Lahti Pelicans are still in the hunt for a Playoff spot in their debut CHL season. They host a Yunost Minsk club which will be desperate to finally get a win on the road, in order to keep their Round of 16 hopes alive. Group D is one of the closest, with all teams still having a chance to qualify. With a win tonight, either Lahti or Yunost can boost their chances.

Things could be oh so different for Lahti if one of their two shootout losses had gone their way. As it stands, after trading wins with Oceláři Třinec and dropping two shootouts against Lausanne HC, the Finnish club find themselves in third place in Group D and in desperate need of a win. Lahti’s scoring has been spread throughout the line-up, as 10 different players have found the back of the net. However, only captain Hannes Björninen has scored more than once. Pelicans have started their Liiga season in strong fashion, winning 6 of 9 games on the back of strong offensive starts by János Hári and Juhamatti Aaltonen.

Yunost know that if they manage to get something from Wednesday’s game in Finland, that they will have a strong chance of winning on home ice on Game Day 6. The Belarussian side are still without a single point from eight previous away games. Maxim Maltsev has led the charge for the Belarussian Champions in the CHL this season, scoring 5 points in 4 games. Dmitri Kolgotin and Denis Tsyganov, who have 4 and 3 points respectively, are also names to watch.