The KHL is back! Six games on first matchday
Six games open the 2026-27 KHL season as defending champion Lokomotiv hosts Traktor, Avtomobilist welcomes Dynamo Moscow, and Spartak faces Torpedo in Moscow. Severstal begins its campaign against Salavat Yulaev, while SKA entertains Lada in St. Petersburg. In the Eastern Conference, Ak Bars take on Sibir in Kazan. The opening slate also features the inaugural Cup of the Firsts, with Avtomobilist-Dynamo and Spartak-Torpedo serving as the first two games in the new seasonal tournament.
The action starts with a bang as reigning champions Lokomotiv hosts Traktor for the first game of the season. The Railwaymen collected the Blinov Cup in Omsk in the preseason as it took 22 penalty shots to settle the decisive game with Kirill Yemelyanov finally potting the winner. The Yaroslavl franchise only signed two players this summer in Giovanni Fiore and Stepan Falkovsky, and retained most of its championship-winning core, with however suffering two hard departures in Martin Gernat and Byron Froese. Traktor’s preseason hasn’t been an exciting one, but the fans have plenty of expectations from a new coach – Scott Gordon – and several interesting signings, especially Norwegian goalie Henrik Heukeland. However, one of the team’s brightest players, Vitaly Kravtsov, is out with a long-term injury.
The action continues in Yekaterinburg, where Avtomobilist hosts Dynamo Moscow with head coach Alexei Kudashov playing his first official game with his new team, and against his former employer. Dynamo is also heading into a new era under head coach Leonids Tambijevs and early evidence is encouraging after the Blue-and-Whites won the Mayor of Moscow Cup this week. The highlight of the weekend for Dynamo was a convincing 5:2 victory over Kudashov’s Avtomobilist to book a spot in the final against Dinamo Minsk, and a consequent victory in the final match. Avto has instead lost the third-place game to CSKA. Today’s game will be counted for the first seasonal tournament in the history of the League, the Cup of the Firsts.
Then, in Moscow, Spartak hosts Torpedo for the second Cup of the Firsts game of the night. It will be an exciting matchup. Both opponents underwent significant changes in the offseason, even without changing the head coach, and it will be interesting to see how the teams will fare in their new configuration. To add an extra layer of intrigue, the teams faced 48 times in the league’s history, with each opponent claiming 24 wins so far. Torpedo is also waiting to inaugurate its new arena, but the team will enter the season on a four-game road trip. Recently, the teams had a 13-goal thriller won by Torpedo in OT.
In the meantime, Severstal hosts Salavat Yulaev. The Steelers had an eventful summer. Not only did they loss two leaders in Daniil Aimurzin (to SKA) and Mikhail Ilyin (who crossed the pond), but they had to deal with the departure of several depth players. The team, however, retained its head coach Andrei Kozyrev, and that was a success alone. It will be also interesting whether Kozyrev will manage to re-create his successful bond with Nikita Artamonov and Denis Yan – the latter joining Severstal from today’s opponent. Salavat Yulaev had less impactful departures, and managed to strengthen its roster with only three signings, but very accurate: defenseman Alexander Alexeyev from Pittsburgh, and forwards Matt Maggio from the AHL and KHL all-time top scorer Vadim Shipachyov, most recently with Dinamo Minsk. It’s a game that can easily go either way.
Another team who changed a lot is SKA. The St. Petersburg franchise got Aimurzin from Severstal and Vasily Atanasov from Torpedo, among the others, and it will be exciting to see how Igor Larionov will lead the team in his second season. Another two new players had a good preseason – Linus Weissbach and Daniil Miromanov – as SKA seems to be in a better place if compared with last season. The team also won its home preseason tournament, the Puchkov Trophy. Lada will enter today’s game after a somewhat disappointing performance at the Romazan Memorial in Magnitogorsk, and will want to catch a win to start the campaign on a positive tone.
In the last game of the night, and the second in the Eastern Conference, Ak Bars takes on Sibir. Both teams renovated its roster in the offseason, with Sibir strengthening its roster with the interesting signing of former Stanley Cup champion Evgeny Kuznetsov. The Novosibirsk side had an encouraging second place at the Blinov Cup in Omsk highlighted by a 4:0 win over Severstal in the preseason’s very last game. Ak Bars made perhaps the biggest signing of the offseason inking NHL veteran Kevin Hayes, but the team also lost Alexander Barabanov, Ilya Safonov, Nathan Todd, and Dmitrij Jaskin. Currently, it looks like the Kazan side needs another couple of signings to become a real contender, just like last year the team traded for Todd and Alexander Chmelevski, but they have to be ready since the very first game – today against Sibir.
13:00: Lokomotiv vs Traktor
About the game
Lokomotiv starts a three-game home series to kick-off its 2026-2027 campaign on home ice, while Traktor starts a three-match road trip.
Milestone alert
Lokomotiv’s defenseman Andrei Sergeyev lines up for his 800th league appearance.
Lokomotiv’s defenseman Alexei Bereglazov may reach 200 KHL points (currently at 199).
Lokomotiv’s forward Alexander Radulov may net his 300th goal in the league (currently at 297).
Lokomotiv’s goalie Daniil Isayev may record his 40th KHL shutout, while Alexei Melnichuk may reach 10.
14:30: Avtomobilist vs Dynamo Moscow
About the game
Avtomobilist starts a two-game home series, while Dynamo Moscow plays the first of two road matches to start the season.
Milestone alert
Dynamo Moscow’s defenseman Artyom Sergeyev lines up for his 700th KHL game.
Dynamo Moscow’s goalie Alexei Motorygin may record his 10th career shutout.
17:00: Spartak vs Torpedo
About the game
Spartak plays the lone home game of the series, while Torpedo starts the season with the first of four road matches.
Milestone alert
Torpedo’s forward Pavel Kraskovsky lines up for his 700th career appearance.
Torpedo’s forward Amir Garayev may celebrate his 300th KHL game netting his 100th career point (currently at 99).
17:00: Severstal vs Salavat Yulaev
About the game
Severstal starts a two-game home series, while Salavat Yulaev kicks off its 2026-2027 campaign with the first of three road matches.
Injury list
Salavat Yulaev: Artyom Gorshkov, Gleb Kuzmin.
Milestone alert
Salavat Yulaev’s goalie Semyon Vyazovoi may record his 10th career shutout.
17:00: SKA vs Lada
About the game
SKA starts a short two-game home series, while Lada plays the first of two road matches.
Injury list
SKA: Trevor Murphy.
Milestone alert
SKA’s goalie Sergei Ivanov may reach 10 KHL shutouts.
17:00: Ak Bars vs Sibir
About the game
Ak Bars kicks off its 2026-2027 campaign starting a four-game home series, while Sibir starts a two-game road trip.
Ak Bars’ goalie Maxim Arefyev enters the season on a 137:35 shutout streak.
Injury list
Sibir: Anton Krasotkin.
Milestone alert
Ak Bars’ goalie Timur Bilyalov may record his 40th career shutout.
Sibir’s forward Evgeny Kuznetsov may net his 100th league goal (currently at 99).
