About what the playoffs are in hockey. What is the KHL: characteristics, teams, season structure, trophies How many games before the playoffs in the KHL

Let's try to answer basic questions about the rules of hockey matches without unnecessary verbiage.

How long does a hockey match last?

A hockey match lasts 60 minutes – three periods 20 minutes plus two breaks 15 minutes each. That is, taking into account breaks, a hockey match lasts 90 minutes.

The team that scores the most goals into the opponent's goal wins.

Overtime (extra time) in hockey

Appointed if the teams played in a draw during regular time. According to the rules of the regular season, there is only one overtime, they play 3 on 3, duration is 5 minutes. If during this time the puck has not been scored into any goal, a series of shootouts (free throws) is carried out.

Overtime in the playoffs is different, the duration here is 20 minutes, they play 4 on 4, the number is unlimited, the game is played until the first goal is scored.

How many people are on a hockey team?

Six players take to the field, one goalkeeper and five outfield players - 2 defenders and 3 attackers (forwards). In total, 20-25 players usually come to the match. Substitutions are possible at any time, during pauses and directly during playing time, and the team can also replace the goalkeeper with one more player.

Each player must be appropriately equipped; hockey players’ equipment consists of skates, sticks, outerwear and protection.

Throwing in hockey

A icing is a situation when a player of one of the teams sends the puck from his half of the ice (from behind the red line), it passes across the entire field and crosses the goal line of the second team without touching any hockey player. After the icing, the puck is put into play in the defensive zone of the team that completed it.

The forwarding is not recorded if:

• At the moment when the player sent the puck forward, the throwing team was playing in the minority;
• The icing occurred immediately after the puck was dropped;
• A player of the opposing team (except the goalie) had the opportunity to pick up the puck before it crossed the goal line, but did not do so;
• The goalkeeper, being outside the goal area, moved towards the puck;
• The puck flies into the goal (in this case a goal is counted);

Offside in ice hockey

If the rule for entering the zone is violated, it is recorded as offside (offside position). Called if the puck enters the zone of one of the teams, and a player of the opposing team is in this zone (if both of his skates are completely behind the line defining the boundary of the zone).

The assistant referee raises his hand, and if a player from the attacking team touches the puck or it goes into the goal, the game is stopped. A throw-in is awarded in the middle zone. If the puck is not touched, play continues, but the offside continues until all attacking players leave the opponents' zone or the puck leaves the zone. If any of the conditions are met, the assistant referee must lower his hand and the teams will continue the game.

Violations in hockey

The following are considered violations:

• Push on board (power move)
• Impact with the end of the stick
• Wrong attack
• Attacking an opponent from behind
• Cut-off (a forceful move in a cut-off manner either at or below the level of the opponent's knees)
• Push with a stick
• Elbow strike
• Exceptional roughness (an action not permitted by the rules that results or may result in injury to an opponent, team official or referee)
• Fighting or rudeness
• High stick
• Holding your opponent with your hands
• Holding the opponent's stick with your hands
• Stick hold
• Attack by a player not in possession of the puck (blocking)
• Kick
• Foul using the knee
• Hit with a stick
• Thrust
• Step
• Attack to the head and neck area
• Unsportsmanlike conduct by players
• Unsportsmanlike behavior on the part of team representatives
• Violation of numerical strength
• Intentional release of the puck
• Deliberate goal shift
• Violation of equipment rules
• Intentional delay of game
• Playing with a high stick
• Hand pass
• Puck delay

Depending on the severity of the violation, one of the following types of fines is imposed:

• Small

Given for minor violations. The player is removed for 2 minutes without the right to be replaced. If the goalkeeper receives a penalty, the penalty is served by any player on the court at the choice of the coach of the offending team. Can be withdrawn early if a goal is scored.

• Command

The whole team gets it. Usually for a violation of the numerical strength, when, as a result of an incorrectly carried out change of fives, there is an extra field player on the ice. Any player at the coach's discretion will serve the penalty. Can be withdrawn early if a goal is scored.

