2018–19 KHL season
The 2018–19 KHL season was the eleventh season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The season started on 1 September 2018 and ended on 19 April 2019. Continental Cup winners CSKA Moscow became the first team to win the Gagarin Cup finals in a series sweep,[3] defeating Avangard Omsk in four games to win their first Gagarin Cup,[4] after two previous Finals defeats.
2018–19 KHL season | |
---|---|
League | Kontinental Hockey League |
Sport | Ice hockey |
Duration | 1 September 2018 – 19 April 2019 |
Number of teams | 25 |
Regular season | |
Continental Cup winner | CSKA Moscow |
Top scorer |
|
Playoffs | |
Western champions | CSKA Moscow |
Western runners-up | SKA Saint Petersburg |
Eastern champions | Avangard Omsk |
Eastern runners-up | Salavat Yulaev Ufa |
Playoffs MVP | Ilya Sorokin (CSKA Moscow)[1] |
Gagarin Cup Finals | |
Champions | CSKA Moscow |
Runners-up | Avangard Omsk |
Finals MVP | Ilya Sorokin (CSKA Moscow)[2] |
Season changes
For the 2018–19 season, 25 teams competed in the KHL – down from 27 in 2017–18. The two teams that were excluded from the league were HC Lada Togliatti and HC Yugra,[5] with both teams moving to the Supreme Hockey League. As well as this, Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod were moved from the Western Conference,[6] to the Eastern Conference; as a result, the Western Conference consisted of 12 teams and the Eastern Conference consisted of 13 teams.
The 2018–19 season featured the most games of any KHL season to date, with each team scheduled to play 62 games,[6] up from 56 in 2017–18.
KHL World Games
This season witnessed the first time that KHL games were played in Austria and Switzerland, as part of the KHL World Games.[7] Slovan Bratislava played in both Austrian games (on 26 and 28 October) at the Albert Schultz Eishalle in Vienna – home to the Vienna Capitals of the Austrian Hockey League – losing 9–0 to CSKA Moscow,[8] and 7–0 to SKA Saint Petersburg.[9] The Swiss games were played at the Hallenstadion in Zürich – home to the ZSC Lions of the Swiss National League – with Dinamo Riga playing in both games (on 26 and 28 November), losing 3–1 to SKA Saint Petersburg,[10] and 5–0 to CSKA Moscow.[11]
Teams
The 25 teams were split into four divisions: the Bobrov Division and the Tarasov Division as part of the Western Conference, with the Kharlamov Division and the Chernyshev Division as part of the Eastern Conference. On 24 April 2018, the KHL announced re-alignment after both Lada Togliatti and Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk left the league.[12]
Western Conference | Eastern Conference |
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League standings
Each team played 62 games, playing each of the other twenty-four teams twice: once on home ice, and once away from home. As well as this, each team played a further two games against each of their divisional rivals, and four games total against non-divisional teams.
Points were awarded for each game, where two points were awarded for all victories, regardless of whether it was in regulation time, in overtime or after a shootout. One point was awarded for losing in overtime or a shootout, and zero points for losing in regulation time. At the end of the regular season, the team that finished with the most points was crowned the Continental Cup winner.
Western Conference
Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | CSKA Moscow | 62 | 43 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 191 | 75 | +116 | 106 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs[lower-alpha 1] |
2 | SKA Saint Petersburg | 62 | 45 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 209 | 80 | +129 | 103 | |
3 | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | 62 | 34 | 6 | 6 | 16 | 159 | 118 | +41 | 86 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
4 | Jokerit | 62 | 32 | 5 | 6 | 19 | 197 | 164 | +33 | 80 | |
5 | Dynamo Moscow | 62 | 27 | 6 | 6 | 23 | 153 | 139 | +14 | 72 | |
6 | HC Sochi | 62 | 19 | 9 | 10 | 24 | 145 | 155 | −10 | 66 | |
7 | Spartak Moscow | 62 | 21 | 7 | 8 | 26 | 156 | 158 | −2 | 64 | |
8 | Vityaz Podolsk | 62 | 23 | 5 | 7 | 27 | 134 | 169 | −35 | 63 | |
9 | Dinamo Riga | 62 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 26 | 129 | 155 | −26 | 62 | |
10 | Severstal Cherepovets | 62 | 14 | 9 | 5 | 34 | 124 | 178 | −54 | 51 | |
11 | Dinamo Minsk | 62 | 15 | 2 | 8 | 37 | 119 | 180 | −61 | 42 | |
12 | Slovan Bratislava | 62 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 44 | 101 | 213 | −112 | 33 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) games won in regulation time; 3) games won in overtime and shootouts; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots.
