Stetsyura's Late Hattrick: Odeshchyna Defeats Boguslavski Shershni and Strengthens Lead in Ukrainian Hockey Championship

In an away match of the seventh round of the Ukrainian Hockey Championship, Odeshchyna defeated Boguslavski Shershni 5:3, maintaining first place in the standings. The match took place at the Boguslav Ice Palace against the backdrop of stands decorated with the Ukrainian flag and fan banners, turning into a tight struggle where the intrigue lasted almost until the final siren. Full statistics and a chronology of events are provided by Sport RBC.UA, whose material formed the basis of this publication.

Guests Opened the Scoring and Led by the Tenth Minute

Odeshchyna set a high tempo from the first minutes and quickly capitalized on their numerical and positional advantage. At 6:51, Stetsyura opened the scoring after assists from Arkhipov and Khanin, and three minutes later, at 9:48, Revuka doubled the guests' lead following assists from Mosyuk and Murin. The hosts responded only at 12:35 when Valentin, utilizing a pass from Shevchenko and Lesnikov, narrowed the gap to a minimum. The first period ended with a score of 2:1 in favor of the guests, and the entire second 20-minute period passed without goals — teams exchanged heavy physical plays and tactical adjustments.

Third Period: Guests' Surge and Hosts' Desperate Comeback

The turning point in the score occurred at the start of the third period: at 41:42, Poymanov (assists Mosyuk, Revuka) put Odeshchyna ahead 3:1, and at 54:10 Stetsyura, receiving a pass from Shcherbak, scored his second goal of the match and extended the lead to 4:1. It seemed the outcome was decided, but Boguslavski Shershni did not give up. At 57:39 Ponomarev (assists Pleskovskikh, Vasilyev), and at 59:09 Valkun (assists Shevchenko, Aksenov) narrowed the gap to 3:4, bringing sharp intrigue back into the game and forcing the guests to play on edge.

Stetsyura's Hattrick 22 Seconds Before the Siren

The decisive moment arrived 22 seconds before the final siren: Stetsyura completed a hattrick, scoring his third goal of the match at 59:38 and setting the final score at 5:3 in favor of Odeshchyna. Thus, a single player authored half of his team's goals and effectively decided the outcome of the match in the most dramatic seconds, preventing the hosts from forcing overtime or shootouts.

Standings: Leadership and Revived Battle for Second Place

Thanks to the victory, Odeshchyna gained 17 points and strengthened its lead in the championship. Boguslavski Shershni remain in second place with 11 points, while Kremenchuk — last season's runners-up, who are currently third — have 10 points and a game in hand, giving them a real opportunity to break into second place in the upcoming rounds. It is separately noted that earlier Odeshchyna broke a nine-game losing streak against Sokol, which further reinforced their position in the race for the championship gold.