The penalty time statistics is 2 minutes.

• Big

The player (at the captain's choice) is removed for 5 minutes without the right to be replaced. Additionally, a disciplinary fine may be imposed. Cannot be withdrawn early.

The penalty time statistics is 5 minutes.

• Disciplinary

The player is removed for 10 minutes with the right to be replaced. After the penalty time has expired, the penalized player may leave the penalty box at the first stoppage of play. A repeated violation by one player is punishable by a disciplinary penalty for the rest of the game.

The penalty time statistics is 10 minutes.

• Disciplinary until the end of the game

The player or team official is removed until the end of the game with the right to be replaced and sent to the stands. After the game, the referee must file a report, and the competition organizer may impose an additional penalty.

The penalty time statistics are 20 minutes.

• Match penalty

The player is removed for the rest of the game with the right to be replaced after 5 minutes, disqualified for the next match and sent to the tribune room. Any player on the court, at the captain's discretion, serves a 5-minute penalty. After the game, the referee must file a report, and the competition organizer may impose an additional penalty. The 5 minute penalty cannot be removed early.

The penalty time statistics are 25 minutes.

• Free throw

A penalty throw (shootout) is awarded to the offending team. The goalkeeper of the offending team and the opposing field player remain on the court. The puck is placed in the center of the field in front of the field player, the chief referee blows the whistle, after which the player begins to approach the goalkeeper and makes one shot at goal without the possibility of finishing.

KHL Championship

The regular championship of the Kontinental Hockey League is held once a year. Teams from Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, China, Latvia, Slovakia, and Finland converge on the ice to compete for victory.

During the championship, each team plays 56 matches - two matches with each of the opponents, plus four additional games.

The result of these games is determined:

• winner of the KHL Regular Championship - winner of the Continental Cup. V.V. Tikhonov;
• Division winners (4 in total);
• the order of places occupied by clubs in the Conferences (two conferences, Eastern and Western), to determine the teams that made it to the playoffs.

What is the Playoffs

The playoffs are the second stage of the KHL Championship - knockout games.

Based on the results of the regular KHL Championship, the winner of the Continental Cup named after Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov is determined. Based on the results of the playoffs, the champion of Russia is determined, which is the best Russian club, and the champion of the KHL is the winner of the Gagarin Cup.

8 teams from conferences advance to the playoffs, that is, a total of 16 teams that took first place in the standings, which are determined by the sum of points scored in all matches of the First Stage of the Championship. The teams are divided into pairs, the one that takes the highest place in the table plays with the one that took the lowest, the second in a row plays with the penultimate one, etc. This is the quarterfinals - the first stage. Teams meet until one of them reaches 4 wins.

The next stage is the semi-finals. The winners – 8 teams, 4 from each Conference – advance to the semi-finals. This is followed by the grand final and conference finals, a series of games between the strongest teams in the East and West. There will be only one winner - the KHL Champion and the Gagarin Cup winner.

If you have only recently become interested in the exciting world of hockey, then it is very likely that much of it will be incomprehensible to you at first. For example, what is the KHL? We will cover all the significant characteristics of the league.

What is the KHL?

KHL - Continental Hockey League. This is an international open association whose members are hockey clubs from the Russian Federation, China, Slovakia, Kazakhstan, Finland, Belarus, and Latvia. Every year teams compete for the main trophy - the Gagarin Cup. In addition to him, the Continental Cup named after. Tikhonov and the title of Russian club champion.

KHL games have been played since 2008 - that’s when the league was formed. Initially it consisted of 24 clubs. Today (season 2017/2018) their number has increased to 27.

The total attendance at KHL games is as follows:

• Regular championships - 3.5-5.2 million viewers in different seasons.
• Play-offs - from 450 to 600 thousand spectators.

If you look at attendance, the most favorite teams are Avangard, SKA, Dinamo-Minsk.

The Continental League includes the KHL itself, as well as the MHL (youth league) and the WHL (women's league).