Notes:
- Teams leading a division hold one of the first two places of their conference.
Eastern Conference
Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg | 62 | 39 | 8 | 1 | 14 | 191 | 125 | +66 | 95 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs[lower-alpha 1] |
2 | Barys Astana | 62 | 28 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 190 | 149 | +41 | 86 | |
3 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 62 | 35 | 6 | 2 | 19 | 182 | 132 | +50 | 84 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
4 | Avangard Omsk | 62 | 29 | 10 | 5 | 18 | 177 | 133 | +44 | 83 | |
5 | Ak Bars Kazan | 62 | 34 | 4 | 6 | 18 | 165 | 139 | +26 | 82 | |
6 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | 62 | 24 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 158 | 140 | +18 | 72 | |
7 | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod | 62 | 20 | 7 | 10 | 25 | 176 | 193 | −17 | 64 | |
8 | Traktor Chelyabinsk | 62 | 18 | 9 | 4 | 31 | 102 | 151 | −49 | 58 | |
9 | Sibir Novosibirsk | 62 | 19 | 5 | 6 | 32 | 148 | 192 | −44 | 54 | |
10 | Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk | 62 | 15 | 8 | 6 | 33 | 130 | 164 | −34 | 52 | |
11 | Kunlun Red Star | 62 | 19 | 1 | 11 | 31 | 142 | 190 | −48 | 51 | |
12 | Admiral Vladivostok | 62 | 18 | 5 | 5 | 34 | 139 | 176 | −37 | 51 | |
13 | Amur Khabarovsk | 62 | 17 | 3 | 9 | 33 | 126 | 175 | −49 | 49 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) games won in regulation time; 3) games won in overtime and shootouts; 4) goal difference; 5) number of goals scored; 6) drawing of lots.
Notes:
- Teams leading a division hold one of the first two places of their conference.
Gagarin Cup playoffs
The 2019 Gagarin Cup playoffs started on 25 February 2019, with the top eight teams from each of the conferences, and finished on 19 April 2019.[13]
Conference Quarter-Finals | Conference Semi-Finals | Conference Finals | Gagarin Cup Finals | |||||||||||||||
1 | Avtomobilist | 4 | 1 | Avtomobilist | 1 | |||||||||||||
8 | Traktor | 0 | 6 | Salavat Yulaev | 4 | |||||||||||||
2 | Barys | 4 | Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||
7 | Torpedo | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | Salavat Yulaev | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | Avangard | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | Metallurg | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | Salavat Yulaev | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | Avangard | 4 | 2 | Barys | 1 | |||||||||||||
5 | Ak Bars | 0 | 4 | Avangard | 4 | |||||||||||||
E4 | Avangard | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
(Pairings are re-seeded after the first round.) | ||||||||||||||||||
W1 | CSKA | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
1 | CSKA | 4 | 1 | CSKA | 4 | |||||||||||||
8 | Vityaz | 0 | 5 | Dynamo | 1 | |||||||||||||
2 | SKA | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
7 | Spartak | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
1 | CSKA | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
2 | SKA | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | Lokomotiv | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | Sochi | 2 | Western Conference | |||||||||||||||
4 | Jokerit | 2 | 2 | SKA | 4 | |||||||||||||
5 | Dynamo | 4 | 3 | Lokomotiv | 1 |
- During the first three rounds home ice is determined by seeding number, not position on the bracket. In the Finals the team with the better regular season record has home ice.
Final standings
Player statistics
Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in points, at the conclusion of the regular season.[14] If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown.
