Drink Soviet Champagne

Avangard's Alexei Cherepanov and Pavel Rosa celebrating their
series-clinching 4-3 road win in overtime, March 24th
With the Russian playoffs on a break until the finals start on Saturday, I figured I'd throw up some photos and some video from the earlier rounds.

The Lokomotiv Yaroslavl web site has a lot of awesome photos that don't always look right scrunched down to size for Blogger, so I saved a couple that you can view at full size by clicking here (Pavel Rosa moving in on Semen Varlamov) and here (the puck getting underneath Aleksandr Fomichev).



Avangard's Anton Kuryanov after being bloodied by a high stick, March 23rd



Lokomotiv goalie Semen Varlamov about to get hit in the mask
with the puck, March 12th



Dynamo Moscow forward Vadim Shakharaychuk, March 12th




Now, some video:



Ak Bars Kazan's Igor Shadilov scoring on the power play against Khimik in the quarter-finals, 3-21-07. Ak Bars defenseman Jan Novak cycles the puck over to Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Dimitry Kazionov, who sends a back-door pass over to Shadilov. Shadilov then deftly tucks the puck into the net behind Khimik goalie Vitaly Kolesnik.



From earlier in the same game, Ak Bars' Alexander Stepanov intercepts the puck at center ice and threads a pass over to former New York Rangers/Hartford Wolf Pack forward Vladimir Vorobiev, who fires a laser-like wrist shot past Kolesnik (late of the Colorado Avalanche/Lowell Lock Monsters).


And finally, some audio:

The Milwaukees, "Drink Soviet Champagne" (to complete the reference)
Blitz, "Someone's Gonna Die" and "Fight To Live" (to get the blood going)