History of formation

In 1996, the International Hockey League was disbanded: the best teams of the CIS had no choice but to participate only in national competitions. In 2005, V. Fetisov (head of the Federal Agency for Culture and Sports of the Russian Federation) proposed a league project for Russia, Latvia, Belarus, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan. It should be independent from the Professional Hockey League and the Russian Hockey Federation, and at the same time be commercially oriented, like the NHL.

The idea was vigorously discussed for several seasons, but it could not be realized. In February 2008, a decision was signed to start the Open Russian Hockey League (then the ORHL was renamed the KHL). What is the KHL? This is a project in which it was possible to implement almost all planned ideas:

• participation of both CIS teams and Western European clubs;
• certain salary ceilings;
• junior draft;
• ungrouping into divisions;
• playoff competitions up to 4 wins;
• strict requirements for the infrastructure of clubs;
• personal cup;
• membership of clubs belonging to the Super League.

The KHL's pioneering standings appeared in the 2008-2009 season. The first goal was scored by hockey player A. Nizhivy (Dynamo Riga) against Amur. Initially, the participants were 21 clubs from the Russian Federation and three teams from Latvia, Kazakhstan and Belarus. Ak Bars became the first KHL champion and winner of the Gagarin Cup.

Geographical division

What is the KHL? These are two conferences - Eastern and Western. Each of them has two more divisions within itself - each is named after a famous hockey player. The result is:

• Eastern Conference.
  • Chernyshev Division:
    • "Avangard" from Omsk;
    • "Amur" from Khabarovsk;
    • "Admiral" from Vladivostok;
    • "Barys" from Astana;
    • "Kunlun" from Beijing;
    • "Siberia" from Novosibirsk;
    • "Salavat Yulaev" from Ufa.
  Kharlamov Division:
  • "Ak Bars" from Kazan;
  • "Avtomobilist" from Yekaterinburg;
  • "Lada" from Tolyatti;
  • "Metallurg" from Magnitogorsk;
  • "Neftekhimik" from Nizhnekamsk;
  • "Traktor" from Chelyabinsk;
  • "Ugra" from Khanty-Mansiysk.
• Western Conference.
  • Tarasov Division:
    • "Vityaz" from Podolsk;
    • "Dynamo" from Moscow;
    • "Lokomotiv" from Yaroslavl;
    • "Sochi";
    • "Severstal" from Cherepovets;
    • "Torpedo" from N. Novgorod;
    • CSKA from Moscow.
  • Bobrov Division:
    • "Dynamo" from Riga;
    • "Dynamo" from Minsk;
    • "Yorkite" from Helsinki;
    • "Slovan" from Bratislava;
    • "Spartak" from Moscow;
    • SKA from St. Petersburg.

Season structure

Let's look at the structure of competitions held by the KHL.

Regular season. The first stage is 56 games for each team. Of these, 52 are played twice with each opponent, plus 4 additional games are scheduled. Points are awarded here as follows:

• 3 - for victory.
• 2 - for a shootout or victory in overtime.
• 1 - for a loss in shootouts or overtime.

The club that scores the most points will be victorious in the regional championship. He is awarded the Continental Cup.

Playoffs. Those teams that took 1st to 8th place in the conferences move on to the second stage of the competition. The first 2 places go to the winners within their divisions.

At this stage the following are determined:

• winners of the Western and Eastern Conferences;
• winner of the Gagarin Cup;
• champion of the Russian Federation, as well as silver and bronze medalists.

In addition, the “Hope” tournament is held for those teams who took 9th and lower places at the first stage.

Trophies, awards and winners

In the KHL, the results of victories are as follows:

• Gagarin Cup - to the winner in the playoff competition.
• Continental Cup - the team that finished the regular season with the maximum number of points.
• The Nadezhda Cup is played among clubs that are not included in the playoffs.
• Prize "Second" - to the players who scored the latest and fastest goal.
• Cherepanov Trophy - to the best hockey player who played his first season in the KHL.
• "Golden Stick" - to the most valuable player in regular competitions.
• Prize for the best hockey player in the playoffs.
• Special trophies for the best referee, head of the KHL club.

