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With regular season in the books - we finally know the Gagarin cup play-off pairs for KHL's Western conference round one.
Puck drop for the playoffs will be on March 1st.
First round match-ups for round one of Gagarin Cup play-offs in the west:
(1) CSKA Moscow - (8) Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod
CSKA Moscow once again are the regular season winners and are among favorites to win the cup. I don't expect it to be over in four but first round should be fairly easy for them.
(2) SKA St.Petersburgh (7) Vitjaz Podolsk
SKA is a powerhouse and while Vitjaz has impressed this season - I just can't see how they cope against the power of army squad.
(3) Jokerit Helsinki - (6) Lokomotiv Yaroslavl
Jokerit has always struggled in the playoffs while Lokomotiv is a wild card - this will be one of the most entertaining series in round one.
(4) Dynamo Moscow - (5) Spartak Moscow
MOSCOW DERBY IN ROUND ONE. What more would you need? This has to go seven and promises to be a fight from first to the final minute.