VLADIVOSTOK (Interstat) — Klim Kostin scored twice, Marat Khairullin supplied the shootout winner and CSKA Moscow defeated Admiral Vladivostok 4-3 in a Kontinental Hockey League game Monday, Sept. 21, 2026, at Fetisov Arena. The game was completed in a shootout after the teams traded goals through regulation. Attendance was 4,348. CSKA improved to 4-3-0. Admiral fell to 2-5-0. The result gave CSKA a split of the season series after Admiral won in Moscow earlier in September. Kostin was CSKA’s top star, finishing with two goals, three shots on goal, seven penalty minutes and four hits.

Denis Guryanov gave CSKA the first lead at 12:00 of the opening period, with Nikolai Kovalenko and Nikita Nesterov earning assists. Admiral answered in the second period. Dmitry Mukhtarov tied the game at 26:13, with Oskar Bulavchuk and Libor Sulak assisting. Yegor Chezganov then put Admiral ahead at 29:58, with Ilya D. Morozov and Maxim Musorov setting up the goal. CSKA needed a response, and Kostin provided it at 34:13 of the second. Pavel Karnaukhov and Ivan Yukin assisted as Kostin pulled CSKA even.

Kostin struck again at 57:23 of the third period. Karnaukhov and Maxim V. Mamin had the assists, and CSKA moved in front. Admiral refused to fold. Anthony Camara tied the game at 58:34, with Daniel Usmanov and Ivan Yanchenko assisting. The late goal forced the extra session and then a shootout. Khairullin delivered the decisive finish in the tiebreaker, giving CSKA the win. The sequence capped a game that featured several ties and momentum swings.

Kostin’s full stat line included two goals, three shots on goal, seven penalty minutes and four hits. Karnaukhov had two assists, three shots and one hit. Gamzin stopped 20 of 23 shots for CSKA. Guryanov added a goal, three shots and one hit. Kovalenko recorded an assist, three shots and four hits. Nesterov had one assist and two shots. Mamin had one assist, two shots and two hits. Admiral’s Mukhtarov scored on his only shot. Chezganov had a goal, four shots and two hits. Yanchenko had one assist, one shot and two hits. Admiral also received assists from Bulavchuk and Sulak on Mukhtarov’s goal, and from Morozov and Musorov on Chezganov’s goal.

Penalties shaped the middle of the game. Admiral’s Konstantin Luchevnikov received a holding minor at 5:17 of the first period. CSKA’s Robert Hamilton was called for tripping at 17:07. In the second period, Luchevnikov and Kostin received five-minute fighting majors at 28:07. CSKA’s Dmitry Samorukov was whistled for tripping at 29:18. In the third period, CSKA’s Denis Zernov received a tripping minor at 49:33, and Kostin was sent off for interference at 53:36. The calls created power-play chances for both sides, though the game remained tight into the final minutes.

The win continued CSKA’s stronger recent form. CSKA had won three of its previous four games, including a 3-2 victory at Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod on Sept. 18 and a 4-0 win at HC Sochi on Sept. 16. Earlier in the season, CSKA lost to Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, Admiral and Spartak Moscow. Admiral had beaten Severstal Cherepovets 2-0 on Sept. 19 but had lost five of its first seven games. Admiral also dropped a 3-2 decision to Dynamo Moscow on Sept. 17 and a 2-1 game at Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk on Sept. 13. The teams met earlier this season on Sept. 11, when Admiral won 4-2 at CSKA Moscow.

CSKA next visits Amur Khabarovsk on Sept. 23. CSKA then travels to Lada Togliatti on Sept. 25 before hosting SKA Saint Petersburg on Sept. 29. Admiral hosts Lokomotiv Yaroslavl on Sept. 23. Admiral then hosts Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk on Sept. 27 before beginning a road trip at Severstal Cherepovets on Oct. 1.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Admiral 3, CSKA 2. Interstat’s ELO system gave CSKA a 69.4 percent probability to win. The actual result went to CSKA in a shootout, with Khairullin’s finish deciding the extra point.