MOSCOW, 11 Mar – Kazan “Ak Bars” defeated Nizhnekamsk “Neftekhimik” in the sixth match of the first round of the playoff series of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and reached the quarterfinals of the Gagarin Cup.

The meeting in Nizhnekamsk ended with the score 4:2 (1:1, 0:1, 3:0) in favor of the guests. Kirill Panyukov (2), Konstantin Luchevnikov (44), Dmitry Kagarlitsky (51) and Dmitry Voronkov (58) distinguished themselves in Ak Bars. At “Neftekhimik” goals were scored by Ansel Galimov (1st minute) and Andrey Chivilev (34).

The teams set a new rate of fire record in the playoffs by exchanging goals in 1 minute 2 seconds after the kick-off face-off. The previous record was set in the Gagarin Cup 2016 in the match between Ufa Salavat Yulaev and Ak Bars (1.05).

The score in the series up to four wins was 4-2 in favor of the Kazan team. Ak Bars advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the 11th time in history. In the semifinals of the Eastern Conference, Kazan will play with the Vladivostok “Admiral”, the series will begin in the capital of Tatarstan.