Kontinental Hockey League
Current season, competition or edition:
2015–16 KHL season
|
|
Formerly
|
Russian Superleague
|
Sport
|
Ice hockey
|
Founded
|
2008
|
President
|
Dmitry Chernyshenko
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Motto
|
Хоккей – наша игра! Khokkey - nasha igra! (Hockey is our game!)[1]
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No. of teams
|
28
|
Country
|
Belarus (1 team)
Croatia (1 team)
Finland (1 team)
Kazakhstan (1 team)
Latvia (1 team)
Russia (22 teams)
Slovakia (1 team)
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Most recent champion(s)
|
SKA Saint Petersburg (1st title)
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Most titles
|
Ak Bars Kazan (2)
Dynamo Moscow (2)
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TV partner(s)
|
List of TV stations
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KHL-TV (Russia (as part of the NTV Plus package), USA and Canada (part of ViaNetTV),[2] Latvia and international through KHL's website)
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Russia 2, Sport 1 (Russian TV channel) (Russia)[3]
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Viasat (Finland, Sweden,[3] Norway, Denmark, Bulgaria, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia)[4]
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TV6 (Latvia) (Latvia)
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Nova Sport (Czech Republic, Slovakia)[5]
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Sport 1, Sport 2 (Czech Rep., Slovakia, Hungary, Moldova)
Sportdigital.tv (Germany)
ESPN2, ESPN3, MSG Network (United States)
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ESPN (UK) (United Kingdom, Ireland)
Premier Sports (United Kingdom)
Eurosport Asia-Pacific (Asia,Oceania)
Sportitalia 2 (Italy)
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Hockey TV(Ukraine)
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DigiSport (Romania)
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RDS (Canada)
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Yle (Finland)
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Sportklub (Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia)
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Related competitions
|
Supreme Hockey League (VHL)
Junior Hockey League (MHL)
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Official website
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en.KHL.ru
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The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) (Russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya hokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises 28 member clubs based in Belarus, Croatia, Finland, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Russia and Slovakia and it is planned to expand to more countries. It is widely considered to be the premier professional ice hockey league in Europe and Asia, and second in the world behind the NHL.[6]
The Gagarin Cup is awarded annually to the league playoff champion at the end of each season. The title of Champion of Russia is given to the highest ranked Russian team.[7]
History
Establishment
The league formed from the
Russian Superleague (RSL) and the champion of the
2007–08 season of the
second division, with 24 teams: 21 from Russia and one each from
Belarus,
Latvia and
Kazakhstan. The teams were divided into 4 divisions, based on the performance in previous seasons. The
first season ended in April 2009 with
Ak Bars Kazan becoming the first ever winner of the
Gagarin Cup. In an effort to reduce the large travel distances for the teams, the
second season saw the introduction of two conferences (East and West) and the re-alignment of the divisions according to geographical criteria. In the Gagarin Cup finals, teams from the East dominated with
Ak Bars Kazan winning twice and
Salavat Yulaev Ufa once. The start of the
fourth season was overshadowed by the
Yaroslavl air disaster on 7 September 2011 in which almost all members of the team
Lokomotiv Yaroslavl lost their lives shortly after take-off for their flight to their season opening game in
Minsk. The
Opening Cup game in
Ufa, which was already under way when news of the disaster arrived, was abandoned and the start of the season postponed by five days. Lokomotiv Yaroslavl was forced to withdraw from the KHL season, but later played part of the
VHL season and returned to the KHL in 2012. In memory of the disaster, 7 September remains a day of mourning on which no KHL regular season games are held.
[8]
Team changes
In season 2009-10 joined team Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg and Khimik Voskresensk was transferred to a lower league. Next season joined HC Yugra.
After several attempts by teams from Central Europe and Scandinavia to join the KHL, expansion beyond the borders of the former Soviet Union was finally realized in 2011. Lev Poprad, a newly founded team based in Poprad, Slovakia was admitted to the league. But after only one season, Lev was replaced by a team of the same name, Lev Praha, from Prague, Czech Republic, while Slovan Bratislava from Slovakia and Ukraine's Donbass joined the KHL as expansion teams.[9] Lev and Slovan managed to draw considerable public interest and qualified for the play-offs in their first KHL season.
