"There is no goal of artificial league expansion"
This week marks the end of the first month of the new KHL season. It included, among other things, the opening of a new large ice arena in Nizhny Novgorod and the league's high-profile proposal to introduce a shootout before regular match time. In an interview with "Izvestia", KHL President Alexei Morozov explained the logic of this idea, spoke about further opportunities for infrastructure development in hockey cities, and also explained why the league is not seeking artificial expansion and is not going to return the three-point system. ""In addition, he commented on the summer signing of a new contract between Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals and commented on rumors about the possible postponement of Sochi's home matches to another city." "
"The capacity of arenas in some cities is insufficient"
— You recently attended the first KHL match at the new arena in Nizhny Novgorod. How did you like it?
— Two months ago, when I came to Nizhny Novgorod and inspected the arena at the final stage of construction, I was impressed by the very thoughtfulness of this structure, locker rooms, halls. I really liked that there are three skating rinks, that the exit from the locker room to the ice for the sledge teams is well thought out. A comfortable arena. Moreover, even when it is given over to concerts, the teams will not have to leave anywhere — there are additional training grounds.
In addition, the "Torpedo" management plans to transfer the teams of their school there from the old palace, who will train next to the main team, look at their idols and learn from them. I remember my childhood at the "Wings of the Soviets" school, when we were based in the same palace with a team of masters: it was always a pleasure to come and watch their training. I think the children at "Torpedo" school will also enjoy being with their elders in Nizhny Novgorod.
— In the last four years, five new arenas have opened in KHL cities — in Omsk, Novosibirsk, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Nizhny Novgorod. There are no new similar projects. Have you discussed with other clubs and regions where, in theory, they can at least start planning to build more modern facilities with a larger capacity?
"Don't forget that we have two new arenas under construction in Moscow—the home arenas for CSKA and Spartak." As for the regions, there are no such plans at the moment. We talked with the governor of the Chelyabinsk region, Alexei Leonidovich Texler, about the excitement around hockey that historically exists in Chelyabinsk around "Traktor". And at the level of conversations, there is an understanding that a more spacious arena is needed there. That the current 7.5 thousand is not enough for Chelyabinsk.
The governor of the region, half jokingly, said that when "Tractor" comes to the Gagarin Cup, they will build a more spacious palace. But so far we have only two arenas under construction in Moscow.
— Is it a problem that in such hockey cities as Chelyabinsk, Yaroslavl, Kazan, Ufa, the capacity of arenas is less than 10 thousand?
— Yes, the capacity is not so large compared to the new palaces. But so far they still have good arenas. After the opening of "Volga Arena" in Nizhny Novgorod, we don't have a single palace in the KHL that was built before 2000. The oldest one now is "Arena 2000" in Yaroslavl. At the same time, he is still in excellent condition - I personally saw this once again when I was on him on September 5 at the first match of the new KHL season. But the capacity there is, of course, insufficient, as in the other cities you have listed.
People are going to hockey more and more — they are already used to such a pastime, to such family leisure. And they want to go there again and again. In the current economic environment, it would be inappropriate for me to advise regional leaders and clubs with their sponsors to build new arenas. But, of course, we will communicate with the leaders of the clubs, come to the regions and discuss with the local authorities their current capabilities and how possible it is to upgrade the hockey infrastructure in the future.
Moreover, in recent years, when new arenas were opened, the KHL had already gained experience in interacting with all organizations responsible for construction, when we, for our part, introduced them to the standards of our league, gave explanations of where and what should be taken into account so that the palaces would be comfortable for spectators and participants of matches.
— Before last season, the KHL changed the minimum capacity of the arenas in the regulations — increased it from 7.5 to 9 thousand spectators. Thus, for example, Krasnoyarsk "Sokol", one of the few teams in the VHL with ready-made infrastructure, which expressed a desire to join your tournament a few years ago, will not even theoretically enter the league.
— Yes, in 2023 they asked us questions about what we should do to join the KHL. We had a good example with "Lada", which returned to us in 2023. Then, using her example, we made a roadmap, where we clearly outlined in what time frame and how to bring our infrastructure, finances and other aspects in line with our standards. And we showed it to other clubs who talked to us about possibly joining the KHL.
The minimum allowed capacity allows clubs that previously played in the KHL to enter the League with a 5,000-capacity arena. But Tolyatti had to re—equip the STM (sports telematics) system, the video head system - then we had all this updated. The box size was then reduced to meet our standards. Based on that experience, we later told Krasnoyarsk what we would have to do. And then it all depended on the wishes and capabilities of the region, sponsors.
