HC Traktor Chelyabinsk vs Severstal Cherepovec Prediction 20 February 2026
🔊 Traktor, after two consecutive defeats with tennis-like scores (0-6 and 2-6), risk dropping to eighth place, which would mean facing a formidable opponent in the first round of the playoffs. Evgeny Koreshkov urgently needs to turn things around against a surging Severstal. The last time Traktor lost three consecutive matches by a large margin was in 2020. Can Severstal join in on the scoring spree? We break down this regular-season matchup in the KHL and offer our prediction for the game on February 20.
Head-to-Head
📊 Over the past five seasons, the teams have clashed five times, with both Traktor and Severstal securing two wins each in regulation time. Another encounter ended in a shootout victory for Severstal. The matchup in Cherepovets during the 2025/26 season saw the hosts triumph 3-2. In that game, Nikolay Chebykin scored twice for Severstal, while Mikhail Grigorenko and Vitaly Kravtsov each tallied two points (1 goal, 1 assist) for the visitors.
Head-to-head statistics HC Traktor Chelyabinsk - Severstal Cherepovec
HC Traktor Chelyabinsk Team Overview
Chelyabinsk, after securing four consecutive victories around the "star weekend," suffered their two heaviest defeats of the 2025/26 season. First, Yevgeny Koreshkov's squad fell on the road to Avangard (2-6), and then they were defeated at home by Salavat Yulaev (0-6) the following day. After back-to-back heavy losses, Traktor (58 points) missed the chance to climb to sixth place in the conference (59 points) and edged closer to eighth place (56 points).
The "Bears," enduring their worst defeat of the season, have become the most conceding team in the East with 176 goals allowed. Over four games since the KHL All-Star Game, the "Tractorists" have conceded 19 goals, averaging nearly five per game. No team has performed worse over this stretch, not even Sochi, who suffered a 1-10 loss in Novosibirsk.
According to Koreshkov, the team was "hit hard by the trip to the Far East." Against Salavat Yulaev, he included Jordan Gross and Alexander Rykov in the lineup, leaving Vladislav Yusupov and Vladimir Zharkov out. There are concerns regarding Joshua Leivo, who failed to score in any of the three matches post-break, finishing with a plus/minus of "-4".
Match Results: HC Traktor Chelyabinsk
Severstal Cherepovec Team Overview
The "Steelmen" have secured three consecutive victories for the first time since late November, defeating the Shanghai Dragons on the road (3-2) and SKA (3-2 SO), and at home against Neftekhimik (3-1). This successful run has allowed Andrey Kozyrev’s team (76 points) to overtake Dinamo Minsk (75) for second place in the Western Conference, although they remain third based on points lost.
Severstal are making waves in the rankings with two standout statistics. First, the team from Cherepovets are the most disciplined in the KHL, having accumulated just 337 penalty minutes. Notably, only the "Steelmen" and CSKA have kept their penalty minutes under 400 this season across the league. Second, Severstal rank second after Dinamo Minsk in goals scored (173, averaging 3.0 goals per game).
In recent matches, the "Steelmen" have been without injured defenseman Timofey Davydov and forward Nikolay Chebykin. During this winning streak, Severstal’s coaching staff have refrained from making significant lineup changes, though they occasionally rotate line combinations.
Match Results: Severstal Cherepovec
⚡️ Key Players
Livo and Grigorenko are Traktor's leading scorers, both ranking in the top ten in the KHL. The Canadian boasts 51 points (22 goals, 29 assists) and holds the title of top goal scorer, while the Russian has tallied 49 points (20 goals, 29 assists). Defenseman Grigory Dronov shoulders a significant offensive load, with 14 goals placing him among the top three scoring defensemen.
For Severstal, Ruslan Abrosimov remains the top scorer and goal-getter with 47 points (23 goals, 24 assists). Ioannis Kaldis carries the primary defensive responsibilities, leading the KHL in both total passes (2245) and pass accuracy (90.4%). Unsurprisingly, the Canadian tops the team in assists with 26.
🥅 Goalkeepers
Dmitry Nikolaev, who played in two consecutive matches and conceded eight goals, was benched for the game against Ufa. His replacement, Sergei Mylnikov, allowed six goals against Salavat Yulaev, marking his worst save percentage in a full match at 81.2%. Typically, the Chelyabinsk coaching staff opts to switch goalkeepers after such performances.
Returning from injury, Alexander Samoylov has started four consecutive matches, conceding no more than two goals in each of his last three outings. Over this stretch, he has made 101 saves with a save percentage of 93.5%. Backup goalies Konstantin Shostak and Vsevolod Skotnikov have seen less ice time recently.
Editorial Prediction
Over the last six seasons, Traktor have only lost two consecutive games by a margin of three or more goals on four occasions - and in each of those instances, they bounced back to win the third match, conceding no more than one goal (2-0, 3-1, 2-1, 2-0).
In four of their last five head-to-heads in Chelyabinsk, Severstal have failed to score more than one goal against Traktor. It's reasonable to expect the hosts to contain the visitors' offense, with Severstal's individual total likely under 2.5 goals.
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Betting Tips: HC Traktor Chelyabinsk - Severstal Cherepovec
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