In 2013 Medveščak from Croatia and Russian Admiral Vladivostok joined the league, thus expanding the league even further.[10] The league comprised 28 teams during the 2013-14 season, of which 21 are based in Russia and 7 more are located in the other countries.
In 2014 Finnish team Jokerit from Helsinki, Lada Togliatti (which previously played in the league), and a newly created team named HC Sochi have joined the league.[11] However, HC Donbass do not play in the league this season, due to the political instability in Ukraine, but intend to rejoin later.[12] Two other teams, Lev Praha and Spartak Moscow, also withdrew from the 2014-2015 season due to financial problems.[13][14]
Prior to the 2015–16 season, Atlant Moscow Oblast withdrew from the KHL and on the contrary Spartak Moscow is returning to the league.[15]
Season structure
Since 2009, the league is divided into East and West conferences. In the current season, each conference includes 14 teams divided into two divisions, 7 teams per division. During the regular season, each team plays 60 games: four games against each team in their own division, two games against each of the remaining teams in the same conference, one game against each team of the other conference and 8 extra games against selected opponents.
The eight top-ranked teams in each conference receive playoff berths. Within each conference quarterfinals, semifinals and finals are played before the conference winners play against each other for the Gagarin Cup. The division winners are seeded first and second in their conference, based on their regular season record. All playoff rounds are played as best-of-seven series. In each round, the top seeded remaining team is paired with the lowest seeded team etc.[16] In the playoffs, overtime periods last 20 minutes (or until a goal is scored). The number of overtime periods is not limited.
In the 2012–13 season, the Nadezhda Cup (Cup of Hope) was introduced, a consolation tournament for the teams who did not qualify for the playoffs. The winning team in the tournament wins the first overall pick in the KHL Junior Draft. The tournament is intended to extend the season and help maintain interest in hockey in the cities of these teams, and help players of national teams prepare for upcoming World Championship.[17]
Teams
Division
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Team
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City/Area
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Arena
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Capacity
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Founded
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Joined
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Head Coach
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Captain
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Western Conference
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Bobrov
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Dinamo Minsk
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Minsk
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Minsk-Arena
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15,000
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2004
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2008
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Ľubomír Pokovič
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Alexei Kalyuzhny
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Dinamo Riga
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Riga
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Arena Riga
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10,300
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2008
|
Kari Heikkilä
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Lauris Dārziņš
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Jokerit Helsinki
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Helsinki
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Hartwall Arena
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13,349
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1967
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2014
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Erkka Westerlund
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Niko Kapanen
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Medveščak Zagreb
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Zagreb
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Arena Zagreb
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16,200
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1961
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2013
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Gordie Dwyer
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Andrew Murray
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SKA Saint Petersburg
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Saint Petersburg
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Ice Palace Saint Petersburg
