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Lokomotiv vs. Sochi: KHL Match Prediction
Lokomotiv home series will end with a game against Sochi on December 22. The Yaroslavl team lost to Avtomobilist in their last game on the ice of Arena-2000 and played rather poorly in attack. The Southerners lost twice to Severstal in Cherepovets and still close the Western Conference standings. This season, the Railwaymen have beaten their opponents twice. How will the best and worst teams in the conference play now? We tell you about this in the prediction for the confrontation
Command Analysis
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl
Russian FederationCurrent form
Lokomotiv is confidently leading in the West and in the entire KHL table as a whole. The team led by Igor Nikitin earned 60 points in 38 games and is nine points ahead of Spartak, which is in second place. In the second half of November, the Volga team looked very difficult and won a lot of victories due to their class, but also lost a lot. Before the break for the Channel One Cup, Alexander Elesin team confidently won against Admiral (3:0) and Amur (4:3, OT) in the Far East, but then lost at home to CSKA (1:2). On December 17, the Railwaymen achieved success in St. Petersburg in a match against the local Army Men (3:2), and after returning home they lost to Avtomobilist (1:3). The hosts once again demonstrated a lackluster offensive game.
Daniil Isaev is gradually getting into shape and recovering from a slight slump. The Yaroslavl goalie has allowed only six goals in four previous games, and the team has lost only two games. Overall, the hosts remain the most reliable team in the league, allowing an average of 1.63 goals per game.
Maxim Berezkin took sole leadership in the club list of scorers. The forward scored 26 points (10+16) in the goal+pass system and broke away from Artur Kayumov (11+12), who did not let go of the young forward for a long time. Both leaders of the Yaroslavl attack were unable to show themselves in the match against Avtomobilist.
Disqualifications and injuries
All the Yaroslavl players managed to heal their ailments before the game against the southerners.
Interesting trends for betting
- Lokomotiv gets 6.13 minutes of penalty time
Yaroslavl players demonstrate disciplined play and on average are sent off no more than three times per match
- On average, Lokomotiv takes at least 32 shots per match
Lokomotiv plays actively in attack and tries to make shots from any position
HC Sochi
Russian FederationCurrent form
Sochi are at the bottom of the conference table and have only 25 points after 35 starts. Sergei Zubov charges are unlikely to even theoretically qualify for the playoffs with such a weak level of hockey. The visitors are in terrible shape and have lost their previous seven matches, six of them in regulation time. The Southerners have been playing exclusively away since the end of November. They lost to Avangard (0:6), Kunlun (3:5) and twice to Severstal in Cherepovets (2:4 and 1:2). In both matches against the steelmakers, the Tigers gave up the initiative to their opponents and could not reach the black-yellows.
Sochi has been playing very poorly in attack this winter. In the last five games, it has only made seven accurate shots and has only been able to score more than twice against Kunlun. On average, the Cats have scored only 2.34 goals per game this season. Artur Tyanulin remains the undisputed leader of Sochi attack with 27 points (7+20). The other players are much worse.
Sergei Ivanov has long been the team starting goalie, but now the coaching staff has decided to give Evgeni Volokhin a chance. The young goalie has blocked 88.67% of shots and has not made a single shutout in seven games.
Disqualifications and injuries
All the visiting leaders will come to Yaroslavl.
Interesting trends for betting
- According to statistics, Sochi shoots 28 times per game on average
The visitors do not put much pressure on the opposing goalkeepers in every match.
- Sochi wins 48.6% of faceoffs
The Southerners are weak at the point and often lose duels.
Trends
Bet 1st period: total under 1.5 goals
In the last three games between the teams, the first period was not productive.
1.64Bet 3rd period: Lokomotiv will score
Yaroslavl scores in the third period for three games in a row
1.35Tip and bets
Lokomotiv started after the break with a win in St. Petersburg, but stumbled in the very first game on their home court. The Volga team failed in the match against Avtomobilist, but it is unlikely that the unsuccessful streak of Igor Nikitin team will drag on. Now, perhaps, the weakest team in the league at the moment will come to the capital of the Golden Ring. The visitors are not doing well in attack and they are rather weak on their half of the court. We do not see much chance for the Tigers. We offer a bet on a confident victory for the Volga team.
Forecast - Lokomotiv win with Asian handicap (-1.5) for 1.70
Bet on individual total
Daniil Isaev has not always been good at the last line of defense in recent matches. It is very likely that Alexey Melnichuk, who plays his games quite well, will get his next chance. The Southerners do not score more than twice per game, and not everyone manages to score even twice against the most reliable team in the league.
We bet on Sochi individual total under 1.5 goals for 1.95
Total Bet
Matches between rivals are rarely spectacular. This season, the rivals have met each other twice and have not scored more than four times between them. Lokomotiv does not play open hockey and has not shown a high-scoring game very often this season. We think that there will not be more than four accurate shots in the match. We will play a bet on the total under.
We take the total under five goals with a coefficient of 1.65
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