In conclusion, let's look at the absolute champions - winners of the Gagarin Cup:

• "Ak Bars" - 2009, 2010
• "Metallurg-Magnitogorsk" - 2014, 2016
• "Dynamo-Moscow" - 2012, 2014
• SKA - 2015, 2017
• "Salavat Yulaev" - 2011

So we figured out what the KHL is. In terms of the entertainment value of the games, the star quality of the hockey players, and the professionalism of the teams, the Continental League today is not inferior to the NHL.

The KHL regular championship is gradually entering the home stretch. The teams have already completed approximately 2/3 of the entire tournament distance. In the West and East, leaders, outsiders, as well as those clubs that will continue to fight for a place in the coveted cup eight have been identified. Let's try to assess the current position of the teams and predict which of them will still manage to make it to the playoffs at the end of the season.

West

In the Western Conference, the leaders on paper became leaders in practice. SKA, under the leadership of Oleg Znark, managed to cope with the high pressure in the post-championship season and is rightfully in 1st place. The team from the banks of the Neva, which had the best start in the history of the KHL and set a record for the number of matches won in a row, continues to confidently gain points. The only inconvenient opponent for the St. Petersburg team was Sochi, to which they lost in both head-to-head matches.

CSKA, which replaced its head coach in the off-season and entrusted the management of the team to Igor Nikitin, spent a long time searching for its game and deciding on combinations of players, which could not but affect the club’s performance. The difficult period seems to be behind us. “Army” has gained a confident momentum, winning 14 victories in the last 15 matches, and is firmly in 2nd place in its conference.

Compared to last season, Jokerit made a significant leap forward. The Finnish team, which qualified for the playoffs last year only from 8th place, is demonstrating very meaningful hockey this year. It seems that the change of coach and a fair amount of roster changes have benefited the Jokers. Jukka Jalonen continues to amaze and, at the same time, is not afraid to trust young people. The club from Helsinki features the best newcomer of the 10th KHL season - the inimitable virtuoso Eli Tolvanen, who scored 31 points in 38 matches. It's only the beginning!

Lokomotiv, which acquired a new head coach during the regular season, very quickly returned to its former reliable game and returned to its usual high place in the standings. Dmitry Kvartalnov revived a train that had gone astray and had slowed down. The club from Yaroslavl is currently in 4th place and continues the race behind Jokerit.

Trying to keep up with the top four and Torpedo. The Nizhny Novgorod club, which is experiencing problems with financing, despite the difficulties, continues to amaze with its stability. Yes, the game of Peteris Skudra’s team can hardly be called bright and effective; goals are given to them with great difficulty. But, most importantly, there is a result. With a negative difference in goals scored and goals conceded, the Volga team has 71 points and ranks 5th in the West.

From 6th place to 9th, the density of teams in the West increases significantly. The Moscow Dynamo team, located behind Torpedo, has 65 points. Next come Spartak, Sochi and Severstal, 4-5 points behind the Blue and White. Considering the fact that the teams still have about a third of the regular season to play, all four clubs have a chance of reaching the playoffs.

Much will depend on how the teams will conduct head-to-head meetings with each other, in which, in fact, 6 points will be played out at once. In the meantime, Spartak and Sochi have higher chances of getting into the playoffs. They, unlike Severstal, have more points scored in fewer meetings.

But Dynamo Minsk and Vityaz seem to have dropped out of the fight for a place in the eight cup zone. The club from Belarus missed too much time at the start of the championship. The reason for this is the drastic changes in the composition and on the coaching bridge. The team from Minsk lost in the last four meetings. But, if away defeats from Salavat Yulaev, Ak Bars and Neftekhimik can be attributed to the high level of competitors, then a home failure in the confrontation with Riga is a real nightmare for both the team itself and its fans.

