ASTANA (Interstat) — Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk will visit Barys Astana on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in a Kontinental Hockey League game at Barys Arena in Astana, Kazakhstan. Neftekhimik enters 5-3, while Barys is 5-2. The teams will meet again in Nizhnekamsk on Friday, Oct. 2.

Neftekhimik most recently defeated Lada Togliatti 7-3 on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. Damir Zhafyarov recorded two goals and one assist with three shots on goal. Ivan Nikolishin added one goal and one assist with four shots, and Timur Kol had two assists with three shots and one hit. Before that win, Neftekhimik lost 6-2 at Metallurg Magnitogorsk on Sept. 20 and 2-0 at Salavat Yulaev Ufa on Sept. 18. It won 3-0 at Sibir Novosibirsk on Sept. 16. Neftekhimik also has home wins against Admiral Vladivostok, Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg, and HC Sochi, plus an overtime loss to Shanghai Dragons.

Zhafyarov, a forward, is a player to watch for Neftekhimik. In addition to his three-point game against Lada, he scored against Admiral Vladivostok on Sept. 13 and HC Sochi on Sept. 8. He recorded assists against Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg on Sept. 11 and Shanghai Dragons on Sept. 6. He had five shots on goal at Sibir Novosibirsk on Sept. 16.

Barys most recently won 4-1 at Dynamo Moscow on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. Garrett Pilon scored two goals with three shots on goal. Andrei A. Shutov made 37 saves on 38 shots, and Jake Massie had one goal and two assists with two shots. Barys previously won 5-0 at Lokomotiv Yaroslavl on Sept. 20 and 6-0 at Lada Togliatti on Sept. 16. It lost 3-0 at Metallurg Magnitogorsk on Sept. 18 and 3-1 at home to Amur Khabarovsk on Sept. 12. Barys has home wins over Salavat Yulaev Ufa and Sibir Novosibirsk.

Pilon, a forward, is a player to watch for Barys. He had two assists at Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, one goal against Amur Khabarovsk, two assists against Salavat Yulaev Ufa, and one goal and one assist against Sibir Novosibirsk. He also recorded one shot at Lada Togliatti on Sept. 16.

After this game, Neftekhimik will play at Admiral Vladivostok on Sunday, Sept. 27, and at Amur Khabarovsk on Tuesday, Sept. 29. Barys will host SKA Saint Petersburg on Sunday, Sept. 27, and play at Ak Bars Kazan on Wednesday, Sept. 30.

Interstat’s game simulator is projecting a final score of Neftekhimik 3, Barys 2.