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12,300
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1946
|
2008
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Andrei Nazarov
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Ilya Kovalchuk
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Slovan Bratislava
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Bratislava
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Ondrej Nepela Arena
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10,115
|
1921
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2012
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Miloš Říha
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Milan Bartovič
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Spartak Moscow
|
Moscow
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Luzhniki Minor Arena
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8,700
|
1946
|
2008
|
German Titov
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Maksim Potapov
|
Tarasov
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CSKA Moscow
|
Moscow
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CSKA Ice Palace
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5,600
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1946
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2008
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Dmitri Kvartalnov
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Denis Denisov
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Dynamo Moscow
|
Moscow
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VTB Ice Palace
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12,000
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1946
|
2008
|
Harijs Vītoliņš
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Yuri Babenko
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Lokomotiv Yaroslavl
|
Yaroslavl
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Arena 2000
|
9,000
|
1949
|
2008
|
Alexei Kudashov
|
Ilya Gorokhov
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Severstal Cherepovets
|
Cherepovets
|
Ice Palace
|
6,000
|
1956
|
2008
|
Václav Sikora
|
Andrei Shefer
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Sochi
|
Sochi
|
Bolshoy Ice Dome
|
12,000
|
2014
|
Slava Butsayev
|
Andrei Pervyshin
|
Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod
|
Nizhny Novgorod
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Trade Union Sport Palace
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5,500
|
1947
|
2008
|
Pētr Skudra
|
Vadim Khomitsky
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Vityaz Moscow Oblast
|
Podolsk
|
Vityaz Ice Palace
|
5,500
|
1998*
|
2008
|
Oleg Orekhovsky
|
Slava Solodukhin
|
Eastern Conference
|
Kharlamov
|
Ak Bars Kazan
|
Kazan
|
TatNeft Arena
|
10,000
|
1956
|
2008
|
Zinetula Bilyaletdinov
|
Alexander Svitov
|
Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg
|
Yekaterinburg
|
KRK Uralets
|
5,500
|
2006
|
2009
|
Andrei Razin
|
Sergey Gusev
|
Lada Togliatti
|
Tolyatti
|
Lada Arena
|
6,600
|
1976
|
2014 b
|
Sergei Svetlov
|
Andrei Nikitenko
|
Metallurg Magnitogorsk
|
Magnitogorsk
|
Arena Metallurg
|
7,700
|
1950
|
2008
|
Mike Keenan
|
Sergei Mozyakin
|
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk
|
Nizhnekamsk
|
SCC Arena
|
5,500
|
1968
|
2008
|
Vladimir Krikunov
|
Maxim Rybin
|
Traktor Chelyabinsk
|
Chelyabinsk
|
Traktor Sport Palace
|
7,500
|
1947
|
2008
|
Andrei Nikolishin
|
Stanislav Chistov
|
Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk
|
Khanty-Mansiysk
|
Arena Ugra
|
5,500
|
2006
|
2010
|
Pavel Yezovskikh
|
Andrei Ivanov
|
Chernyshev
|
Admiral Vladivostok
|
Vladivostok
|
Fetisov Arena
|
7,500
|
2013
|
Alexander Andrievsky
|
Oskars Bārtulis
|
Amur Khabarovsk
|
Khabarovsk
|
Platinum Arena
|
7,100
|
1966
|
2008
|
Sergei Shepelev
|
Dmitri Tarasov
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Avangard Omsk
|
Omsk
|
Omsk Arena
|
10,318
|
1950
|
2008
|
Evgeny Kornoukhov
|
Denis Kulyash
|
Barys Astana
|
Astana
|
Barys Arena
|
12,000
|
1999
|
2008
|
Yerlan Sagymbayev
|
Brandon Bochenski
|
Metallurg Novokuznetsk
|
Novokuznetsk
|
Metallurgists Sports Palace
|
8,040
|
1949
|
2008
|
Nikolai Solovyov
|
Alexander Romanov
|
Salavat Yulaev Ufa
|
Ufa
|
Ufa Arena
|
8,400
|
1957
|
2008
|
Anatoly Emelin
|
Igor Grigorenko
|
Sibir Novosibirsk
|
Novosibirsk
|
Ice Sports Palace Sibir
|
7,400
|
1962
|
2008
|
Andrei Skabelka
|
Alexei Kopeikin
|
Not participating in 2015–2016 season
|
|
Atlant Moscow Oblast
|
Mytishchi
|
Mytishchi Arena
|
7,000
|
1953*
|
2008
|
|
|
|
HC Donbass a
|
Donetsk
|
Druzhba Arena
|
4,130
|
2005
|
2012
|
|
|
|
Lev Praha
|
Prague
|
O2 Arena
|
17,383
|
2012
|
2012
|
|
|
a HC Donbass unable to play in 2015/16 due to military conflict in Donbass region.
b Lada Togliatti formerly played in Kontinental Hockey League from 2008/09 to 2009/10.
An asterisk (*) denotes a franchise relocation. See the respective team articles for more information.