— Aren't you making it too difficult to replenish the ranks of the KHL, which have declined significantly after the departure of some foreign clubs in 2022 and last year's collapse of "Vityaz"?
— We do not have a task to force clubs to join the KHL at any cost. There is no goal of artificially expanding the league. We work with the regions, if any of them have questions, we give detailed explanations. For example, two years ago, "Ugra" was interested in what was happening in our country, what financial guarantees were needed, what infrastructure was needed so that the KHL could consider joining its ranks. We told Khanty-Mansiysk everything, and people left to think.
— 22 clubs in the KHL, of which only three in each conference do not qualify for the playoffs, is it not enough to raise the criteria for joining the league?
— I repeat that we do not want to artificially expand the league. It all depends on the financial possibilities in a particular region, on the desire and capabilities of local sponsors to help the club, up to and including participation in the KHL championship.
It's one thing to convince someone to join our organization for show, for form's sake, so that we can report on the expansion of the number of participants. But on the contrary, we need to ensure a good sports component, so that the people at the head of the clubs are really interested in successful sports results, in the qualitative development of the marketing component, and in attracting fans.
And it should appear naturally. If you force someone, nothing good will come of it, as practice has already shown when clubs' participation in the tournament was strained and they showed no interest in competitive sports.
— Can "Sochi" be attributed to such clubs, which has not been in the playoffs for eight years?
— I wouldn't say that. They just have their own financial difficulties, which they faced several times last season. And things are not going smoothly for "Sochi" this year. But the club is trying and is interested in creating a good fighting team.
"At the end of last season, "Sochi" matches had to be postponed due to the threat of unmanned danger. What measures can the KHL take if such emergency situations occur further?
— We are considering all options. At the end of last season, part of the match with CSKA was played on a different date and already at the home arena of the army in Moscow. The "Sochi" home meeting with "Lokomotiv" was moved to Yaroslavl. We are constantly monitoring the situation and doing everything possible to ensure that the matches are held in a safe environment for the teams and the audience. And so, in case of absolutely force majeure circumstances, there are different options. This includes the transfer of "Sochi" home matches to another city.
— Recently there were rumors that it could be Balashikha.
— This option is also possible. The Balashikha arena fits the KHL standards, as "Vityaz" played there quite recently, back in the season before last. Only the capacity of only 5.5 thousand spectators is less than what is prescribed in our regulations. But this minimum level is valid for new KHL clubs. And "Sochi" is an active club, so if anything happens, it will not be a problem to allow the arena in Balashikha for the team's games, especially given such force majeure circumstances.
There is also the "Mytishchi Arena". """"In particular, it was considered when the recent match "Dynamo" (Moscow) — "Dynamo" (Minsk) had to be postponed from VTB Arena. It was difficult only with the relocation of the STM system and the video head system there. Therefore, the game was moved to St. Petersburg to the "Ice Palace", where the entire system remained from last season, when SKA played there.
— What kind of force majeure should happen for "Sochi" matches to be moved to another city?
— No one can predict the situation. Everything here will depend on information from the operational headquarters, which monitors the situation in the region, and local authorities. If there are bans on holding mass sporting events, then we will respond promptly.
"Many viewers really like shootouts"
— Is it possible for the KHL regular season to return to the three-point system, which it abandoned in 2018? Doesn't the current two-point system reduce the motivation to win in regular time, which gives you the same two points as for winning in overtime and shootout?
— Two years ago, we raised this issue in conversations with the clubs. Most of them supported the current two-point system. The main argument is that it creates a density in the regular season table.
This is not to say that the three-point system will be an additional motivator for winning in regular time. In any system, clubs tend not to go into overtime, not to let the opponent earn one point by losing in the extra five minutes or a shootout. This is especially evident at the end of the regular season, when teams from one conference meet and one needs to overtake the other without giving it extra points.
In general, any system has its pros and cons. So far, the two-point system is fine with us. Especially now, when the second round of the playoffs introduced a system of re-seeding teams according to the overall table in accordance with the number of points scored in the regular season. Therefore, there is motivation to fight for a victory in regular time, even considering that it gives the same two points as a victory in overtime or a shootout.
— Were you surprised by the harsh reaction from the hockey community to the idea of a shootout before the start of regular time?
