News

Avangard’s first game of the season saw it lose out to Mikhail Berdin, the goalie it traded to Ak Bars in the summer. Berdin backstopped a 2-1 victory for the visitor. Shanghai Dragons had another exciting game but fell to Admiral in a shoot-out after a 3-3 tie. Igor Geraskin was the key player in that one with a goal and the decisive penalty shot. Igor Larionov’s return to Torpedo was also lively. His SKA team forced overtime but eventually fell to a three-point game for Yegor Vinogradov. Lada won its season opener against Avtomobilist, and Salavat Yulaev got its first victory of the campaign with an OT verdict at Metallurg.

The 2025/2026 Fonbet KHL Championship is underway – and we’ve already seen plenty of drama. From a shoot-out to settle the Opening Cup to a clutch of teams starting with statement wins, it’s been a big few days of hockey. Read on for the key takeaways.

Five action-packed KHL games headline today’s schedule, with the spotlight on the classic rivalry as Avangard hosts Ak Bars in the Eastern Conference. Metallurg looks to build on its home win against Salavat Yulaev, while Lada and Avtomobilist open their campaigns following ambitious summer moves. In the West, Torpedo faces SKA after both teams had dramatic openers, and Shanghai Dragons aim to ride the momentum from their home crowd against Admiral. Every matchup is set to deliver excitement.

Last season’s runner-up suffered an unexpected reverse at Barys, the team that finished rock bottom of the 2025 standings. An overtime goal from Reilly Walsh gave the Kazakhs a 4-3 verdict in their opening game. There were also victories for Amur and Severstal, who blanked Sibir and Neftekhimik respectively. Spartak played out an incident-packed encounter with Sochi before taking a verdict.

The KHL matchday features four exciting clashes showcasing Eastern and Western Conference rivalries. It kicks off in Novosibirsk with Sibir hosting Amur, both teams sporting notable offseason changes. Then Barys opens their season at home against Traktor, fresh off a narrow Opening Cup loss. Neftekhimik faces off with Severstal, pitting an unbeaten preseason team against one adapting under a new coach. Closing the day, Spartak takes on HC Sochi in a West Conference battle, with Spartak aiming to assert dominance despite losing a key player. Four matchups promise a thrilling matchday at the start of the KHL season.

Saturday saw the new-look Shanghai Dragons play their first competitive game. Gerard Gallant’s team claimed an entertaining 7-4 win over SKA in front of more than 15,000 people. CSKA also enjoyed a big victory, thumping Dynamo 6-2 in Moscow as Igor Nikitin began his second spell with the club in style. Metallurg edged a shoot-out win over Ak Bars, and Torpedo took a 4-3 verdict against Salavat Yulaev in Alexei Isakov’s first game as a KHL coach.

After yesterday’s Opening Cup game, the KHL season is about to start for another eight teams, Metallurg faces Ak Bars, CSKA welcomes Dynamo Moscow, Torpedo entertains Salavat Yulaev, and the Shanghai Dragons face off with SKA.

Yegor Surin scored the first goal of the new season for Lokomotiv, Pierrick Dube got his first in the KHL for Traktor, but the Railwaymen edged a shoot-out verdict in the 2025/2026 curtain-raiser in Yaroslavl.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the upcoming 2025-2026 season with Lokomotiv. The Yaroslavl franchise will do everything to repeat its recent triumph.

The eighteenth KHL season kicks off tonight with the traditional clash between last year’s finalists, Lokomotiv and Traktor. It’s the first time that the two sides meet in the Opening Cup game. In their histories, the Railwaymen had one Cup win, last year, while Traktor has zero.

KHL.ru continues its series of club-by-club previews ahead of the new season. Last season’s runner-up, Traktor, is hoping a new-look line-up can take it one step further in 2026.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the upcoming 2025-2026 season.  Salavat Yulaev will face the new season with a reduced budget and fewer stars.

The final pre-season action of the summer brought four warm-up games on Tuesday. Avangard on 5-3 in a behind-closed-doors game against SKA, Torpedo ended a five-game skid with a shoot-out success against Avtomobilist and Barys repeated yesterday’s victory over Sibir. Admiral wrapped up its schedule with a loss to Belarusian club Neman.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the upcoming 2025/2026 season in Moscow. Dynamo Moscow has a roster that is capable of improving on last year’s run to the semifinals, but a lack of depth may undermine those hopes.

Following Friday’s loss to Metallurg at the Romazan Memorial, Barys rang the changes.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the upcoming 2025-2026 season. Ak Bars strengthened its roster with strategic moves while keeping its core intact.

The last of the pre-season tournaments are over, and we’re almost ready for the 2025/2026 campaign. With the action getting underway on Friday, read on for some of the highlights of the opening weekend, plus a run-down of the latest stories from pre-season.

