KHL Playoffs (Russia):
Western Conference
(1)St. Petersburg 7 vs. (5)Cherepovets 4
St. Petersburg Leads the Series 1-0
Vasily Koshechkin [6], Cherepovets, Loss, 33/38, 5.03 GAA, .868 sv%
Playoff totals: 7 GP, 4-3-0, 0 SO, 2.02 GAA, .930 sv%
Regular season totals: 51 GP, 28-20-3, 8 SO, 2.13 GAA, .923 sv%
SKA St. Peterburg won the opening game of their Western Conference Semifinal series with Cherepovets in a 7-4 track meet. Ex-Coyotes first rounder Viktor Tikhonov had a hat trick to lead the way for SKA. Ex-Lightning forward Evgeny Artyukhin [7] also added a helper for the club. For Cherepovets, former Lightning first rounder Nikita Alexeev [8] had a goal. Former Lightning draft pick Denis Kazionov [9] was kicked out of the game at 3:08 of the First Period for boarding, leading to SKA's opening goal. Game Two is Friday.