Not everything is going smoothly this season for Vityaz either. The Podolsk team, left without key players in the off-season, could not find an equivalent replacement for them. None of the foreign players signed in the summer, with the exception of Czech defender Mozik, was able to strengthen Valery Belov’s team. Finnish forwards Rissanen and Mankinen, considered KalPa's leaders, quickly faded into the shadows, and Swedish defensive player Burström made mistakes too often. The management of the Moscow region club invited other foreigners to replace the legionnaires who did not live up to expectations, but there was practically no time left to correct the current situation.

“Slovan” and “Dynamo” Riga have firmly settled at the very bottom of the standings and, it seems, have already resigned themselves to their sad fate as outsiders. Neither Eduard Zankovets nor Girts Ankipans managed to radically change the situation in the distressed clubs. In Bratislava and Riga, work has already begun on forming teams for the next season. This year turned out to be a bad year for European teams.

East

In the East, unlike the West, even at the very top of the standings there is still intrigue. Most recently, “Barys” was in first place, but after the November break, it seriously declined and ended up in seventh position. Ak Bars stands out from other teams. First of all, its stability. Zinetuly Bilyaletdinov’s team has a very strong and well-played squad, reinforced by the experienced Danis Zaripov. It is the Kazan team that is the main favorite of the Eastern Conference.

Starting from second place the fun begins. “Avangard”, located behind “Ak Bars”, has 66 points, and “Amur”, occupying the 9th position, got 57 points, having played one match less than the Omsk team. Two or three defeats in a row can push any team beyond the playoffs and deprive it of the opportunity to compete in the knockout round. It is for this reason that the struggle for a place in the sun in the East seems hotter than in the West.

“Avangard” under the leadership of Skabelka shows dynamic hockey. The team always tries to act as number one and dictate its terms to any opponent. But this doesn’t always work out. The young Omsk team lacks stability and composure. It is still in the intermediate stage of maturation. The Siberians miss too many scoring chances and are in dire need of leaders. The Swedish legionnaires, from whom Andrei Skabelka clearly expected more, are also far from their best.

“Avtomobilist” is in 3rd place and continues to stick to its line. Vladimir Krikunov’s team plays very nice hockey, which cannot but please the fans from Yekaterinburg. The Ural club this season boasts an enviable depth of roster and the signing of a number of quality foreign players. The Ekaterinburg team had a fruitful pre-season and are not slackening during the physics meetings. If things continue to go just as well for Avtomobilist, then Krikunov will have a good opportunity to make some noise in the playoffs and end his coaching career on a positive note.

Following the Urals, Neftekhimik settled down. In Nizhnekamsk, the coaching hand of Andrei Nazarov and his ability to squeeze the maximum out of players are very clearly visible. The off-season selection was carried out very well. All the legionnaires have come to the Tatar team’s court and are making a difference in it. It is likely that the current 4th place is not the limit for Nazarov’s team.

But “Magnitka” and “Traktor”, which are in 5th and 6th positions, are surprising this year with a minus sign. Metallurg has already gotten rid of former head coach Ilya Vorobyov. But, as time has shown, the reason for the team’s unsuccessful performance clearly did not lie in the weak work of the specialist. The losses of a number of key hockey players cost the club its place among the leaders of the East and added even more gray hairs to Gennady Velichkin’s head. But whether Viktor Kozlov will be able to become a new Sparrow for Magnitogorsk – time will tell.

The Chelyabinsk team, who pleasantly surprised us last season and showed beautiful hockey, got off to a rocky start this year. The team's head coach, Anvar Gatiyatulin, seemed to be shocked by this result and could not explain the reasons for the failure. Fortunately, in the last matches “Traktor” began to gain points and slightly improved its position in the standings. For now, the main problem of the club is the lack of stability.