Players
Though now not as restrictive in maintaining an exclusively Russian composition of players and teams, Russian teams are still not allowed to sign more than five foreign players, while non-Russian teams must have at least five players from their respective country. Foreign goaltenders on Russian teams have a limit regarding total seasonal ice time.[18]
Prior to the inaugural season, several KHL teams signed several players from the NHL.[19] A dispute between the two leagues over some of these signings was supposed to have been resolved by an agreement signed on July 10, 2008, whereby each league would honor the contracts of the other, but the signing of Alexander Radulov was made public one day after the agreement (though it was actually signed two days prior to the agreement taking effect),[20] leading to an investigation by the International Ice Hockey Federation.[21] On October 4, 2010, the conflict between the leagues was settled when both signed a new agreement to honor one another's contracts.[22]
The league set up rules for the NHL lockout which lasted from 16 September 2012 to 12 January 2013. According to the special regulations, each KHL team was allowed to add up to three NHL players to its roster, among them at most one foreign player.[23] More than 40 NHL players, the majority of them Russians, played in the KHL during the lockout.
KHL players are represented by the Kontinental Hockey League Players' Trade Union.[24]
Notable active players
The top five point scoring players in the 2011–12 season were Alexander Radulov (63 pts), Tony Mårtensson and Vadim Schipachev (59 pts each), Brandon Bochenski (58 pts) and Kevin Dallman (54 pts). The top goal scorers were Brandon Bochenski with 27, followed by Alexander Radulov and Danis Zaripov (25 each), Maxim Pestushko (24) and Tony Mårtensson with 23. The top plus-minus rating went to Tony Mårtensson who was a +35. The top goaltenders (by wins) were Michael Garnett (29), Jakub Štěpánek (21), Rastislav Staňa and Chris Holt (20 each) and Karri Rämö (19).
Nationalities of players
During the current season, players representing 16 nations have played at least one game in the KHL.[25] A player's nationality is for various reasons sometimes ambiguous. For the table presented below, the nationality "is determined based on the last country that the player represented in international competition. If a player has never played for a national team, usually the country of birth is chosen as the player nationality, unless there is strong evidence indicating otherwise".[26] For players born in former Soviet republics, the situation is often more complex due to dual citizenship and naturalization. Therefore, a list of players born in Ukraine gives case-by-case details for some of those players. In some cases, players can change their nationality registration with the league on a year-by-year basis, and their nationality with the league may not match that of their International Ice Hockey Federation registration. Non-Russians represent about 40% of the KHL players, and are mostly Central European, Nordic, and North American. In 2013–14, more than 900 players played in the league (see table below).
a - For further information, see: List of Latvians in the KHL
b - For further information, see: List of Ukrainians in the KHL
Trophies and awards
Gagarin Cup
The winner of the playoff is awarded the Gagarin Cup, the KHL Champion title and the Russian Champion title, regardless of the country the club represents. The team ranked first in the standings after the regular season, i.e. the winner of the regular season, is awarded the Continental Cup[30] (Russian: Кубок Континента, Kubok Kontinenta). The winners of the conference finals are awarded the Eastern Conference Champion Cup (Russian: Кубок Победителю конференции Восток, Kubok Pobeditelyu konferentsii Vostok) and the Western Conference Champion Cup (Russian: Кубок Победителю конференции Запад, Kubok Pobeditelyu konferentsii Zapad).[31]
The KHL presents annual awards to its most successful players. The KHL also awards the Opening Cup annually to the winner of the first game between the Gagarin Cup winner and the runner-up of the previous season. On September 10, 2011, three days after the 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl air disaster, the KHL head office decided to honor the deceased in the 2011 Opening Cup.[32]
Seasons overview
*: In the first season, Salavat Yulaev Ufa was the winner of the regular season, but the Continental Cup was not yet awarded.
