Khmelevski takes first point as Ak Bars beat Lada 3-2 in OT

Ak Bars beat Lada 3-2 in overtime, and Sasha Khmelevski, moved into a new line at centre, took his first point of the season.

Khmelevski said the team had lost the puck too often in regulation. "The main thing is that we won," he said. "I think we simply lost the puck a lot and played badly. Timur Bilyalov bailed us out and gave us the chance to win, and we pulled the game out in overtime."

Asked whether the errors came from a roster still bedding in, he pointed elsewhere. "We have been skating and training for two months already, it should not be like this. It is more a question of concentration."

On the point itself: "Of course I want to score points and help the team. When you play well, your partners feel more confident too." He said he felt natural in the middle. "I think I am doing well on faceoffs. When we control the dot, the team has more chances and we create more moments."

Head coach Anvar Gatiyatulin called it a hard-earned win. "When we had the puck, there were decent moments," he said. "When the opponent was active, difficulties arose. There were turnovers. Those mistakes and wrong decisions let them attack more, and we had to spend more energy. That is one item on our current work agenda. But a win is a win."

Khmelevski played the full match at centre. Gatiyatulin said the option stays open and singled him out for his work in puck battles and without the puck. Last season, with a different roster, the club found him more effective on the wing. "The roster is new now, the team has changed a lot. We will see. We tried what we discussed before the match. You can see Sasha heard it."

The coach confirmed that Ak Bars will look for a centre following the departure of Kevin Hayes. "We signed Kevin as one of the leading centres, so now we will probably need to find a player for that position," Gatiyatulin said. The search for a defenceman to add depth has not changed, he added, and the club will also work with players already under contract and with young players.

Nikita Dynyak and Stepan Terekhov did not play. "It is health, but nothing serious," Gatiyatulin said. "I hope they will appear very soon."

With Hayes gone and a centre still to be found, Khmelevski's night in the middle may not be a one-off. If the club does not bring in a replacement soon, he could be one of the options there.