Preview: Struggling KHL Clubs Barys, Sibir Meet in Astana

ASTANA, Kazakhstan (Interstat) — Two teams at the bottom of the Kontinental Hockey League standings will seek a rare victory when Barys Astana hosts Sibir Novosibirsk on Sunday.

The matchup at Barys Arena features clubs with a combined 22 wins this season. Barys (12-21-0) sits just above Sibir (10-23-0) in the Eastern Conference standings. Both are coming off overtime games, but with opposite results. Barys earned a 4-3 OT win over Spartak Moscow on Friday, while Sibir fell 7-6 in overtime to the same Spartak squad on Wednesday.

The home side will look to defenseman Jake Massie to continue his recent offensive contributions. Massie had a goal and an assist in the win over Spartak, and also scored in a victory over Salavat Yulaev Ufa on Nov. 21. His physical play, evidenced by four penalty minutes and a hit in that last outing, will be a factor.

For the visiting Sibir, the focus will be on containing Massie and finding a way to score consistently. Defenseman Artyom Zhukov is a player to watch for his physical presence, recording at least one hit in five of his last seven games. However, Sibir’s offense has been anemic, shut out three times in November and averaging just over two goals per game in that span.

Recent history favors Sibir, which has won three of the last four meetings between the teams, including a 4-1 victory in Novosibirsk just six days ago. Barys’ only win in that stretch was a 6-4 home victory on Sept. 27.

Both teams are mired in difficult seasons, making this a critical game for morale and positioning. Barys aims to build on its latest overtime triumph, while Sibir hopes to replicate its success from earlier in the week against the same opponent and climb out of the conference cellar.

Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. local time (1200 GMT) in Astana.