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nikita Gusev | SKA Saint Petersburg | 62 | 17 | 65 | 82 | +39 | 10 |
Nigel Dawes | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg | 60 | 28 | 41 | 69 | +20 | 12 |
Vadim Shipachyov | Dynamo Moscow | 61 | 20 | 48 | 68 | +22 | 30 |
Dmitri Kagarlitsky | Dynamo Moscow | 61 | 24 | 37 | 61 | +22 | 40 |
Brian O'Neill | Jokerit | 62 | 13 | 45 | 58 | +7 | 30 |
Sergei Mozyakin | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 61 | 23 | 32 | 55 | +14 | 10 |
Matt Ellison | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 62 | 20 | 35 | 55 | +12 | 34 |
Dan Sexton | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg | 61 | 25 | 28 | 53 | +22 | 6 |
Darren Dietz | Barys Astana | 62 | 15 | 38 | 53 | +30 | 59 |
Mikhail Grigorenko | CSKA Moscow | 55 | 17 | 35 | 52 | +33 | 10 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average, at the conclusion of the regular season.[15]
Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Igor Shestyorkin | SKA Saint Petersburg | 28 | 1680:51 | 24 | 4 | 31 | 10 | 95.27% | 1.11 |
Lars Johansson | CSKA Moscow | 24 | 1406:51 | 20 | 3 | 27 | 9 | 94.50% | 1.15 |
Ilya Sorokin | CSKA Moscow | 40 | 2327:53 | 28 | 6 | 45 | 11 | 94.04% | 1.16 |
Magnus Hellberg | SKA Saint Petersburg | 34 | 2048:13 | 24 | 7 | 45 | 8 | 93.98% | 1.32 |
Jakub Kovář | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg | 50 | 2958:08 | 38 | 9 | 88 | 8 | 93.90% | 1.78 |
Ilya Konovalov | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | 45 | 2416:58 | 25 | 15 | 76 | 10 | 92.96% | 1.89 |
Ivan Bocharov | Dynamo Moscow | 38 | 2113:41 | 19 | 16 | 68 | 3 | 93.27% | 1.93 |
Artyom Zagidulin | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 25 | 1102:49 | 12 | 7 | 36 | 4 | 92.44% | 1.96 |
Igor Bobkov | Avangard Omsk | 49 | 2682:16 | 25 | 17 | 89 | 8 | 91.44% | 1.99 |
Juha Metsola | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | 48 | 2761:22 | 25 | 20 | 93 | 4 | 93.44% | 2.02 |
Awards
Season awards
The KHL's end-of-season awards ceremony was held on 28 May 2019 in Barvikha.[16]
Award | Recipient(s) | Team |
---|---|---|
Best Sniper Award (most goals)[16] | Kirill Kaprizov | CSKA Moscow |
Coach of the Year[16] | Igor Nikitin | CSKA Moscow |
General Manager of the Year[16] | Igor Yesmantovich | CSKA Moscow |
Gimayev Prize (for loyalty to hockey)[16] | Alexander Popov | CSKA Moscow |
Golden Helmet[16] | Juha Metsola | Salavat Yulaev Ufa |
Darren Dietz | Barys Astana | |
Nikita Nesterov | CSKA Moscow | |
Mikhail Grigorenko | CSKA Moscow | |
Teemu Hartikainen | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | |
Ilya Mikheyev | Avangard Omsk | |
Playoffs Most Valuable Player[16] | Ilya Sorokin | CSKA Moscow |
Rookie of the Year[16] | Ilya Konovalov | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl |
Top Scorer Award (most points)[16] | Nikita Gusev | SKA Saint Petersburg |
Continental Cup[16] | CSKA Moscow | |
Eastern Conference winner[16] | Avangard Omsk | |
Vsevolod Bobrov Prize (most team goals)[16] | SKA Saint Petersburg | |
Western Conference winner[16] | CSKA Moscow |
Players of the Month
Best KHL players of each month.
