The fourth clash of the 1/2 finals in the Gagarin Cup Western Conference brought together St. Petersburg SKA and Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo at the Nagorny stadium. The venue provided a crisp backdrop as SKA secured a 5-3 victory, extending their advantage in the series and keeping their path to the conference final clear and purposeful.
For the victorious SKA roster, the night belonged to several players who turned moments into goals and momentum. Roman Rukavishnikov, Emil Galimov, Nikita Gusev, Igor Ozhigov, and Marat Khairullin all found the net, contributing to a balanced offensive response that kept Torpedo under pressure from the opening minutes and through the critical stretch in the second and third periods.
On the Torpedo side, Sergei Goncharuk recorded a brace, showcasing his scoring touch with two goals, while Vasily Atanasov added another tally. The attempts to close the gap briefed the team with late energy, yet SKA’s defense and goaltending held firm when it counted, preserving the lead and setting the stage for the next confrontation in the series.
With this win, SKA moved to a 4:0 lead in the series, effectively advancing to the Western Conference final. There they will await the winner of the CSKA versus Lokomotiv matchup, a pair that currently sees the Moscow squad leading 2:1 in their own series. The forthcoming clash promises a rivalry steeped in history and packed with playoff intensity as both sides push toward a coveted berth in the Gagarin Cup final.
Looking back at the initial round, St. Petersburg had already eliminated Dynamo Minsk, signaling their readiness to push deeper into the playoffs. Torpedo, meanwhile, overcame Moscow Dynamo in a decisive later-stage encounter that underscored their resilience and capability to compete with the league’s strongest teams and players. Those early successes set the tone for what fans hoped would be a compelling and tightly contested postseason run for both teams.
In a separate news note tied to the league’s broader narrative, former French forward Stéphane Da Costa spoke about the decision by his national federation not to call him up to the French national team. He cited his ongoing participation in the Kontinental Hockey League as a factor in that decision, highlighting the tension some players feel between international duties and a hectic club schedule in Europe’s top league. The conversation reflected ongoing debates about player availability, scheduling, and national team selection in the modern era of international hockey, where club commitments often shape national opportunities for players across the continent.