Just a month ago, everyone praised Barys and called the Kazakh club the main discovery of the 10th KHL season. The November break, spent in the Emirates, played a cruel joke on the Astana residents. After him, the team suffered 7 defeats in 8 meetings and found themselves on the verge of the cup eight. Yes, Astana still has excellent foreign players led by Nigel Dawes, but in the fight for the Cup, a successful game by one top five team may not be enough. Too much in Evgeniy Koreshkov’s team depends on foreigners.

The main disappointment of the season is “Salavat Yulaev”. General manager Leonid Weisfeld has been working in Ufa for three years, and during this time he has not been able to find an intelligent head coach for the team. The composition of the Bashkir team is one of the best in the East, there are no problems with financing. There was plenty of time to build the club's game. What prevents Weisfeld and Westerlund from showing results is a big mystery. But with such hockey in the playoffs, the Ufa residents have nothing to do.

“Amur” and “Siberia” are located outside the eight, but the teams have completely different chances of getting into the cup eight zone. The Khabarovsk team is within walking distance of Salavat and is quite capable of displacing it from 8th position, and the Far Easterners are only three points behind Barys.

Andrey Martemyanov, unlike his predecessors, managed to cope with two tasks simultaneously at Amur. The coach continues to trust Russian young players with a place in the lineup, and Amur, under the leadership of Martemyanov, shows aggressive and fast hockey. If they make it to the playoffs, the Khabarovsk team will become the main discovery of the KHL anniversary season.

But Siberia’s chances of getting into the playoffs against the background of Amur look illusory. A change of coach will not save Novosibirsk residents. Still, the team’s problems do not lie in Pavel Zubov, but rather in the failed summer selection and lack of depth in the squad. Vladimir Yurzinov Jr., of course, will try to jump above his head with his new team, but, in the conditions of the current high competition in the East, this seems unlikely.

“Kunlun”, “Admiral”, “Lada” and “Ugra” are performing too poorly this season. In all four clubs, with the exception of Togliatti, the managers decided to change head coaches, but this did not help them either. Moreover, Khanty-Mansiysk and Volzhan are the main candidates for relegation from the KHL, so talking about getting into the playoffs in their case is somehow not entirely appropriate.

8 teams at once continue to fight for getting into the KHL playoffs. Two losers won't get a seat.

Match between the teams “Spartak” and “Severstal” / Photo: Vasily Ponomarev / Edgar Breshchanov / Sportbox.ru

8 KHL teams continue to fight for getting into the playoffs. In the West, they are trying to identify the “weak link” of the capital’s Dynamo and Spartak in company with the Cherepovets Severstal, and in the Eastern Conference, Amur intends to push one of the following four out of the playoff zone: Salavat Yulaev, "Metallurg" (MG), "Avangard", "Sibir". Who will end the season early, who will be higher in case of equality of points? Let's figure it out.

Western Conference

Photo: © Vasily Ponomarev / Edgar Breshchanov / Sportbox.ru

" ". 7th place, 80 points

Remaining matches:"Spartacus"

On January 22, the blue and white were one step away from losing all chances of participating in the Gagarin Cup ahead of schedule. Spartak led at home in the game with Severstal, the Muscovites lost in St. Petersburg... However, everything ended up exactly the opposite, but Dynamo are still dependent on their competitors, even with a hypothetical victory in the last game of the regular season.

" ". 8th place, 79 points

Remaining matches: Dynamo (Riga), Lokomotiv, Dynamo (Moscow)

The brightest season of the red-and-whites in the last six years has not yet guaranteed them a place in the coveted eight. However, unlike Dynamo, Vadim Epanchintsev’s team has everything in their own hands: there are three whole matches ahead, and all are at home.

" ". 9th place, 79 points

Remaining matches: CSKA, SKA

Amid questions about the need for the club to be in the KHL, Cherepovets continue to fight with all their might so that such conversations do not arise at all. “Spartak” is defeated in Moscow, but ahead is a test by the army team of the capital and St. Petersburg.

