Vadym Shakhraichuk’s team achieved a hard-fought victory in the Kyiv derby and currently sits at the top of the championship standings.
Sokil (Kyiv) – Kyiv Capitals (Kyiv) – 2:3 (2:0, 0:2, 0:1)
Pucks: 1:0 – Romashchenko (Yanishevskyi, Aleksiuk), 05:54; 2:0 – Polonytskyi (Zakharov, Romashchenko), 12:15; 2:1 – Chernenko (Panchenko, Kutsevich, double majority), 37:07; 2:2 – Panchenko (Berdniks, Chernenko), 39:09; 2:3 – Berdniks (Chernenko, Panchenko, majority), 56:50
Sokil: Bohdan Diachenko; Vsevolod Tolstushko – Oleksandr Filimonov, Serhii Babynets – Vadym Mazur – Maksym Razumov; Volodymyr Aleksiuk – Oleksii Yanishevskyi, Roman Blahyi (c) – Ruslan Romashchenko – Viktor Zakharov; Mykyta Polonytskyi – Artem Yevseichyk, Vasyl-Yurii Kachan – Yevhenii Govorushko – Denys Borodai; Oleksandr Horlushko, Roman Zherebko – Illia Sobchenko – Volodymyr Kostromitin
Head coach: Oleg Shafarenko
Kyiv Capitals: Boris Babik; Kostyantyn Riabenko – Deniss Berdniks, Vladyslav Kutsevych – Serhii Chernenko (c) – Yaroslav Panchenko; Valentyn Sirchenko – Pavlo Taran, Andrii Kryvonozhkin – Mykola Dvornyk – Mykyta Oliynyk; Colin Whitt – Eetu Moksunen, Vladyslav Luhovyi – Yevhen Sekirko – Danylo Tyshchenko; Denys Plesovskykh – Denys Khonin, Oleksandr Valkun –Tymur Lapko – Oleksandr Koida
Head coach: Vadym Shakhraichuk
After the latest results in the championship, the fight for the current first place has intensified. Accordingly, in the event of a victory, the Capitals had a chance to overtake their opponents in the standings.
Unlike the last face-to-face meeting, the opening period did not pass without goals. At the end of the sixth minute, Oleh Shafarenko’s team took the lead. After a shot from Yanishevskyi, Romashchenko crossed the puck into the goal.
In the second half of the period, the nominal hosts doubled their advantage. After Zakharov’s shot, Babik deflected the puck in front of him, and Polonytskyi was the first to finish, sending it into the Capitals’ goal.
In the next twenty minutes, there were many attempts during playing in majority for Capitals, however, despite their efforts, they were unable to score due to the exceptional performance of Dyachenko. At the end of the period, Vadym Shakhraichuk’s team got a chance to play with a numerical advantage of 5 players against 3, which they successfully capitalized on. Panchenko made a pass to Chernenko, who then scored by placing the puck into an unguarded corner of Dyachenko’s goal while taking advantage of the goalie’s movement.
Following that, the visiting team played with a regular numerical advantage for about a minute and a half, but failed to score. However, after Berdniks’ shot, Dyachenko deflected the puck in front of him, allowing Panchenko to step up and finish, resulting in an equal score. The thrilling momentum of the Kyiv Capitals was interrupted by the second period break signaled by the sound of the siren.
The final period of the third league meeting between Sokil and Capitals teams remained tied for quite some time, leading many fans to believe that the game would end again in a 2:2 draw in regular time. However, both teams were determined to break the deadlock. The opponents displayed incredible skill and intensity, resulting in several thrilling moments throughout the match. Oleg Shafarenko’s team even had a brief period of playing with a two-man advantage, but the Capitals’ players held their ground.
In a crucial turn of events, the Capitals took advantage of one of their opportunities. During a 4×3 play, Chernenko strategically positioned Berdniks, who successfully scored the most significant goal of his Ukrainian career. As the nominal hosts, Sokil made a final push to equalize, playing with an extra skater after removing Dyachenko from the ice. However, their efforts weren’t enough to force the game into overtime.
Thus, it was the team led by Vadym Shakhraichuk that successfully overtook their opponents to claim the top spot in the tournament standings with a total of 29 points. Sokil currently holds 27 points.
The next matches for the Kyiv Capitals will take place in Odesa, where they will face off against Dnipro on November 29th and 30th.
