NOVOSIBIRSK (Interstat) — Ak Bars will visit Sibir on Wednesday for a Kontinental Hockey League game at Ice Sports Palace Sibir in Sibir Arena, Novosibirsk, with both clubs looking to build momentum in a crowded schedule. Ak Bars enters with an 11-12 record, while Sibir is 8-15.

Ak Bars will look to Alexander Chmelevski to drive the offense. The forward had a goal and an assist with six shots on goal in a 4-3 loss to SKA Saint Petersburg in the most recent Ak Bars result, and he also scored in a 2-1 win at Salavat Yulaev Ufa. Denis Zernov scored on five shots with two penalty minutes in the SKA game, and Semyon Terekhov added a goal and an assist with three shots. Ak Bars had beaten Amur 3-1 before the SKA loss. Ak Bars also has recent wins at Dinamo Minsk and at Shanghai Dragons, though its recent stretch includes losses to Avangard Omsk, Traktor Chelyabinsk, Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, HC Sochi and Severstal Cherepovets. The club has shown the ability to generate offense through Chmelevski and its top forwards, but consistency has been an issue.

Sibir will counter with Maxim Sushko, who scored in a 3-1 loss to Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk in the club’s most recent game. Sushko recorded two shots, two penalty minutes and two hits in that defeat. He also scored at Metallurg Magnitogorsk and has been active physically in recent games, including a four-hit effort at Traktor Chelyabinsk. Anton Kosolapov put four shots on goal against Neftekhimik, while Arkhip Nekolenko added two shots and two penalty minutes. Sibir most recently earned a 5-2 home win over Metallurg Magnitogorsk before falling at Traktor Chelyabinsk and at Metallurg Magnitogorsk. The club has also picked up recent wins at Dynamo Moscow, at Salavat Yulaev Ufa, at Barys Astana and at Traktor Chelyabinsk, but it has struggled to string together results.

The head-to-head series has favored Ak Bars. Ak Bars won 3-2 at Sibir in a shootout and later won 4-3 in a shootout at home. Both meetings required extra time, and both were decided after regulation.

Sibir will try to use home ice at Ice Sports Palace Sibir in Sibir Arena to snap a difficult run. Ak Bars will aim to carry its recent scoring mix into the road matchup, with Chmelevski central to those efforts. Sibir’s home crowd could be a factor as the club looks to improve its record and slow an Ak Bars side that has shown more offense of late. The matchup is set for Wednesday.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a final score of Sibir 2, Ak Bars 1. The over/under for the game is 4.5.