NIZHNY NOVGOROD, Russia (Interstat) — In a stunning reversal of pregame projections, Avangard Omsk authored a third-period comeback for a 6-2 victory over Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in a Kontinental Hockey League matchup Sunday at Trade Union Sport Palace.

The result defied a Interstat game simulator that had projected a 5-2 win for the home side, though the same service’s ELO system gave Avangard a 62.5 percent probability to win. The victory was powered by a four-goal final frame and a dominant performance from goaltender Nikita Serebryakov, who turned aside 41 of 43 shots.

The game began as a defensive struggle, with Torpedo striking first. Alexei Kruchinin opened the scoring at 13:36 of the first period, netting his sixth goal of the season with assists from Sergei Goncharuk and Yegor Sokolov. The home team doubled its lead before the intermission when Vladislav Firstov scored his 10th of the campaign at 18:10, with Maxim Letunov and Robert Nardella recording the helpers.

The second period saw the momentum begin to shift. After killing off a penalty, Avangard capitalized on its own power play. Dmitry Rashevsky cut the deficit in half at 28:56, scoring his eighth goal with an assist from Nikolai Prokhorkin. Just over eight minutes later, Rashevsky struck again, this time at even strength, burying his ninth of the season off a feed from Semyon Chistyakov to tie the game heading into the third period.

Avangard carried its surge into the final frame. Defenseman Artyom Blazhiyevsky gave the visitors their first lead of the night at 44:26, firing his second goal of the season past the Torpedo netminder. Rashevsky and Prokhorkin were credited with the assists.

The game’s complexion changed decisively less than three minutes later when Torpedo’s Sergei Boikov was assessed a five-minute major penalty for checking to the head or neck at 47:25. Avangard’s power play went to work immediately.

Alexander V. Volkov extended the lead to 4-2 at 49:49, scoring his fourth goal with helpers from Rashevsky and Chistyakov. Just 27 seconds later, Andrew Poturalski netted his 10th of the season, with Michael McLeod and Damir Sharipzyanov assisting, to put the game out of reach.

McLeod sealed the victory with an empty-net goal at 57:39, his fourth of the year, assisted by Mikhail Kotlyarevsky, to complete the scoring.

Rashevsky was the offensive catalyst for Avangard, finishing with two goals and two assists. Prokhorkin added two assists, while McLeod contributed a goal and an assist. For Torpedo, Firstov was a constant threat, registering a team-high seven shots on goal to go with his first-period tally.

The win improves Avangard’s record across all competitions to 16 wins and 10 losses, while Torpedo falls to 17 wins and 10 losses.

Avangard continues its road trip Tuesday at Lada Togliatti. Torpedo looks to rebound the same night when it hosts Admiral Vladivostok.