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In a week dominated by trade news, all but two teams in the KHL have now confirmed next season’s head coach. HC Sochi completed its import roster for the coming campaign, with Metallurg, Ak Bars, SKA and CSKA also active.

Last week was dominated by the World Championship, and even in Russia’s absence there was plenty of KHL-related chat. Meanwhile, Metallurg picked up one of the rising stars of that tournament after signing a promising Kazakh forward.

It was time to look back at the excitement from the 2022-2023 season at a star-studded closing ceremony. And it was also time to look forward, with some high-profile trades and an update on an impressive new arena.

International hockey was the focus last week, with Russia’s U25s continuing the series against Belarus while the World Championship got underway. At home, Lada confirmed its first players on its return to the KHL, and the league announced more nominees for the big prizes at the closing ceremony on Thursday.

This week saw two new coaching appointments, the start of the summer trading season and the first nominees for the KHL’s official end-of-season awards.

The 2023 season is a wrap. CSKA secured its third Gagarin Cup after battling through an incredible 27 playoff games to lift the trophy. Read on for reaction, plus the week’s key contract news.

The final week of the season is underway, and CSKA is in prime position to defend its title. Meanwhile, the 2023 playoffs have attracted record crowds. In international play, several KHLers are in action for Team China this week, while off the ice more clubs are beginning to shape their rosters for next season.

The Gagarin Cup is top billing this week, but it’s not the only big story. We say goodbye to the most productive import in KHL history, and welcome back the league’s winningest head coach. Read on for more ...

It’s been a week of contrasting results in East and West, where one conference final is done while the other is tied at 2-2. And there were contrasting forwards for two top forwards, with Vadim Shipachyov grabbing two clutch goals while Nikita Gusev was scratched. Contrasts for coaches, too: Dynamo keeps faith with its staff, while Metallurg says goodbye.

Overtime. Lots of overtime. That’s how round three of this year’s playoffs started. And there was excitement in the women’s championship a well as the final series went to a game-five decider. Meanwhile, away from the ice, an all-time KHL great announced his retirement after 15 seasons.

In a week that saw three teams advance to the conference finals, one forward joined an elite group of KHL legends – and earned the wrath of his most recent opponent.

A record-breaking playoff first round finished in style and the conference semi-finals are underway. Meanwhile, clubs and coaches who already finished their seasons are already looking to the future. Read on for the big news of the last seven days in the KHL.

The first round of this season’s playoffs is almost done, and we’ve seen records tumbling. The 15th KHL post season brought more games, more goals and more overtime than ever before. It also brought one of the biggest upsets in KHL history as an underdog secured its first ever series win. And that’s not the end of the story. Two series go to game seven on Tuesday to finish off an exhilarating start to the race for the Gagarin Cup.

The playoffs are underway, and this year’s are more competitive than ever. We’ve seen one big hitter lose a first-round game for the first team since 2014 and an underdog take the lead in a series for the first time in its history. Meanwhile, a new star is emerging and a Red Star is hoping to return home.

The regular season is done and 16 teams are preparing for their battles. All the post season action starts on Wednesday, and it promises to be another epic battle for the Gagarin Cup.

It’s the final week of the regular season, and the playoff race is nearing its climax. Two places remain, one in each conference, with five teams still in contention. Meanwhile, the KHL scoring race is even tighter, with six candidates for first place separated by just two points.

The battle for position in the KHL’s Eastern Conference is still tight at both ends of the table. However, there is greater clarity after a week that saw four teams secure their playoff places. Elsewhere, last week saw one of this season’s most productive players take his first steps into coaching.

There’s new name at the top of the KHL scoring charts, with a 31-year-old forward enjoying a best-ever year. Elsewhere, four more teams have secured their places in the playoffs, we’ve had two high profile coaching changes and a referee whistled his way through his 1,000th game in Russia’s top league.

Another busy week of KHL action sees new contenders emerge at the top of the Eastern Conference and the league’s scoring race. A couple of Belarusian rookies caught the eye and a Czech D-man set a new club record. Meanwhile, in the women’s league, the focus is firmly on the playoffs after the four post-season qualifiers were confirmed last week.

Ilya Konovalov produced a once-in-a-lifetime moment to help Dynamo defeat Torpedo, while in the Eastern Conference we saw three teams jump from last place to the top eight in barely 24 hours. At the foot of the West, though, last week brought an end to Sochi’s post season prospects and saw the departure of head coach Sergei Svetlov.