Eastern Conference

Sergey Mozyakin / Photo: Vasily Ponomarev

"" (Magnitogorsk). 6th place, 89 points

Remaining matches:"Yugra", "Neftekhimik"

Magnitogorsk has not yet guaranteed itself the playoffs, but getting there is more of a formality. The scenarios in which Mozyakin and Co. could be left out of the Gagarin Cup are too incredible.

" ". 2nd place. 86 points

Remaining matches:"Jokerit", "Sochi", "Ak Bars"

Another team that can guarantee itself the playoffs in the next game if a competitor misfires. The Ufa team is leading in the Chernyshev division, and will play the remaining matches at home, although the opponents will be serious.

" ". 7th place, 84 points

Remaining matches:"Sibir", "Barys"

The Omsk team is still in a fever even after the change of coach, and there will be hot meetings ahead - a direct competitor and a trip to Astana.

" ". 8th place, 82 points

Remaining matches:"Lada", "Avangard", "Tractor"

Novosibirsk, unlike Avangard, has an advantage over Amur in terms of lost points. Not that they are not in danger, but at the end of the season this little thing can make a difference.

" ". 9th place, 78 points

Remaining matches:"Kunlun" (twice), "Admiral" (twice)

Khabarovsk residents are in the simplest and most difficult situation at the same time. It’s difficult to understand why: catching up is always difficult. What's simple? Paired matches with “Kunlun” and “Admiral” - teams that, by and large, no longer need anything - are not the worst option for the most important part of the season, where attitude and desire often come to the fore. None of the listed teams should compete with Amur in this; the Tigers definitely need to be stronger now.

KHL Regulations

Here is an excerpt from the league rules:

To determine the current and final distribution of places between teams in divisions, conferences and the overall championship table, in the event of a tie in points between two or more teams, the team receives an advantage:

• having a greater number of victories in regular time in all matches of the First Stage;
• who has won the most overtime victories in all matches of the First Stage;
• who has the most shootout victories in all matches of the First Stage;
• having the best goal difference in all matches of the First Stage;
• having the most goals scored in all matches of the First Stage.

The above criteria are applied sequentially. If all indicators are equal, the distribution of places between teams is determined by lot.

In the East, Amur is significantly inferior (18 – 21/22) to other teams in terms of the number of victories achieved in 60 minutes. For this reason, Khabarovsk residents don’t have to look at the regulations; they need to beat their opponents solely on points.

Prepared by Roman Shevchenko

In October "SE" runs a special section, dedicated to Russian hockey. In this material we present our own version of the 10 best teams in the history of the Kontinental Hockey League

Two Gagarin Cups in a row is a record. So far only Dynamo Moscow has been able to repeat it. Kazan dominated in the first years of the KHL's existence - fortunately, the strong core that achieved success back in the days of the Super League has not gone away.

The most important thing is that it was a great connection and worked like a clock. In the first final, Lokomotiv had a game advantage throughout the entire series, but Ak Bars managed to pull out a victory on character. Just look at the second match, when the Kazan team was losing 0:3 at home by the 14th minute, sent the match into overtime 74 seconds before the end of regular time, and in the very first attack in extra time they brought the game to victory with a score of 4:3.

But there was also the fifth match of the quarterfinal series with Avangard, when the Omsk team lacked 15 seconds to advance to the next round. Nikulin equalized the score after a throw-in won by Niko Kapanen, and the veteran scored the winning goal in overtime.

The second title was remembered for the fact that Ak Bars stopped the powerful Salavat, led by , in the semifinals, and in the decisive series put the squeeze on HC MVD, losing 2-3 and losing Alexei Morozov due to injury.

The first club trophy of the coaching tandem of Vyacheslav Bykov was wonderful in everything - both with a dramatic background (defeat to Ak Bars in the playoffs in the 2009/10 season) and a joyful ending. In the fall of 2010, the duo narrowly avoided retirement when the team was feverishly ill. But from the middle of the season, the Ufa team, led by the team and, gained impressive momentum.

