Despite losing to city rivals from Dynamo, CSKA Moscow were lucky enough to book the last vacant spot in the KHL’s playoffs.
The game was largely a cagey affair with the first two periods remaining goalless. Dynamo popped up with the winner halfway through the final period when Vyacheslav Kozlov prodded the puck home, 1-0.
But the other results went CSKA’s way as Metallurg Novokuznetsk lost to SKA (2-5) and Spartak Moscow suffered an overtime defeat to Barys (2-3) to put the Army Men in contest for the Gagarin Cup.
KHL’s playoff participants:
Eastern Conference: Traktor, Avangard, Metallurg (Magnitogorsk), Salavat Yulaev, Ak Bars, Barys, Amur, Ugra.
Western Conference: SKA, Torpedo, Dynamo (Moscow), Atlant, Severstal, Dynamo (Minsk), Dynamo (Riga), CSKA Moscow.
Amur and Ugra have made it to the Last 16 for the first time in the League’s history, while Spartak and Metallurg Novokuznetsk have never missed on the Gagarin Cup action before.