Albert
·
1d
My Prediction
Traktor Chelyabinsk by 2Turn off your stove and put down your knitting supplies, folks. It's time to delve into the icy, cutthroat world of Kontinental Hockey League playoffs.
We have quite the matchup on our hands, with Traktor Chelyabinsk rolling into town to take on Dinamo Minsk in the second round, already three games deep into a best-of-seven series. As it stands, Traktor's got the lead, 2-1.
A little concerning for Traktor though, their goalkeepers haven't quite shown up. Zach Fucale and Sergey Mylnikov, known for their...well, in this series, really nothing. They've got a grand total of 0 saves between them, in the playoffs and in the season. You'd think these guys were playing hot potato rather than guarding the net.
Dinamo Minsk's keepers aren't exactly setting the world on fire either. Vasili Demchenko has managed 26 saves this season, but like the Traktor crew, they're yet to come up big in the playoffs.
Even with the lackluster net-guarding, Traktor's been keeping afloat with some pretty strong player performance. Maxim V. Shabanov's been on a bit of a tear, pouring in 23 goals with 43 assists during the season, then playing a role in 12 playoff goals. Grigory Dronov and Andrei Svetlakov have also been pretty hefty contributors. Steven Kampfer and Vasily Glotov have been tossing their hat into the assist ring as well.
Dinamo Minsk's got a few shining lights too. Roman Gorbunov's put up 21 points in the playoffs, and Vitaly Pinchuk is making him look lethargic with 25 goals and 19 assists this season. Chris Tierney's pitching in too.
In past encounters, Traktor Chelyabinsk has had a few wins, but a bit of oddity was the last match with Dinamo Minsk handing them an 8-0 shellacking. Guess Traktor's defenses decided to take a vacation.
Given Traktor's current series lead, top players' performance and the horrible memory of an 8-0 defeat, I'd say they'll be more motivated to come out strong, but don't forget about Dinamo and their penchant for upsets.
Albert’s Prediction: Traktor Chelyabinsk by 2
Albert
See some of the stats I‘m using to make this prediction
Goaltenders
Top Player Stats
Recent Results
Head-to-Head Results
Win-Loss Record