It was finals day at the Mayor of Moscow Cup, and CSKA claimed the trophy for the second year in a row thanks to a 3-2 win over Dinamo Minsk. Shanghai Dragons took third with a 6-1 drubbing of Dynamo Moscow, and Spartak edged Torpedo into sixth place. In two warm-up games, Sochi beat Amur and Severstal spoiled Bob Hartley’s first game with Lokomotiv on home ice.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the upcoming 2025/2026 season. This summer saw Avangard willing to trade away two top stars, but it’s hard to say their departures left the team weaker overall.

Today’s Mayor of Moscow Cup action decided which teams would progress to Sunday’s gold-medal game. In the end, CSKA defeated Shanghai Dragons to top its group, and will face Dinamo Minsk, victors over Dynamo Moscow. Saturday also had some exhibition action in Yekaterinburg, where Pavel Datsyuk staged a festive All-Star game. There were warm-up wins for Admiral and Ak Bars.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the coming season. Today, it’s Spartak’s turn.

Friday saw the end of two tournament. In Chelyabinsk, the Governor’s Cup went to host team Traktor. In Magnitogorsk, too, there was success for the host – yet it was VHL farm club Magnitka that took the prize, rather than Metallurg. Shanghai Dragons made their much-anticipated debut following wholesale changes within the franchise: Gerard Gallant’s team claimed victory over Spartak, aided by two goals from Gage Quinney.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the upcoming season with a look at Dinamo Minsk.

The Mayor of Moscow Cup got underway with shut-out victories for Dynamo and CSKA in the capital, in front of a five-figure crowd. The Chelyabinsk Governor’s Cup is approaching its conclusion, and Traktor secured its place in the final with a 5-1 thrashing of Lada. Amur will contest that gold-medal game despite a 1-2 reverse against Sochi.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the coming season. All the conditions are in place for Metallurg to perform better than a year ago.

The latest summer trophy was awarded Wednesday with Avtomobilist edging a 1-0 victory over SKA to claim the Puchkov Cup in St. Petersburg. The day’s other action was at the Romazan Memorial in Magnitogorsk, while VHL team Magnitka is the unlikely leader. Metallurg’s farm club defeated the senior team in a shoot-out – albeit in a game with two experimental rosters. Earlier, Barys edged Salavat Yulaev in OT.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club previews of the upcoming season in Yekaterinburg with a look at Avtomobilist.

With three tournaments in action on Tuesday, there were plenty of talking points. Avtomobilist will be happiest after thumping Ak Bars 6-1 at Puchkov Tournament in St. Petersburg. Salavat Yulaev enjoyed a 5-2 win over Metallurg on the opening day of the Romazan Memorial. And in Chelyabinsk, Amur leads the way, while Traktor recovered from 0-3 to beat Sochi.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the 2025-2026 season. The Chinese franchise made some bold changes before the upcoming campaign.

Severstal’s captain Adam Liska is preparing for his seventh season in Cherepovets. In an interview, the forward explained the reasons for his loyalty to Severstal and spoke about the qualities that help him fit into the system of any coach.

Monday saw two tournaments start, and two host teams defeated on opening day. The Chelyabinsk Governor’s Cup saw Amur beat Traktor 3-0, while Ak Bars won 3-2 in overtime against SKA at the Puchkov Tournament. Elsewhere, Sibir ended the Blinov Cup with a win, and CSKA defeated Dynamo in a Moscow derby.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the coming season. CSKA hired back Gagarin Cup reigning champion Igor Nikitin and his staff and rehauled its roster to return to past glory.

Pre-season action is well underway, with big crowds turning out for the latest warm-up games. Severstal lifted the Blinov Cup in Omsk in front of more five-figure crowds. We’ve seen most teams in action, but Shanghai Dragons are yet to play – when they do, they’ll bring a radically reshaped roster after a week of busy transfer action.

It took a shoot-out to separate the two undefeated teams at the 2025 Blinov Cup in Omsk. However, Severstal held its nerve to snap a 3-3 tie and deprive Avangard of the title in its home tournament. Lokomotiv secured third place with a 5-2 win over Neftekhimik.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the coming season. At Severstal it’s been a fairly quiet summer, but there are signs that the roster got stronger.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the 2025-2026 season with SKA. At first glance, it may seem that SKA is in for big changes, but that’s not quite the case.

Avangard handed Bob Hartley a 3-0 loss on his return to Omsk as head coach of Lokomotiv. That keeps the Hawks unbeaten in their home tournament. Severstal also has three wins from three after sinking Sibir, and the two will meet on Sunday to decide the champion.

There was only one game on Friday in the Blinov Cup, and Severstal’s 3-2 win over Neftekhimik keeps it perfect in the tournament so far. Two warm-up games saw Ak Bars beat Dynamo Moscow, while Traktor and Chelmet tied in an intra-club scrimmage in Chelyabinsk.

KHL.ru continues its club-by-club preview of the 2025/2026 season with Torpedo. There’s a new head coach in Nizhny Novgorod, preparing for his first campaign in the KHL.

Day two of the Blinov Cup began in Omsk with Alexander Radulov leading Lokomotiv to victory over Sibir. Then, in the evening, Avangard beat Neftekhimik 6-3 to go top of the early standings.