Almaz vs Sakhalinskie Akuly

Sakhalinskie Akuly controlled the first period. Forward Yaroslav Ovchinnikov opened the scoring at 8:57, working the puck in from close range after a sustained offensive shift. Yaroslav Davydovsky doubled the lead at 19:27 with a fierce slap shot from the blue line, sending the visitors into the first intermission up 2–0.

Almaz responded immediately after the restart. Timofey Perminov pulled one back at 20:58 with a scrambled, fortuitous goal that caught the Akuly defence off balance, making it 2–1 just 58 seconds into the middle frame.

The game settled into a tight-checking battle through the second and most of the third period. Gleb Bayushev — who finished the tournament as its top assist provider — levelled the score at 52:13, finishing a fast transition play with a precise shot to make it 2–2.

With the match heading for overtime, Sakhalinskie Akuly earned a late power play. Alexander Ustinov stepped up, firing home the winner with just 0.4 seconds left on the game clock at 59:59, securing a 3–2 victory that sent the bench into celebration.

The decisive moment came in the final minute. Almaz, having fought back from two goals down, looked poised to push for a winner or at least hold on for a point. A minor penalty gave Sakhalinskie Akuly a power play with under a minute to play, and Ustinov made no mistake. The goal at 59:59 flipped the result from a likely draw to an away win, and ultimately proved the difference between second and third place in the final tournament standings.

Alexander Ustinov (Sakhalinskie Akuly) — Scored the game-winner with 0.4 seconds left. A clutch finish under maximum pressure.

Yaroslav Ovchinnikov & Yaroslav Davydovsky (Sakhalinskie Akuly) — Each posted 2 (1+1) points. Ovchinnikov opened the scoring; Davydovsky's blue-line blast doubled the lead.

Gleb Bayushev (Almaz) — Scored Almaz's equaliser and finished the tournament as the leading assist provider with 4 assists in 4 games. Named among the tournament's standout forwards.

Timofey Perminov (Almaz) — His early-second-period strike gave the hosts a lifeline and sparked the comeback.

The period-by-period breakdown (0–2, 1–0, 1–1) tells the story of a game that flipped on its head. Sakhalinskie Akuly dominated the opening frame, building a two-goal cushion. Almaz owned the second period, cutting the deficit and seizing momentum. The third period was tightly contested — Almaz tied it, but the late penalty shifted the balance. The MHL report noted Sakhalinskie Akuly had a slight edge in possession during the first period, but the game overall was even territorially. The decisive factor was special teams: Ustinov's power-play winner was the difference on a night when both sides scored once at even strength in the final two periods.

At the time, Almaz entered the match with two wins from two games (4 points); Sakhalinskie Akuly had one win from one game (2 points). This result pulled the Akuly level on points with Almaz. Both finished the tournament on 6 points, but Sakhalinskie Akuly took second place on tiebreakers behind champions Krasnaya Mashina Atlant (7 points), while Almaz slipped to third.

Almaz went on to face Metallurg on 3 August, winning 4–1 to close their tournament. Their next competitive fixture is the 2026/27 MHL regular season, beginning in September. Sakhalinskie Akuly faced Krasnaya Mashina Atlant on 2 August (lost 2–5) and then defeated Loko-76 on 3 August to secure second place.

A pre-season friendly with genuine drama. Sakhalinskie Akuly's first-period burst and Ustinov's last-second heroics showed composure under pressure, while Almaz's comeback from 2–0 down demonstrated resilience. The margin between second and third in the tournament standings was literally a single second of game time. For a betting audience, the takeaway is that both sides showed attacking intent — Almaz scored 3+ goals in three of their four tournament games, while Sakhalinskie Akuly also averaged over 3 goals a game — suggesting both could be worth watching for overs in early-season MHL action.