— No, I'm not surprised. But it is clear that it still needs to be decomposed and chewed. We have different ideas on how to improve the product. And we discussed the idea of shootouts — I specifically announced it at a press conference after the meeting of the KHL board of directors so that journalists, players, coaches, and managers would have time to think about it.
In our opinion, this idea has a number of advantages — intrigue, greater interest for fans. The idea has been voiced — it needs to be discussed. It's clear that when you hear it for the first time, a lot of questions arise. You just need to break everything down into stages and explain what it does. We have a whole year ahead to discuss this with the clubs.
— Can you explain the supposed advantages of this reform?
— Many viewers are very fond of shootouts. Especially the children who come to the matches with their parents. They sit and wait for the shootout, but they can't always wait, because weekday overtime and shootout matches end late at night. And the children have to go to school early the next morning. And their parents can leave matches without waiting for the end in the form of a post—match series, since their way home from the stadium can be long - this is especially common in large cities.
And we offer to give the audience this spectacle immediately and with a guarantee. A guarantee that there will be a shootout. And that everyone will have time to watch it, since it will be at the beginning of the matches. It will be a real sight when the players have just warmed up and are showing their skills on good ice, on which three periods of regular time have not yet passed.
Your colleague told me at a recent press conference that when a master of shootouts like Evgeny Kuznetsov joined "Siberia" before the season, we expected him to delight the audience with a cool performance of shootouts. But his team has only reached the post-match series in one game so far, and it wasn't Kuznetsov's turn there. We were offered to increase the post-match series from three shootouts to five for this. But if you organize a series before the main time, then Zhenya will be guaranteed to delight the audience with free throws. And it's in every game. Which will give additional interest to the audience.
Not to mention the motivation of the teams to win in regular time, knowing the outcome of the shootout. You mentioned this topic in the question about the two—point system. Here is another motivation for you to play to win based on the results of the three main periods. The end of the matches will be especially combative.
"The whole country will be waiting for Ovechkin's new records"
— Last spring, there were doping scandals involving several hockey players from KHL clubs. The last of these stories, Vladislav Kamenev, ended last summer with a two—year disqualification of the player. How would you rate the outcome of the case?
— We fully support RUSADA's anti-doping efforts and believe that there should be clean sport in the KHL. It is no coincidence that a new contract was signed with RUSADA for this season, and the number of samples submitted by hockey players was increased.
As far as I know, the same Kamenev filed an appeal against the initial decision on a four-year disqualification, in the end, the fact of the presence of a prohibited drug in his sample was confirmed anyway, but his disqualification was reduced to two years. And Vladislav can even play in the KHL this season if any club signs a contract with him before January 25. He can start training with the team two months before the end of his suspension, that is, before the deadline (Kamenev's suspension expires on March 15, 2027, the deadline for signing new contracts with players from KHL clubs expires on January 15th. — Ed.).
— How do you assess the chances of maintaining the current calendar of the season even after the return of the national teams of Russia and Belarus to the international arena? Can you arrange with the Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RIHF) to hold the decisive playoff series in May, as it is now, when the first national team will play at the World Cup?
— Our contract with the RIHF spelled out the parameters when we should interrupt the championship, how many days before the Olympic Games, the World Cup, the Channel One Cup, and so on. It is clear that we have been living in reality for four years, when the Russian national team is not at the IIHF competitions. When Russia returns to the World Championships and the Olympic Games, we will discuss with the RIHF the further format of the calendar, including analyzing the experience of recent years, when the decisive series of the Gagarin Cup is played in May.
— Do you believe that the Russian national team will be able to compete for World Cup medals without players from the best KHL playoff teams?
— I believe in our national team, we have a lot of great players. Moreover, as practice shows, a lot of NHL guys play at the World Championships. And they were involved in the Russian national team when the national team needed them, they wanted to come to it, and their clubs were finishing the season overseas. In other words, our national team was not always maximally represented by people from the KHL. There were cases when guys from our league were gathered in the national team for the preparatory training camp in Novogorsk, and then four people played at the World Cup — the rest were made up of NHL players. We have all these statistics. This issue will need to be discussed when deciding on the calendar. And take into account many other nuances. For example, the World Cup calendar, which can start on May 7, 10, and 15.
— How did you react to Alexander Ovechkin's signing of a new contract with "Washington" in the summer?
— I took it well. It's super — the whole country will be waiting for his new records.
— Do you believe that he will play in the KHL again?
— It depends on his desire, health and the ability to continue his career at the end of the upcoming NHL season. And the decision that will be made at the family council, as Alexander himself said.
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