KHL Shifts Its All-Star Format

Despite its former claims of hockey excellence, the KHL quickly became the league of complete irrelevance. No longer are they attracting stars with wild contracts, no longer are they claiming to be a rival of the NHL, and I doubt we're going to see the KHL dig its way out of the political and socio-economical turmoil that its host country finds itself in, but anything could happen with better leadership. I say that while referencing both the country and the hockey league, but the main reason is that KHL has decided to alter the format of its All-Star Game to resemble something like a mini World Cup of Hockey. I have no idea if this new format will work, but the KHL is going to give it a go after making the announcement on Friday for their All-Star Weekend in February.

I'm not against making changes to make any all-star game better, but the changes shouldn't be done just to see if they work. I know some people feel the format of best-vs-best has lost its lustre, but changing the overall format of the game or, in this case, the entire All-Star Weekend may actually make the entire thing worse. Nevertheless, the KHL is getting experimental with their new format that we'll see From February 6-8, 2026 across the entire weekend.

The schedule in Yekaterinburg, Russia will see four teams of 14 players that will play a mini-tournament across two periods of 10 minutes of game time for each game. The host team will be the KHL Ural Stars comprised of players from Avtomobilist, Traktor, Metallurg, and Salavat Yulaev. Metallurg is currently in first-place in the Eastern Conference with a 17-5-3-2 record, Avtomobilist sits in fourth-place at 11-10-4-3, Traktor is the sixth-place team at 9-10-4-5, and Salavat is the ninth-place team at 9-13-1-3. I'd imagine that Metallurg Magnitogorsk will make up the largest chunk of that 14-player roster.

Players from the remaining 18 teams in the KHL will make up the rosters of Team World Stars, KHL RUS Stars, and KHL U23 Stars. Team World Stars will be made up of non-Russian players competing in the KHL including Belarusian and Kazakh players. KHL RUS Stars will be made up exclusively of Russian-born players while the KHL U23 Stars will be a team of players who were born no earlier than January 1, 2003. If you're getting vibes of Team Europe and Team North America with the breakdown of these teams, you're not alone.

Metallurg's Vladimir Tkachyov leads the KHL in scoring right now while teammate Roman Kantserov is third in scoring, so they're likely locks for Team Ural. American Sam Anas is second in scoring while Dutch forward Daniel Sprong is fourth in scoring, so I expect them to be leading Team World Stars. Avangard's Konstantin Okulov is tied for fourth in scoring and he's the highest scoring Russian, so I expect him on the Team RUS Stars roster. Mikhail Ilyin, who is way down the scoring list, is the top scorer for the U23 Stars as the 22 year-old from Severstal has 22 points. Nothing has been announced yet, though.

One of the reasons nothing has been announced is that the fans still get a say in who goes to the KHL All-Star Game. From November 21-24, fans can vote for a player who decided the outcome of one of this season's overtime games as an All-Star. From November 25 to December 3, fans will get to vote on the Fonbet Hockey Stars Week website for four players for each team. After those four players for each team are selected, the media representatives and KHL executivies will make their choices to fill out the rosters.

There is one catch, though, as the KHL U23 Stars will hold two roster spots open for two players from JHL Challenge Cup which will be played on February 6 to kick off the festivities. Those two players will join the team on February 7 for the semifinal games between the four teams with the winners moving on to the KHL All-Star Game on February 8. That day will also see the skills competition completed before the final is played. It's going to be a busy weekend.

KHL President Alexei Morozov said in the release, "... the new format should increase the entertainment value and competition between the participants of the All-Star weekend. We deliberately moved away from the traditional divisional geography. As hosts, the Ural stars will play in Yekaterinburg, which will create a special 'home' atmosphere for local fans. The return of Team Russia and Team World is a classic rivalry. And the team made up of young players will add speed, excitement, and showcase the future of our League."

I'm not certain having a team of 22 year-old players getting crushed by KHL veterans is a goos way to "showcase the future of the league", but I'll let Morozov have his moment. Personally, I think seeing best-vs-best in a single game would dazzle fans just the same, but what do I know? I'm just a guy who has had his fill of All-Star Games.

Hockey is becoming a sport of gimmicks, and this new format is just another gimmick to keep a meaningless All-Star Game relevant. Enjoy it if that's your thing, but I'd like to see the best players in the game from each conference squaring off against one another again. I guess you can just call me a "traditionalist" when it comes to hockey.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!