2027 Fonbet KHL All-Star Game: Belarusian Stars, Russian Stars, World Stars, and Youngsters

KHL.ru presents the format for dividing teams at the upcoming Fonbet KHL All-Star Game, which will take place on February 6 and 7 in Minsk.

The updated principle of team formation, first tried out in Yekaterinburg, found a lively response among players, coaches, fans, and the entire hockey community, so the League will keep it in Minsk. The hosts of the All-Star weekend will be the KHL BLR Stars – a selection composed of Dinamo Minsk players and Belarusian players competing for other KHL clubs. For the first time in All-Star Game history, Belarus will have a team of its own, and it is a natural step: Belarusian players have been a prominent part of the League since its very first season. Andrei Stas is one of five players to have played in every KHL season and one of six to have played more than 1,000 games in the League. Over the years, Oleg Antonenko, Andrei Mezin, Alexei Kalyuzhny, Sergei Kostitsyn, and many others have shone at All-Star weekends. Now their successors will take to the Minsk Arena ice as one team – in front of their home fans. The roster could also include Dinamo’s international stars: goalie Zach Fucale, who topped last year’s fan vote, and Sam Anas, who was the first player selected for the 2025 All-Star weekend, a year before his teammate Vitaly Pinchuk earned the same honor.

Their opponents will be the KHL World Stars, KHL RUS Stars, and KHL U23 Stars – players for these teams will be chosen from the 21 remaining KHL teams. The first team will include international players competing in the KHL, as well as Kazakh players.

The young stars team will be made up of players born no earlier than Jan. 1, 2004. In the 2026-2027 season, a total of 154 players in this age group have been used across all clubs. Many of them are already not just making the line-up but contributing to their teams’ wins: 18-year-old Matvei Kotkov of Lokomotiv scored the first goal of the season, 17-year-old Nazar Privalov is finding the net for CSKA, and Alexander Zharovsky, Nikita Shcherbakov, and Maxim Zagrebin are standing out for Salavat Yulaev. With their play, the youngsters are showing that they are ready for the KHL level, and a very interesting team will take to the ice in Minsk. It will be completed by two players named the best at the JHL Challenge Cup.

The KHL RUS Stars will gather the best Russian players, and this team is the reigning All-Star weekend champion: in Yekaterinburg, the Russians won both of their games to claim the Fonbet KHL All-Star Game title. There is no shortage of players to defend it. This season, Alexander Radulov played his 800^th KHL game and became only the third player in League history to score 300 goals. Vadim Shipachyov holds the League records for games and points and is one of five players to have played in all 19 KHL seasons, while Sergei Plotnikov became the sixth player in League history to reach 600 points. Konstantin Okulov, Nikita Gusev, Damir Sharipzyanov, Nikita Serebryakov, Nikolai Goldobin, Daniil Isayev, and many others are also in contention for a place on the team.

The KHL World Stars will include international players competing in the KHL, as well as Kazakh players, and there will be plenty to choose from. Barys’ Justin Bailey is the season’s leading scorer so far, Avangard’s Josh Leivo scored his 100^th KHL goal this season, and Sibir defenseman Darren Dietz is closing in on that mark. Libor Sulak became the first player in Admiral history to record five points in a single game. Sheldon Rempal, Mitchell Miller, and others are also among the candidates.

The first participant of the All-Star weekend in Minsk will be the Fonbet Overtime Hero: from Nov. 20 to 23, fans will be able to vote for a player who decided the outcome of one of this season’s overtimes. From Nov. 24 to Dec. 2, voting will take place on the Fonbet Hockey Stars Week website to choose four players for each team, after which media representatives and the League will make their choices.

At the Fonbet KHL All-Star Game, the four teams will play a mini-tournament in a four-on-four format. Each game will feature two periods of 10 minutes of game time, and each roster will be made up of 14 players.

The Fonbet Hockey Stars Week begins on Feb. 5 with the JHL Challenge Cup game. On Feb. 6 there will be two contests from the Master Show and two semifinal games, and on Feb. 7 another three skills contests and the decisive tournament games will take place.

“The new approach to forming the rosters at the Fonbet KHL All-Star Game added competitive edge and excitement to the games, and the spectators saw spectacular hockey and a real battle. We will continue this practice in Minsk, with a change of host team: it will be a Belarusian stars selection, made up of Dinamo Minsk players and Belarusian players from other clubs. The Russian team won last year’s All-Star weekend, and now the youngsters, the world stars, and the host team will have a chance to take revenge. A great celebration of hockey awaits us all in Minsk. To our wonderful hockey fans from every corner of the KHL: see you in the stands, because it is you who create the unique atmosphere of the KHL All-Star Game.”
Alexei Morozov, KHL President

Ticket sales are scheduled to begin on Dec. 7 on the Fonbet Hockey Stars Week website.

In the first two seasons, teams were formed according to the “Team Russia” vs. “Team World” principle, with Alexei Yashin as captain of the Russian team and Jaromir Jagr as captain of the international team. For the next six years, the conference principle was used—West vs. East: in 2011, these were again Yashin and Jagr’s teams, in 2012 Ozolinsh and Fedorov, and from 2013 to 2016, West and East teams. Starting in 2017, the All-Star Game was held as a mini-tournament between teams from the Bobrov, Tarasov, Kharlamov, and Chernyshev divisions. It was planned that in the 2021-2022 season, teams would be formed along national lines (teams from Scandinavia, Russia, North America, and Europe), but due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the All-Star Game was canceled. Since 2026, teams have been divided into young stars, international stars, the best Russian players, and a host team.