 | This article needs to be updated.(March 2024) |
The potential of including additional franchises to the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) has been an ongoing topic since the league's inception. In June 2012, the league presented a plan that would see expansion to as many as 64 teams in up to 22 countries. [1] It has later been stated that the league only can comprise 32 teams, because of problems with logistics with more teams. [2]
United Hockey Europe was the first proposed pan-European ice hockey league. It was announced at the International Ice Hockey Federation's September 2009 congress by Alexander Medvedev, president of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). [3]
The proposed league would have consisted of two conferences split into four divisions. The current KHL would have made up one of the conferences. The other conference would have been composed of a Scandinavian division and a Central European division. The winners of the two conferences would have played each other for the overall championship. [3]
The proposal of June 2012 at the International Hockey Forum in Barcelona was an updated version of this plan, that would see two conferences of 32 teams each, playing a 62-game regular schedule followed by five rounds of playoffs. [1]
The KHL would essentially replace the current model of European hockey based on promotion and relegation within national systems, supplemented by an international tournament, most recently the Champions Hockey League, and replace it with a system of franchises much like that of the North American National Hockey League (NHL).
The Czech Republic's HC Energie Karlovy Vary [4] [5] signed letters of intent with the KHL in 2008 and hoped to begin playing in the 2009–10 season. [6] However, they had to annul plans to join the league [7] due to the financial crisis of 2007–2010. [8]
German teams Eisbären Berlin [9] and Kölner Haie [10] have been approached by the KHL but are currently not considering joining the league. The KHL also wants to expand to Austria by affiliating EC Red Bull Salzburg. SKA Saint Petersburg General manager Barry Smith said that an affiliation may be possible in three or four years. Red Bull and team owner Dietrich Mateschitz, however, favours playing in the German Deutsche Eishockey Liga. [11] [12]
Italian hockey club Hockey Milano Rossoblu was slated to join the KHL in the 2012–13 season [13] but the move was delayed due to a small arena, tight finances and the club being too underdeveloped. In October 2012, they indicated plans intending to join in 2013–14. [14] There has been doubt about Milano's accession to KHL, as the negotiations have lasted several years. However, both KHL and Milano are still positive to accession, concluded from a meeting in February 2014. [15]
A group from Switzerland was interested in starting an expansion team in Huttwil for the 2014–15 season. [16]
The owners of Polish club Olivia, based in Gdańsk, have applied in January 2013 for a new team, Oliva Gdansk, to join the KHL and play home games at Ergo Arena. [17]
In September 2016, KHL president Dmitry Chernyshenko stated, while they were still negotiating with a new team from London, there were also requests from Milan, Dresden and Geneva. [18]
On 28 April 2009, it was reported that Swedish teams HV71, Linköpings HC, Färjestad BK, Frölunda HC and Djurgårdens IF (of which Färjestad and Frölunda have had offers previously from the KHL) had terminated their shareholders' agreements with Elitserien (now named the Swedish Hockey League or SHL). [19] This caused speculation as to whether they wanted to join the KHL or create a new league as an expansion of the Nordic Trophy. None of the clubs officially said that they wanted to stop playing in the Elitserien, although the seven remaining clubs drew such conclusions. [20] The quarrel was resolved on 16 November 2011, when the plans were officially put down. All clubs agreed to continue their operation in Elitserien. [21] [22]
It is possible that the KHL will have a new team from Vilnius, Lithuania. In Autumn of 2009, KHL's SKA Saint Petersburg and Ak Bars Kazan played an exhibition game there, with more such games likely in the future. The main hurdles to be overcome for bringing a team there is funding, as well as the fact that basketball is a more popular sport in the region. [23] The team would be called Vėtra Vilnius, and would be an expansion of the Sports Association Vėtra. [24]
In November 2009, the KHL and AIK IF from Stockholm, Sweden (at that time playing in the HockeyAllsvenskan) signed a document inviting AIK to become a member of the KHL, and join the league beginning in the 2010–11 season, provided that AIK observed all the terms and conditions, and met all KHL admission criteria. [25] AIK's interest was largely due to the club's serious financial problems at that time, however, in the end, AIK were unable to join after the plan was rejected by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association. [26] Later during the 2009–10 season, AIK were promoted back to the top Swedish league, which stabilized their finances for the time being. In January 2016, SIHA manager Mikael Lundström stated that they're stopping all Swedish teams from joining the KHL. According to Russia Today News, Finnish team Kärpät from Liiga was also interested. [27] Another real candidate from Finland may have been the Espoo Blues, [28] but they went bankrupt at the end of the 2015–16 Liiga season.