Last week saw the first team book its place in this season’s KHL playoffs while, at the other end of the table, a record skid came to an end. Elsewhere, the goalscoring race is heating up – can anyone take Sergei Mozyakin’s record?

It’s been a good week for individual milestones. We saw the first defenseman score four goals in a KHL game, and the second player in history reach 850 points in the league. We were also close to the first ever encounter of a father and son on opposing teams. On top of all that, the battle for position at both ends of the Eastern Conference is turning into a classic.

The last days of 2022 saw a KHL legend back in a familiar role, while Metallurg’s latest import star proved to be the most productive player of the calendar year.

Which pair of KHL prospects are battling out a personal rivalry that could grow into one of the big sporting tussles of their era? Take a look at Lokomotiv to find out more ...

For some, last week was all about international action. For others, it was time for a break from hockey and a chance to revisit the classroom. Meanwhile, as week 16 of the season gets underway, the KHL scoring race is heating up and two SKA stars are chasing personal milestones.

It was a week where famous names from the past returned to the spotlight, where a KHL coaching staff took on the appearance of Tsarist-era gentlemen, and where young prospects blazed a trail at the All-Star Game.

Chelyabinsk was set to be the focus of the hockey world as the All-Star Week got underway in the South Ural city. However, before the Junior Challenge Cup on Saturday, Oleg Znarok grabbed the headlines. He resigned as head coach at Ak Bars on Friday night, bringing an end to a brief, tumultuous reign in Kazan.

The past week saw a clutch of young players writing important chapters in their hockey careers. It also brought a reunion for two Russian sporting legends as they met for the first time in new roles.

The week began with a goalie coming out of retirement to backstop his injury-hit team to victory. It also featured a timely riposte from one of the league’s star players, and saw two teams on the rise in the Eastern Conference.

A busy week in the KHL saw a milestone for a Russian hockey legend, a club record for a long-serving import and a winning road trips restore Avtomobilist to the Eastern Conference summit. Brooks Macek keeps on scoring, Sochi snapped its losing run, but Spartak became the fourth team to change its head coach this season.

Nikita Gusev’s return to SKA was the big story of the week, and the 2018 Olympic champion made an instant impact. His first game saw him emerge as his club’s all-time KHL leading scorer. Defenseman John Gilmour has joined the forward line for Dinamo Minsk, where he helped to continue Sochi’s 12-game losing streak.

Sergei Fedorov’s CSKA has put its slow start to the season behind it and is marching up the table. At the other end, Sochi is hoping a new coach can solve its problems.

Goalies made the news last week. One of the league’s veterans posted his 90th shut-out in the KHL, while Traktor continues to search for the right option at the back. Elsewhere, Vityaz rookie netminder Maxim Dorozhko is one of many first-time All-Stars selected to play in Chelyabinsk in December’s big event. CSKA is showing championship form at last, Igor Larionov proves surprisingly calm in the locker room and a new scoring star emerges in the Women’s Hockey League.

Two of the KHL’s biggest clubs are having a rough start to the season, with record losing streaks and the first coaching change of the season. Meanwhile, one of Jaromir Jagr’s KHL records has fallen, and Metallurg became the first team to play 1,000 games in the league.

The KHL looked to the East, congratulating a first-ever goalscorer from the Land of the Rising Sun. Elsewhere, there’s a fifth member of the head coach’s 300 club, a rising rookie impresses at Torpedo and the Dragons hand a first home loss to Avangard.

Avangard played in its home city for the first time in four years as the team returned to Omsk and opened its new arena on Saturday. On the same day, 18-year-old forward Alexander Perevalov made a splash, scoring twice then grabbing a shoot-out winner as Kunlun rallied to beat CSKA.

There are no more undefeated teams in this season’s KHL, but one unfortunate club is still looking for a first win. Elsewhere, Alexander Sharov made history for Sibir and Avangard is almost ready to go home.

In a busy week of KHL action we’ve seen an appearance landmark, a new hat-trick king, the first scorer from 2005 and two goalies making shut-out debuts. That’s in addition to two sensational saves, a new country on the KHL map and SKA remaining unbeaten.

The first full week of KHL action brought new club records – both wanted and unwanted – as the early standings take shape. And one team managed a unique scoring feat, potting three goals while playing with an empty net.

The 2022-2023 KHL season got underway last week, and there’s already plenty of action to talk about. Here’s a reminder of some of the highlights.