Former Sibir general manager Kirill Fastovsky has weighed in on the Gagarin Cup final series between Lokomotiv and Ak Bars, offering his analysis of both teams’ strengths and weaknesses.
**On the teams’ advantages in the final:**
“In special teams, Ak Bars has a clear edge—both on the power play, which is especially noticeable, and on the penalty kill. And if Timur Bilyalov faces any issues, including medical ones, the team has Maxim Arefyev, who is ready to step up as the starting goalie. For Lokomotiv, I’m not sure Alexei Melnichuk can fully replace Daniil Isayev. I’m not saying he’s a bad goalie—but Arefyev has played two games this postseason and performed incredibly well, while Melnichuk lacks that game time and trust. So the goaltending factor could come into play.
Lokomotiv has already proven they are a team with character. That will give them more confidence. As a coach, Bob Hartley is more experienced than Anvar Gatiyatulin, but Ak Bars has a strong coaching staff. Michael Pelino is a good specialist for Lokomotiv, although the power play he oversees hasn’t clicked yet. Meanwhile, in Ak Bars, Konstantin Shafranov has been effective with the man advantage.
Offensively, Kazan has attacking defensemen in Mitchell Miller and Nikita Lyamkin—a lethal duo for opponents. But defensively, Lokomotiv holds an advantage with a strong, physically tough defensive line.”
**On his personal prediction:**
“I’m torn. I’ll bet on a 3-3 series and, as always, hope for seven games,” Fastovsky said.
