CHEREPOVETS (Interstat) — Admiral Vladivostok will try to halt a difficult start when it visits Severstal Cherepovets for a Kontinental Hockey League game Thursday at Ice Palace. Admiral is the visiting team and enters with a 2-7 record. Severstal is the home team and comes in at 4-5.

Admiral is looking to recapture the form it showed in a 2-0 win over Severstal earlier this season. That victory remains one of the few bright spots for Admiral, which has dropped seven of nine games. Severstal has been steadier at home and will aim to use the Ice Palace crowd to its advantage.

Yegor Chezganov is a player to watch for Admiral. The forward scored and recorded eight shots on goal in Admiral’s most recent game, a 5-3 loss to Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk. He also had a goal and four shots on goal against CSKA Moscow and an assist and two shots on goal against Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. In the earlier meeting with Severstal, Chezganov put four shots on goal and recorded two penalty minutes and two hits.

Ivan Muranov and Libor Sulak also contributed in Admiral’s latest outing. Muranov finished with a goal, an assist and two shots on goal, while Sulak put seven shots on goal. Admiral will need that kind of secondary production to support Chezganov against a Severstal team that has allowed two goals or fewer in three of its past five games.

Alexander Samoilov is a player to watch for Severstal. The goaltender has been busy and effective, making 28 saves on 29 shots in a 3-1 win over HC Sochi and 30 saves on 32 shots in a 5-2 win over Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg. He also stopped 24 of 25 shots in a 4-1 win at Amur Khabarovsk. In the earlier loss at Admiral, Samoilov made 23 saves on 24 shots.

Severstal’s latest game was a 3-1 home win over HC Sochi. Samoilov anchored the victory, while Ilya Ivantsov and Thomas Gregoire each scored. Severstal has won three of its past five games and will try to build on that stretch before a busy upcoming schedule.

Admiral, meanwhile, has struggled to generate consistent offense. The team has scored three goals in a game only twice during its recent slide. Chezganov’s shot volume and Severstal’s goaltending could shape the pace of the matchup. Admiral’s upcoming slate includes road games at SKA Saint Petersburg and Metallurg Magnitogorsk. Severstal will host Shanghai Dragons after this game.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a final score of Severstal 2, Admiral 1.