Statistics
Single season records
Career records
Regular season[33]
|
Playoffs[33]
Record
|
|
Name
|
Years
|
Points
|
93
|
Sergei Mozyakin (Mytishchi, Magnitogorsk)
|
2008–2015
|
Goals
|
40
|
Sergei Mozyakin (Mytishchi, Magnitogorsk)
|
2008–2015
|
Assists
|
56
|
Patrick Thoresen (Ufa, St. Petersburg)
|
2009–2015
|
Games played
|
108
|
Ilya Gorokhov (Yaroslavl, Ufa, Atlant, Dynamo Msc)
|
2008–2015
|
Plus/minus
|
+40
|
Ilya Gorokhov (Yaroslavl, Ufa, Atlant, Dynamo Msc)
|
2008–2015
|
Penalty minutes
|
182
|
Fedor Fedorov (Nizhnekamsk, Magnitogorsk, Atlant, SKA)
|
2008–2013
|
Wins
|
44
|
Alexander Eremenko (Ufa, Dynamo Msc)
|
2008–2014
|
Shutouts
|
9
|
Petri Vehanen (Kazan, Prague)
Alexander Eremenko (Ufa, Dynamo Msc)
|
2009–2014
2008–2014
|
|
All-time team records
Since its foundation in 2008, 34 different clubs have played in the KHL, and 30 of them have at least once qualified for the playoffs. Of the current 28 teams, only two have not yet played in the playoffs. The table gives the final regular-season ranks for all teams, with the playoff performance encoded in colors. The teams are ordered by their best championship results.
|
Color
|
Result
|
Red
|
Gagarin Cup Winner
|
Yellow
|
Runner-up
|
Green
|
Conference finalist
|
Light Blue
|
Conference semifinalist
|
Blue
|
Qualified for playoffs
|
Purple
|
Nadezhda Cup Winner
|
Light Gray
|
Not qualified for playoffs
|
Gray
|
Did not play in the season
|
|
[a]: Includes record of Dynamo Moscow before the merger with HC MVD in 2010
[b]: Did not participate in the 2011-12 season due to the deadly air disaster on September 7, 2011, that killed the entire team
Attendance statistics
Total and average attendance in seasons.[34][35][36][37][38][39]
Season
|
Total Attendance
|
Average Attendance
|
2008-09
|
3,883,947
|
5,298
|
2009-10[40]
|
4,219,305
|
5,474
|
2010-11
|
4,288,666
|
5,785
|
2011-12[41]
|
4,321,518
|
5,891
|
2012-13
|
4,775,366
|
6,106
|
2013-14
|
4,596,836
|
6,081
|
2014-15
|
5,395,035
|
6,422
|
All-Star Game
The Kontinental Hockey League All-Star Game is an exhibition game held annually in January or February.
See also
References
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^ League confirms format for 2015-16 season
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^ Predator inks debatable deal - iihf.com
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^
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^
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^
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^
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^
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^ 2012-13 KHL season, Quanthockey, Retrieved 24 April 2015
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^ 2013-14 KHL season, Quanthockey, Retrieved 24 April 2015
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^ 2014-15 KHL season, Quanthockey, Retrieved 24 April 2015
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^
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^
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^
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^ a b c d
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^ Attendance figures in European hockey leagues 2009–2010
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^ Attendance in Europe and health of the fan culture 10/11
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^ Regular-Season average attendance Europe & Asia 2011–2012
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^ Regular-Season average league attendance Europe & Asia 2012–2013
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^ Attendance KHL 2013/14
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^ KHL attendance stats 2014-15
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^
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^ Regular-Season average attendance Europe & Asia 2011-2012
External links
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Official KHL
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Kontinental Hockey League official website
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Kontinental Hockey League official website (Russian)
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Kontinental Hockey League on Facebook
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Kontinental Hockey League on Twitter
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Kontinental Hockey League's channel on YouTube
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Third party
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KHL vs NHL exhibition games official homepage
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KHL news and stats from Eurohockey
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Kontinental Hockey League Players' Trade Union (Russian)
Kontinental Hockey League
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Links to related articles
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Last season teams
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IHL seasons
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RSL seasons
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Related articles
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Chernyshev Division
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Kharlamov Division
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Tarasov Division
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Bobrov Division
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Television broadcasting
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Defunct channels
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Foreign channels distributed by ECG
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Other
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Sports television in Canada
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Broadcast networks
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Full sports divisions
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Occasional or U.S. simulcasts only
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Mainstream specialty
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Sports news
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Niche specialty
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Archival
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Sport-specific
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Lifestyle and recreation
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Occasional broadcasts
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Defunct
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Foreign
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National teams
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Active leagues
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Defunct leagues
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Statistics
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Africa, Middle East, Oceania
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Americas
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Asia
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Europe (International)
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Europe (National)
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