Krasnoyarsk vs Zvezda Moscow

Zvezda Moscow opened the scoring at the tournament's host venue through Amirkhan Gusniev in the 16th minute of the first period. The visitors carried that 1-0 advantage into the first intermission.

Krasnoyarsk responded early in the second period when Innokenty Rybin collected a long pass from Denis Baranov beyond the blue line and beat the Zvezda goaltender to level the scores at 1-1. The equaliser came inside the opening two minutes of the middle frame.

The parity lasted barely five minutes. Artyom Prokhorov pounced on a rebound and fired home at 26:41 to restore Zvezda's lead at 2-1 — a lead they would not surrender.

The third period belonged entirely to the Moscow-based side. Danila Poroshkov extended the advantage on the powerplay at 44:41, converting after an assist from Alexander Gubanov. Takhir Mingachyov added the fourth at 58:25, with Prokhorov providing the assist to make it 4-1.

Krasnoyarsk had momentum after Rybin's equaliser early in the second period, having weathered Zvezda's opening pressure. But Prokhorov's immediate response — restoring the lead within five minutes — deflated the Sokol bench and forced the home side to chase the game for the remaining 33 minutes of regulation. Zvezda never looked back.

Artyom Prokhorov (Zvezda Moscow) — A goal and an assist, plus involvement in the build-up to Poroshkov's powerplay marker. His work around the net created the decisive second goal that shifted the match's trajectory.

Danila Poroshkov (Zvezda Moscow) — Scored the powerplay goal that stretched the lead to 3-1 early in the third period, effectively removing any hope of a Krasnoyarsk comeback.

Takhir Mingachyov (Zvezda Moscow) — The insurance goal late in the third period put the result beyond doubt.

Innokenty Rybin (Krasnoyarsk) — Scored his side's only goal with a well-timed run onto Baranov's long pass, briefly restoring parity.

Player of the match: Artyom Prokhorov

Both sides served four penalty minutes each, a low-discipline count typical of a pre-season friendly where physical play is often dialled back. The period breakdown tells the story: Zvezda won all three periods on the scoreboard (0-1, 1-1, 0-2), with their strongest showing coming in the final frame when they added two goals against a tiring Krasnoyarsk defence. The fact that two of the four goals came in the third period suggests Zvezda's conditioning and depth told late, a common pattern in pre-season tournaments.

The match was the tournament finale for both sides in the N.V. Drozdetsky Memorial Trophy, a pre-season competition featuring VHL clubs. Krasnoyarsk finished fourth in the tournament after the loss, following earlier results that included a 5-2 win over Gornyak-UGMK U21 and a 2-3 defeat to Khimik Voskresensk on 13 August.

Sokol Krasnoyarsk now turn their attention to the VHL regular season, which begins on 3 September away at Norilsk. Zvezda Moscow continue their pre-season preparations before the VHL campaign gets underway.

This was a thoroughly professional performance from Zvezda, who controlled proceedings after a brief spell of Krasnoyarsk resistance early in the second period. Prokhorov's quick response to Rybin's equaliser proved the decisive passage of play. For Sokol, the goalscoring struggles that plagued them in this tournament — just four goals across their three matches — remain a concern heading into the regular season.