In a head-to-head confrontation in the second round of the playoffs, they dethroned the two-time Cup winner and their number one rival in the KHL in the person of Kazan Ak Bars, which makes the final success even more significant and brighter. The toughest final of the East and the 1:0 victory in the seventh match over Magnitogorsk became a real test. In the decisive series, the sensational team of that playoffs, Atlanta, simply did not have enough strength and emotion to stop Salavat.

Head coach Vyacheslav Bykov, brilliant, a crazy trio - -, Norwegian scorer Patrick Thoresen and a dozen other KHL stars - with such a wonderful set, SKA had no right to lose in that playoffs.

Although in previous years the St. Petersburg team were also considered favorites, they stumbled over and over again on the way to the main trophy in their history. The brightest series that went down in the history of Russian hockey came in the Western Conference finals. SKA managed to get even, having suffered defeats in the first three matches from CSKA, where Alexander Radulov himself went on a rampage. After that, Vyacheslav Bykov’s team dealt with “Ak Bars” in the final without any problems.

It’s hard to imagine when we’ll be able to see a “Traktor” like this again, playing classic Soviet hockey with an emphasis on rolling, the ability to play a pass and create a masterpiece of combinational rather than power play.

We have to remember those times with nostalgia. The classic story about hockey’s Cinderella looked especially impressive five years ago, given the fact that this squad under the leadership of Oleg Znark didn’t even make it to the playoffs the season before!

The team of “downed pilots,” as the club’s general manager Andrei Safronov put it, stopped one step away from the loudest sensation in the history of Russian hockey. Character and willingness to fight for each other turned out to be stronger than the individual skill of the Yaroslavl Lokomotiv stars. In the Western finals, the team from Balashikha beat a formidable opponent in seven matches. And I fought with dignity against Ak Bars and even led the series 3-2.

HC MVD was disbanded the following season, and its management, coaching staff and leaders formed the backbone of the renewed Moscow Dynamo. Two years after that success of the “policemen,” the blue and white, betting on all the same trump cards, won the Gagarin Cup. And then another one.

Before the appearance of the HC MVD, “Atlant” performed for a year in the rank of Cinderella, which did not reach the queen of the ball. To be fair, the Moscow region team had in its ranks such eminent players as Sergei Mozyakin, Dmitry Bykov, Zbynek Irgl, . The team started the season neither shaky nor weak. Nikolai Borshchevsky was dismissed in October.

With the arrival of the charismatic Milos Rzhiga, Atlant got out of the tournament swamp and made some noise in the playoffs. In first place is the victory over SKA in the second round. Then the Moscow region team fought back from a 1-3 score in the series, losing 1-2 in the seventh game a little over five minutes before the end of the third period. The defeat of Yaroslavl's Lokomotiv led at the next stage was impressive, and the 8:2 score in the sixth match, which became the final one, is impossible to forget. Another thing is that victory in the final over a fully staffed Salavat Yulaev turned out to be an impossible task.

This team did not win the Gagarin Cup, but forever won the hearts of picky and demanding Omsk fans. The head coach of that Avangard, with all his frantic character, became the favorite of Omsk until the end of his life. Even now they are ready to welcome him with open arms in any popular place in this city. Under him, the team, with such stars as a Finnish goalkeeper and a Czech striker, played flashy hockey with an emphasis on attack and pressure. In the 2010/11 season, the Omsk team became first in the regular season, reaching the conference finals in the playoffs, and a year later they led the decisive series with Dynamo Moscow 3-1, but missed out on the title, believing in their ultimate success too early.

Teams in the KHL continue to develop and become stronger. AND you have a chance to see live the formation of new legends from VIP -Lock. For this register V program Mastercard Priceless Cities from 3 to 30 October 2016 and get the opportunity to win an invitation to two in the Mastercard VIP box at exciting game of the KHL championship between Dynamo and CSKA, which will take place on 13 November 2016 on arena "VTB Ice Palace" in Moscow. Get an unforgettable experience at one of the most anticipated games of the hockey season along with Mastercard!