Month | Goaltender | Defence | Forward | Rookie |
---|---|---|---|---|
September[17] | Jakub Kovář (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) | Darren Dietz (Barys Astana) | Anatoly Golyshev (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) | Nikita Mikhailov (Sibir Novosibirsk) |
October[18] | Juha Metsola (Salavat Yulaev Ufa) | Paul Postma (Ak Bars Kazan) | Nigel Dawes (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) | Ilya Konovalov (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) |
November[19] | Ilya Sorokin (CSKA Moscow) | Darren Dietz (Barys Astana) | Nigel Dawes (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) | Nikita Mikhailov (Sibir Novosibirsk) |
December[20] | Henrik Karlsson (Barys Astana) | Vojtěch Mozík (Vityaz) | Vadim Shipachyov (Dynamo Moscow) | Kristian Vesalainen (Jokerit) |
January[21] | Ilya Konovalov (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) | Viktor Svedberg (Barys Astana) | Nikita Gusev (SKA Saint Petersburg) | Mārtiņš Dzierkals (Dinamo Riga) |
February[22] | Anton Krasotkin (Admiral Vladivostok) | Staffan Kronwall (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) | André Petersson (Barys Astana) | Ilya Konovalov (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) |
March[23] | Ilya Sorokin (CSKA Moscow) | Mat Robinson (CSKA Moscow) | Nikita Gusev (SKA Saint Petersburg) | Daniil Misyul (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) |
April[24] | Juha Metsola (Salavat Yulaev Ufa) | Mat Robinson (CSKA Moscow) | Mikhail Grigorenko (CSKA Moscow) | Not awarded |
References
- Potts, Andy (20 April 2019). "'It was worth losing to understand what it means to win'". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
Ilya Sorokin, CSKA goalie and playoff MVP
- Potts, Andy (22 April 2019). "CSKA's crown, Sorokin's success and a new attendance recorded". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
CSKA Goalie Ilya Sorokin, who was named MVP, is the first netminder to have two shut-outs in a Gagarin Cup final.
- Potts, Andy (19 April 2019). "CSKA lifts the Gagarin Cup". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
Along the way, Igor Nikitin's team also recorded the first ever grand final sweep after clawing back a 0-2 deficit to win game four in overtime.
- "ЦСКА впервые в истории завоевал Кубок Гагарина" [CSKA won the Gagarin Cup for the first time in history]. Sportbox.ru (in Russian). National Sports Channel LLC. 19 April 2019. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
- Tuniz, Davide (28 March 2018). "KHL excludes Lada Togliatti and Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk". EuroHockey.com. European Ice Hockey Online AB. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- "2018/2019 season calendar: start in September and comfortable playoffs". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 5 July 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
- "New frontiers – the KHL World Games head to Vienna and Zurich". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 28 August 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
- Potts, Andy (26 October 2018). "KHL World Games: Viennese Waltz for CSKA". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- Potts, Andy (28 October 2018). "KHL World Games – SKA puts on a masterclass in Vienna". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- Potts, Andy (27 November 2018). "KHL World Games – SKA edges past Riga in Zurich". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
- Potts, Andy (29 November 2018). "KHL World Games: Game 2 – CSKA defeats Riga". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- Delacy, Richard (24 April 2018). "Teams and tournament structure for 2018-19 season confirmed". en.khl.ru. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
- Seren Rosso, Alessandro (25 January 2019). "2018/2019 Playoffs Logo Unveiled". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
The 11th season's playoffs stage begins on February 25 with four games involving teams from both conferences. The potential 7th game of the Gagarin Cup finals is scheduled for April 25.
- "Leaders: Points (G+A)". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- "Leaders: Goaltenders (GAA)". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
- Potts, Andy (28 May 2019). "CSKA leads the way at KHL's annual awards". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- "Players of the Month: Kovar, Dietz, Golyshev and Mikhailov". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 2 October 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Players of the month: Metsola, Postma, Dawes and Konovalov". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 1 November 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Players of the month: Sorokin, Dietz, Dawes and Mikhailov". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 1 December 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Best Players of December: Karlsson, Mozik, Shipachyov and Vesalainen". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 2 January 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Best Players of January: Konovalov, Svedberg, Gusev and Dzierkals". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Best Players of February: Krasotkin, Kronwall, Petersson, Konovalov". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 4 March 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Best Players of March: Sorokin, Robinson, Gusev and Misyul". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 1 April 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- "Best Players of April: Metsola, Robinson, Grigorenko". KHL.ru. Kontinental Hockey League. 22 April 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2019.