Kiev Capitals beat Zemgale Jelgava 4:0 on Friday night in the Optibet Hockey League. The home side moved clear at the top of the table with their sixth win in seven games, while the visitors fell to a fourth defeat in five outings. and here's the thing — the scoreline told the whole story, and there was very little debate about it after the final whistle.
Zemgale had looked comfortable enough in recent weeks, winning four of their last five before coming to Kiev. They came into this game fourth in the standings with momentum on their side, but the hosts were out of sight by half-time. to be fair, the visitors never really threatened to turn it around once the gap opened up.
The Capitals had been running riot at home all season, scoring eight and six goals in their two previous meetings with Riga Prizma. By then they had already lost just once in seven games, and that defeat — a 9:2 away to Mogo — felt like an anomaly rather than a warning. This result kept them breathing down whoever sits at the top, though the table itself barely moved.
We had tipped the visitors for victory with fifty per cent confidence going in. The prediction did not come off, and not because Zemgale were outplayed in every sense. by then the hosts had switched off at a set piece and hit them on the break, and that pattern repeated until the whistle blew.
What matters now is the shape of the table. Kiev sit second with twelve points from seven games, one ahead of whoever they play next. Zemgale drop to fourth with twelve points from five matches, and they are running out of games to recover ground.