In March 2016, information reached media about plans to form a team in Sweden-the Crowns-that intended to join the KHL for the 2016–17 season. Their plan was to hold the matches in Malmö, Oslo, Copenhagen, Lillehammer and Stockholm. [29] However, IIHF CEO René Fasel stated that as long as the national federation is against KHL play, the IIHF will not approve new KHL teams from that nation. This made the Crowns' plan impossible, as the SIHA rejects any KHL participation from Swedish teams; the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia also did not approve. [30]
The Belarus Ice Hockey Federation has announced that it plans to include up to four Belarusian teams in the KHL, with league VP Vladimir Shalaev confirming the prospect of adding a second Belarusian KHL team for the 2009–10 season. [12] [31] Of these, Yunost Minsk, along with HK Gomel (which may relocate to Babruysk due to arena complications) of the Belarusian Extraleague, are actively taking steps to join the KHL. [31] [32]
Ukraine's Sokil Kiev has attempted to join, but financial issues have delayed a bid. They have a new 12,000-seat arena due in 2012 and are currently in negotiation with the KHL to join in the near future. President of the Hockey Federation of Ukraine, Anatoliy Brezvin, stated "I can not say under what brand it will be [...] Sokil, HC Kiev or some other. But there is some agreement that the next season will be [a] team from Ukraine, with Ukrainian players in the KHL." [33] Also from Kiev, the expansion HC Budivelnyk had signed letters of intent and planned on joining the KHL for the 2010–11 season, but support fell through due to bureaucratic complications with the arena. Budivelnyk had even signed several players and personnel in order to ice a team for the coming season. HC Berkut has stated its goals are to build a new arena and join the KHL. [34]
Russian team Krylya Sovetov were interested to join the league for the 2010–11 season; [35] however, after 2011 they were not able to continue to operate as a professional hockey club and withdrew from the championship on all levels.
Kazzinc-Torpedo, currently playing in the Supreme Hockey League, has been in negotiations to join the KHL. [36] The club, formerly known as Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk, used to play in the highest division during the Soviet era. Torpedo has typically been the most dominant developmental club in Kazakhstan. Most Kazakh players who have reached the NHL trace their roots to Torpedo. [37]
It was reported that Binokor Tashkent which played in Uzbekistan Hockey League could appear in the Kontinental Hockey League in either 2018/19 or 2019/20 after the proposed opening of Humo Arena. [38]
In March 2019, Binokor Tashkent reportedly had a pathway of entering KHL via competing in second-tier league VHL by 2020 at the earliest. The possible time for getting into KHL will be 2022 with training adequate players and sufficient preparations. Newly opened Humo Arena will host home matches for Binokor. [39] On 31 May 2019 it was announced that Humo Tashkent would be joining the VHL for the 2019–20 season and not Binokor Tashkent as originally assumed. [40]
Former ice hockey player and member of the council of the Ice hockey Federation Viacheslav Fetisov, has expressed hopes of expanding the KHL into several countries in East Asia, including China, Japan, South Korea and even North Korea; [41] and the development of a Far East division in KHL was discussed in a meeting with the board in July, 2014. [42]
In August 2018, vice-president of KHL commented on the possibility of expanding the league in UAE. [43] There was no official discussion with UAE Ice Sports Federation.
In February 2019, president of the Emirates Ice Hockey League (EHL) Vladimir Burdun announced the goal of entering an UAE team in KHL by 2021. He also aimed at strengthening UAE ice hockey team by 2020, in order to get players ready for NHL. A new ice arena is expected to open in Abu Dhabi in 2019 which meets all the requirements of the KHL. [44] The plan was to replicate the success of another ice hockey team situated in deserts, Vegas Golden Knights. NHL and KHL stars such as Pavel Datsyuk, Sergei Mozyakin, Alexander Ovechkin were mentioned to improve competitiveness. [45]
| Team | City/Area | League | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
 Genève-Servette HC | Geneva | National League | Expressed hopes to join in the future. [18] [46] |
 Ilves Tallinn | Tallinn | Expansion | Had intentions to join prior to 2016–17 season. [47] [48] |
 Crowns [49] | Malmö and Stockholm [50] | Expansion | Had intentions to join prior to 2016–17 season; [47] now possible for the 2017–18 season. [51] |
 London Emperors | London | Expansion | Had intentions to join prior to 2016–17 season. [47] Requires new arena. [48] |
 ORG Star Ice Hockey Club | Beijing | Expansion | Expressed hopes to join in the future. [52] |
 Binokor Tashkent | Tashkent | Uzbekistan Hockey League | Could join in either 2018–19 or 2019–20. Terms of the club's admission into the league directly depend on the date of putting their new arena (Humo Arena) into operation. [53] |
 Vålerenga Ishockey | Oslo | GET-ligaen | Vålerenga discussed joining the KHL in 2014–15, [54] and again in 2015–16. [55] |
| Stavanger Oilers | Stavanger | GET-ligaen | Expressed hopes to join in the future. [56] |
 Rubin Tyumen | Tyumen | Supreme Hockey League | Requires new arena. [57] |
 Hockey Milano Rossoblu | Milan | Elite.A (formally Serie A) | Have had partnership with the KHL since 2011. [14] [58] Unclear if and when the team will join the league. |
 Olivia Gdańsk | Gdańsk | Expansion | Applied for KHL expansion prior to 2013–14 season, but were not approved for financial reasons. [59] |
| Huttwil Helvetics | Huttwil | Expansion | Planned to join league in 2015. |
Tomáš Surový is a Slovak former professional ice hockey left winger who last played for Slovan Bratislava of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
David Printz is a Swedish former professional ice hockey defenseman, who last played for Frölunda HC of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (20), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1) and China (1) for a total of 23 clubs.
