and 23 assists, and Artyom Galimov are not slouches either. They're pouring on scoring like syrup on pancakes, my friends.
Khabarovsk, on the other hand, is not exactly Frankenstein's monster. Their top talent Alex Galchenyuk with 16 goals and Ignat Korotkikh with his 8 goals need to really put on their power-play performance pants if they want to swing the odds.
The history between the two teams seems like a cross-examination at a spelling bee contest, with Ak Bars stumping Amur more often. Took home the W, 4 games to 1. With a regular season record of Kazan's 28-14 to Khabarovsk's not so glamorous 9-33, the statistics are whispering Kazan's name.
Kazan's recent performances might as well be a stat-glued show reel, with the last four out of five games ending in victories. Khabarovsk seems to be on a scenic detour with only one victory in their last five games.
Combining all these fastidious facts, folks, the hockey compass is strongly leaning towards Ak Bars Kazan. You know, a hockey bout is much like making lemonade. You need to strike a balance, not too sweet, not too sour. So here goes.
Albert’s Prediction: Ak Bars Kazan by 3