Lada vs Shanghai Dragons Prediction 26 September 2025
📣 Can Togliatti finally break out of their slump? On Friday, Pavel Desyatkov's team will face the "Dragons," who recently secured a point against Dynamo Moscow and previously triumphed in a challenging tactical battle against Western leaders Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo.
Head-to-Head
The "Owls" and the "Dragons" clashed twice last season, with neither team gaining a clear upper hand. In November, the Togliatti side edged former Kunlun with a 2-1 victory in Mytishchi. Forward Alexey Ozhgikhin, who hasn't featured for the "Automakers" this season, opened the scoring in the tenth minute of the first period. The goal drought persisted until the end of the third period. Defenseman MacKoshien, who transferred to Barys over the summer, found the net for Kunlun, while Yegor Chernikov's power-play goal sealed the game's outcome. The match in Togliatti mirrored this low-scoring pattern and concluded in a shootout, where Kunlun forward Colin Campbell, who swapped the KHL for the Norwegian league in the offseason, delivered the only successful shot.
Head-to-head statistics Lada - Shanghai Dragons
Lada Team Overview
At the start of the season, Tolyatti edged out Yekaterinburg's Avtomobilist with a 4-3 victory, only to then suffer six consecutive defeats. Recently, the club's management decided to part ways with head coach Boris Mironov. He has been replaced by Pavel Desyatkov, who coached Vityaz in the Moscow region last season. Under Desyatkov, the "Owls" have yet to find success: they endured a heavy loss to SKA (0-3) and failed to overcome Vladimir Krikunov's Sochi (4-5 in OT). On a brighter note, their foreign players have started to shine, with Lawrence, Dufour, and Savchuk all getting on the scoresheet. On Wednesday, Tolyatti were less aggressive in their shooting and physical play. On Thursday, it was announced that defenseman Viktor Antipin would join Lada's roster, bringing his career KHL record of 78 goals and 157 assists in 743 games.
Match Results: Lada
Shanghai Dragons Team Overview
The Dragons kicked off the week with a hard-fought victory over Nizhny Novgorod's Torpedo (1-0 OT). Goaltender Patrik Rybar was instrumental in this win, stopping all 25 shots from the Torpedo players. The blue-and-orange team, as usual, racked up penalties but played exceptionally well while shorthanded this time. In their second game of the week, the Dragons fell to Moscow's Dynamo (3-2 OT). Forward Nate Sucese finally made his presence felt, tallying two points. The match's villain was arguably defenseman Jake Bischoff, who took two penalties and finished with a plus-minus of -1. Overall, the Dragons delivered a solid performance: they lost the puck less frequently, shot more aggressively, and outperformed the Muscovites in faceoffs.
Match Results: Shanghai Dragons
🏒 Projected Lineups
Lada: Trushkov - Semin, Hollowell - Romanov, Lawrence, Dufour
Shanghai Dragons: Rybar - Duszak, Bischoff - Merkley, Quinney, Rendulic
🥅 Goalkeepers
Former Spartak and Dinamo Minsk goalkeeper Patrik Rybar has taken the number one spot for the "Dragons" this season. The netminder has seamlessly integrated into the Chinese squad. He shone at the Mayor of Moscow Cup and was named the star of the first week of the regular season. On Monday, Rybar shut out Torpedo, and on Wednesday, he turned aside 25 shots from Dinamo.
The Togliatti club boasts a goalie tandem of Trushkov-Tretiak. The 29-year-old Trushkov currently holds the top spot for the "Owls." On Wednesday, he conceded four goals against Sochi but performed well overall, making 38 saves. The not-so-strong defense of the "Automakers" forces Trushkov to make 25 or more saves per game.
Editor's Prediction
In the upcoming clash, we suggest a bet on Lada's individual total under 2.5 goals. After a disappointing spell in the Far East, the "Dragons" have shown a well-balanced game, preventing both Torpedo and Dynamo from scoring more than twice in regulation time. Patrik Rybar's performance in goal has been impressive, and it's unlikely that the current "Autoworkers" will significantly trouble the netminder on Friday. Notably, the "Owls" have scored fewer than three goals in 7 of their last 8 head-to-head encounters with the "Dragons," supporting our thoughts on Tolyatti's low scoring potential in the upcoming match.No comments
Betting Tips: Lada - Shanghai Dragons
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