Patrik Zackrisson is a professional Swedish ice hockey centre. He is currently playing for Leksands IF of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
Björn Linus Videll is a Swedish professional ice hockey forward, currently playing with Södertälje SK of the HockeyAllsvenskan (Allsv).
Hockey Club Dinamo Minsk is an ice hockey team based in Minsk, Belarus. They are members of the Tarasov Division of the Kontinental Hockey League.
Paul Szczechura is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward. He is currently an unrestricted free agent who most recently played for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Hockey Club Barys, also referred to as Barys Astana or HC Barys, is a professional ice hockey team based in Astana, Kazakhstan. It is one of the founding members of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). They play in the league's Chernyshev Division of the Eastern Conference. Their home arena is the Barys Arena, where they have played since the 2015–16 KHL season. Prior to 2015, the team played home games at the Kazakhstan Sports Palace for 14 seasons, beginning in 2001. The head coach is Andrei Skabelka and the president is Boris Ivanishchev. The team serves as a base club for the Kazakhstan national ice hockey team.
Kirill Sergeyevich Kabanov is a Russian professional ice hockey forward, who is currently playing for the Aalborg Pirates in the Metal Ligaen (DEN). He played ten games with HC Spartak Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) before moving to North America. Kabanov also played for the Russian junior team at the 2009 IIHF World U18 Championships where he won a silver medal. Kabanov was selected 65th overall by the New York Islanders in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.
HC Budivelnyk was a potential professional ice hockey team based in Kyiv, Ukraine. It planned to join the Kontinental Hockey League for the 2010-11 season. However, on June 24, 2010, the team's management announced the postponement of the team's debut in the KHL. If it had joined the KHL, it would have been the first Ukrainian hockey team to compete at the elite level of European hockey since 1996, when the Russian Superleague was formed. The team was owned and operated by the same group as the Kyiv-based basketball club, BC Budivelnyk.
The 2010–11 KHL season was the third season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It was held from 8 September 2010 and ended on 16 April 2011.
Tim Heed is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently playing with HC Ambrì-Piotta of the National League (NL). Heed was originally selected by the Anaheim Ducks 132nd overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.
Johan William Sundström is a Swedish ice hockey player who is currently playing professionally with Frölunda HC in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
Hockey Club Donbass was a Ukrainian professional ice hockey team based in Druzhkivka, that played in the Ukrainian Hockey League and briefly the KHL which saw the club fold in 2021.
HK Binokor Tashkent, is an ice hockey team based in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. They played in the lower level Soviet leagues from 1971 to 1988. The club was re-founded in 2012 and joined the newly created Uzbekistan Hockey League.
Philip Holm is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenseman who is currently playing with Örebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
Rivalries in the KHL come in many categories. There's many rivalries that have carried over from the days of the Russian Superleague, while others are new and may disappear. Some are based on geography, while others are based on team names or organization that these teams belonged to back in the Soviet Union. Not all teams have pronounced rivalries that don't change with each season - this article attempts to chronicle only those that last for multiple years.
HC Kunlun Red Star is a Chinese professional ice hockey club that joined the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) prior to the 2016–17 season.
The Humo Arena, also known as Ice Dome Tashkent or Humo Ice Dome, is a multifunctional indoor arena located in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Humo Arena is the biggest hockey arena in Central Asia with a capacity of 12,500 and the second after the Belarusian Minsk Arena in the CIS.
Humo Hockey Club, commonly referred to as Humo Tashkent, is a professional ice hockey team based in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Originally a member of the Uzbekistan Ice Hockey League, Humo joined the Kazakhstan Hockey Championship for the 2022–23 Season. Humo play their games at the Humo Arena. both the team and arena derive their names from the mythical Huma bird, a symbol of happiness and freedom. They formerly Play in The Supreme Hockey League From 2019 to 2020.
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