[Editor-in-chief’s note: Due to major developments in the NCAA (specifically regarding Cole Eiserman’s commitment to Boston University, the coverage of which can be found on our Facebook and Instagram pages which are linked on our Contact page here on the website), which is a primary focus of our site, the creation and publication of this article were pushed back. Thank you for your patience.]

On Tuesday, September 26th, HC Sochi earned their 6th straight win to improve their record to 7-3 (with one victory in overtime, and all defeats in regulation) in the 2023-24 KHL season. Defeating Spartak Moscow in the Russian capital 3-2, this was an impressive team win over a team that is better on paper. However, it was not without an eyebrow raising moment and some good fortune for the visitors. The goal that put Sochi ahead 2-1 towards the end of the second period was scored by Danila Galenyuk and should not have counted by the letter of the law. According to Hockey News Hub’s reiteration of the KHL’s Refereeing Department’s wording, “The second goal of HC Sochi in the match with Spartak was counted incorrectly. In the 39th minute of the match, the main referee erroneously counted a goal scored by HC Sochi player Danila Galenyuk. This situation does not fall under Rule 31, paragraph 2: ‘Because there is a human element involved in blowing the whistle to stop the match, the referee may decide that play should be stopped shortly before the whistle actually blows. The fact that the puck may be loose or cross the goal line before the whistle blows is of no consequence if the referee decides that play should have been stopped before that happened.’ This goal cannot be counted. The League will further review this episode.” The above-linked sequence of tweets includes a video of the goal, which was approved upon review in-game. This incident assuredly does not sit well with Spartak Moscow and their fans, who must feel cheated, especially given that the initial no-goal ruling was overturned. In addition to this questionable goal, the back of the net was also found by Sochi C Dmitry Zavgorodniy and D Artyom Volkov, the latter having an assist in addition to the game-winning goal. Lastly, G Mikhail Berdin (a former Winnipeg Jets prospect, well remembered for his viral celebration of scoring an empty-net goal in his time with the Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL in a game against the Muskegon Lumberjacks) stopped an impressive 42 of 44 shots on net between the pipes for HC Sochi. I am certain that Sochi’s players and their head coach Dmitry Kokorev are content with this result, even if many will not be pleased with the manner that it came about.

With regards to the individual performance of superstar prospect Matvei Michkov (drafted 7th by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft), he did not register a point in this game while playing on line 2, but did make his presence known on the ice, posting 4 shots on net, 1 blocked shot, and 3 hits (making him one of the biggest physical presences in a matchup that did not have much checking by either team). It is good to know that Matvei is at a point in his development where he can impact the game even when he does not get on the scoresheet, even though he is also quite reliable for that as he is still performing at a point-per-game pace with Sochi to this point. He will look to get back in the scoring department tomorrow (Thursday, September 28th) against another Moscow opponent in the form of CSKA as Sochi plays their second of three road games (the last of which will be against Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod on Saturday, the 30th) before returning home to face Michkov’s official team that loaned him out to Sochi for the second time in as many seasons, SKA Saint Petersburg, for the first time this year. Sochi currently sits at 4th in the Western Conference, 2nd in the Bobrov Division behind only Torpedo, and 5th in the KHL/the Continental Cup race.

Speaking of SKA, today (Wednesday, September 27th), they had a resounding victory in Siberia, defeating Sibir Novosibirsk by a score of 3-0. Alex Galchenyuk, one of the biggest acquisitions of the offseason, had yet another impressive game, scoring another brace, this time ripping a wicked shot into the back of the net to make a score 2-0 on assists by Semyon Sinyatkin (who registered his first KHL point in the process) and Mikhail Vorobyov (who scored the first goal of the game) and having a pass diverted into the net by a player on Sibir. While the second goal scored by the former Montreal Canadiens star might have been a fluke, his 4 goals in 3 games has to instill some confidence in him from himself, his teammates, and head coach Roman Rotenberg. This is the sort of productivity they need from the big name American signing. Meanwhile, 20-year-old netminder Artemy Pleshkov put in another satisfying game between the pipes, stopping all 20 shots on net that he faced. With this shutout, his individual numbers in 4 games include a GAA of 0.50 and a SV% of .981, with a record of 4-0-0. Definitely a good situation in the crease for SKA currently, with Johan Mattsson injured. SKA currently sits with a record of 6 wins and 5 losses (all results in regulation) and are situated at 6th in the West, 4th in the Bobrov Division, and 11th in the hunt for the Continental Cup (which they won last season and hope to defend). They currently have five days off and will return to play on Monday, October 2nd in their matchup against HC Sochi in Sochi’s home barn. The closer we get to this first matchup between those two teams, the more intense the tension seems to get. It has the makings to be the most memorable game of the year so far in the KHL.