HC Metallurg became the first participant in the KHL playoffs of the current season

Metallurg Hockey Club from Magnitogorsk became the first club to secure a place in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) playoffs this season. The opportunity appeared after Khabarovsk Amur was defeated by Avtomobilist on January 26 with a score of 4:2.

Avtomobilist opened the scoring in the ninth minute thanks to a goal from Daniel Sprong, who also scored at the very end of the match in the 60th minute. Stepan Khripunov added another goal in the first period in the 13th minute, and Alexander Sharov scored the third goal for Avtomobilist in the 35th minute.

Oleg Lee scored against Amur, who scored the puck in the 31st minute, and Evgeny Svechnikov, who scored against the opponent in the 42nd minute. Amur's defeat was decisive for Metallurg Magnitogorsk, which, thanks to Avtomobilist's victory, became the first club to guarantee entry into the 2026 Gagarin Cup playoffs.

Avtomobilist currently occupies the fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings with 60 points, while Amur, which suffered its ninth defeat in a row, is in ninth place with 39 points.

Skates dropped: Russia and Belarus will miss the main hockey tournaments of the year

The relevant decision was made by the IIHF

The reigning KHL champion, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, defeated Spartak Moscow in an away match of the regular season on January 25. The match ended with a score of 3:2.

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