Valeri Borisovich Kharlamov was a Russian ice hockey forward who played for CSKA Moscow in the Soviet League from 1967 until his death in 1981. Although small in stature, Kharlamov was a speedy, intelligent, skilled and dominant player, being named the Soviet Championship League most valuable player in 1972 and 1973. An offensive player who was considered very creative on the ice, he also led the league in scoring in 1972. He was also a gifted skater who was able to make plays at top speed. Kharlamov was considered one of the best players of his era, as well as one of the greatest players of all time.
The Russian men's national ice hockey team is the national men's ice hockey team of Russia, overseen by the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia. As of 2021, they were rated third in the IIHF World Ranking. The team has competed internationally from 1992 until it was provisionally suspended in 2022, and is recognized by the IIHF as the successor to the Soviet Union team and CIS team. Russia has been one of the most successful national ice hockey teams in the world and a member of the so-called "Big Six," the unofficial group of the six strongest men's ice hockey nations, along with Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden, and the United States. The European nations of the Big Six participate in the Euro Hockey Tour, which Russia won nine times since 2005. Since September 2021, the head coach is Alexei Zhamnov, who took over from Valeri Bragin.
Boris Petrovich Mikhailov is a former Russian ice hockey player.
HC CSKA Moscow is a Russian professional ice hockey club based in Moscow. The club is a member of the Tarasov Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). It is referred to in the West as "Central Red Army" or the "Red Army Team" for its affiliation with the Soviet Army, known as the Red Army until 1946, and the Russian Armed Forces. CSKA won more Soviet championships and European cups than any other team in history. It is owned by Russia's largest oil company, Rosneft, which is in turn majority-owned by the Russian government.
Traktor Chelyabinsk, also known as Traktor, or HC Traktor Chelyabinsk, is a professional ice hockey team based in Chelyabinsk, Russia. They are members of the Kharlamov Division of the Eastern Conference of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). From 1967 to 2009 the team played their home games at the Yunost Sport Palace. In 2009 the team moved to the arena now called Traktor Ice Arena named after Valery Belousov, their present home arena in Chelyabinsk.
Vyacheslav Arkadevich "Slava" Bykov is a Russian former professional ice hockey player and a former head coach of the Russian national hockey team. A small, technically gifted center, he was a regular fixture on the Soviet national ice hockey team in the 1980s; after the fall of the Soviet Union, he played for the Russian team in the 1990s. He was drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft in the 9th round at number 169 overall. He opted, however, not to play in the National Hockey League, playing in Russia and Europe. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2014.
Viktor Aleksandrovich Zinger was a Russian ice hockey goaltender. As a member of the Soviet national team he won gold medals at the Winter Olympics in 1968 and at the world championships in 1965–1969; on all those occasions he was a backup for Viktor Konovalenko, except for 1969. Zinger also toured Canada as a member of a Moscow Selects team that played the Canadian National team and various club teams. Zinger was inducted into the Russian and Soviet Hockey Hall of Fame in 1967.
Sergei Vladimirovich Andronov is a Russian professional ice hockey player for SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League. He previously played in the KHL with Lada Togliatti, CSKA Moscow and Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.
The KHL's Bobrov Division was formed in 2008 as part of the league's inauguration and is part of the Western conference since the second season of KHL when the conferences were established. It is one of 4 divisions. It is named in honor of Vsevolod Bobrov; storied ice hockey gold medalist for the Soviet Union and former CSKA and VVS player.
Sergei Sergeyevich Plotnikov is a Russian professional ice hockey forward for SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Plotnikov previously played in the KHL with Amur Khabarovsk, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl and CSKA Moscow. He has played briefly in the National Hockey League with the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Arizona Coyotes.
Valeri Nikolayevich Bragin is the current assistant coach of SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He is also a retired ice hockey forward. He is former coach of the CSKA Moscow team in the KHL and the Russian national team. He is an ethnic Tatar.
Mat Robinson is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. Robinson played professionally from 2009 to 2022, most notably in the KHL, with CSKA Moscow with whom he won the Gagarin Cup Championship in 2019. He also played in the KHL with Dinamo Riga, and SKA Saint Petersburg.
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.
Lars Johansson is a Swedish professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for Frölunda HC of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). His brother, Martin, is a skier and orienteer.
Yaroslav Dyblenko is a Russian professional ice hockey defenceman. He currently playing under contract with Severstal Cherepovets of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Sergey Aleksandrovich Tolchinsky is a Russian professional ice hockey forward who is currently playing with SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He has formerly played with the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Roman Borisovich Rotenberg is a Finnish and Russian entrepreneur, manager and ice hockey executive. He is first vice-president of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, general manager of the Russia national ice hockey team, Gazprombank vice-president, member of the Kontinental Hockey League board of directors, Deputy Chairman of the KHL board, Deputy Chairman of the SKA Hockey Club board of directors, SKA CEO and vice-president, founder of Vitawin company. Founder of a number of other companies in the sports marketing, media and sports equipment markets. He is also active in these following fields: owner of the Hartwall Arena stadium, chairman of the Arena Events board of directors and is Gazprom Export's consultant on external communications.
The 2018–19 KHL season was the 11th season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The season started on 1 September 2018 and ended on 19 April 2019. Continental Cup winners CSKA Moscow became the first team to win the Gagarin Cup finals in a series sweep, defeating Avangard Omsk in four games to win their first Gagarin Cup, after two previous Finals defeats.
The 2019 Gagarin Cup playoffs of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) began on 25 February 2019, with the top eight teams from each of the conferences, following the conclusion of the 2018–19 KHL regular season. The playoffs ended on 19 April 2019, when Continental Cup winners CSKA Moscow became the first team to win the Gagarin Cup finals in a series sweep, defeating Avangard Omsk in four games to win their first Gagarin Cup, after two previous Finals defeats.
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