KHL Contraction Part I (Mod Warning - Post #15)

[SoundAndFury]

It was done before and it would probably happen again. Dinamo Riga would be no more. No other realistic options. Travel in the VHL is even more brutal than the KHL so there is no way on Earth Latvian team would participate there. Unless there would be some major changes in the VHL itself.

 

[Rigafan]

It was done before and it would probably happen again. Dinamo Riga would be no more. No other realistic options. Travel in the VHL is even more brutal than the KHL so there is no way on Earth Latvian team would participate there. Unless there would be some major changes in the VHL itself.

Yeah the travel would be terrible. Unless that Swedish rumour were true! (we know its not though)

What about the EBEL could we ever envision them accepting Riga? I think that level would be very good for us

 

[SoundAndFury]

Level-wise, sure, EBEL would be really good. But why would they want to add a team 1500 km away. Latvian team isn't that big of a draw, it would basically be spending money for no real reason. They aren't enthusiastic about Slovak teams playing and this is so much worse.

Folding or playing in the Latvian league are the only sensible options. Belarus' Extraliga could happen as well but I don't really see a point in it. Being competitive there is too expensive and Latvian teams are pretty much as good as the ones in Extraliga's loser stage. It could maybe work as a stopgap if the idea would be to get back to the KHL at some point.

In any case, I'm fine with anything either way. Dinamo as it is now, which can't even afford decent Latvian players, is a joke.

 

[Toro2017]

Folding or playing in the Latvian league are the only sensible options.

How about finnish Liiga? At the moment we have 15 teams and with D.Riga it would be 16 teams. With them, every team would play against every other teams four times and every team would get 60 games in regular season.

 

[SoundAndFury]

Still, why would any team want to add those travel costs? Just out of niceness to Latvian hockey. Everybody sleeps in their own bed at night in the Liiga. What's the incentive to change it?

 

[Rcknrollkillnmachine]

Unless KHL have teams from Vilnius and/or Tallinn lined up I don't see Riga leaving imo.

 

[Toro2017]

Still, why would any team want to add those travel costs? Just out of niceness to Latvian hockey. Everybody sleeps in their own bed at night in the Liiga. What's the incentive to change it?

I don't think those traver cost would be too much, but ofcourse it would be more than now. Latvian "hockeymarket" might not be as big as finnish, but it is a hockeymarket, so why not test it. If it does not work, then we can thank them and let them find more suitable competition. And if every team that would visit Latvia, would play on consecutive days, it would mean one or two night away from home. I don't think that would be too much for professional hockey players.

 

[vorky]

Just a few notes to Dinamo Riga

1. There is only one guy claiming Dinamo Riga leaving the KHL, his name is Shevchenko. Not a credible source.

2. Dinamo Riga has their guys at the KHL Board of Directors & the KHL Executive Board. Dinamo is a stakeholder of the KHL. Dinamo´s status in the league is strong. Hard to imagine that the club is left.

3. Dinamo has one of the best league´s arenas. And the league wants clubs with good & large arenas.

 

[powerplaymaker]

How about finnish Liiga? At the moment we have 15 teams and with D.Riga it would be 16 teams. With them, every team would play against every other teams four times and every team would get 60 games in regular season.

Liiga already has too many teams and the level of play has suffered from that. Too few Liiga-level players and too many teams to divide them into..

Hopefully Riga will stay in KHL. I might start losing my interest if too many "western" teams go belly up.

To sum it up: the talks have been that two teams will be leaving KHL after this season, am I right?
There are also rumors about a team in London and some talks about DEL and KHL having some sort of discussions... If a team from UK joins the KHL the next season, is there infact a threat for the third team to be tossed to minor leagues?

 

[Rigafan]

Liiga already has too many teams and the level of play has suffered from that. Too few Liiga-level players and too many teams to divide them into..

Hopefully Riga will stay in KHL. I might start losing my interest if too many "western" teams go belly up.

To sum it up: the talks have been that two teams will be leaving KHL after this season, am I right?
There are also rumors about a team in London and some talks about DEL and KHL having some sort of discussions... If a team from UK joins the KHL the next season, is there infact a threat for the third team to be tossed to minor leagues?

There have been no more cryptic Linkdin posts about the London team so its probably not likely they'll be announced for next season, who knows about the future? Wembley arena is currently being renovated to house a UK league team in a season or two we're told.

Whatever is happening in Germany they should bring back Hamburg and put them in the KHL. That'd be fun. Wingas is technically a 'German' company so just get the money from them.

 

[Jussi]

Liiga already has too many teams and the level of play has suffered from that. Too few Liiga-level players and too many teams to divide them into..

Hopefully Riga will stay in KHL. I might start losing my interest if too many "western" teams go belly up.

To sum it up: the talks have been that two teams will be leaving KHL after this season, am I right?
There are also rumors about a team in London and some talks about DEL and KHL having some sort of discussions... If a team from UK joins the KHL the next season, is there infact a threat for the third team to be tossed to minor leagues?

After recent events, something tells me this isn't going to happen. [Mod]

 

[Lackhalak]

 

[SoundAndFury]

Well those are the names that made most sense at this point. Best of luck in the VHL. It's a solid league, nothing wrong with that.

 

[powerplaymaker]

Now confimed: Jugra and Lada are out for the next season. Apparently no new teams?

 

[BalticWarrior]

Since im 99.9% sure nothing will change next season, Rīga will be among the main candidates to be booted out of KHL in 18/19 since Lada and Yugra are gone.

 

[Alessandro Seren Rosso]

Since im 99.9% sure nothing will change next season, Rīga will be among the main candidates to be booted out of KHL in 18/19 since Lada and Yugra are gone.

It's more likely that one Russian club will be excluded. Severstal, perhaps.

 

[MaxV]

Hopefully this doesn't have a negative effect on Ugra's youth program which has been producing lately.

 

[SoundAndFury]

It's more likely that one Russian club will be excluded. Severstal, perhaps.

At this point, it has to be Vityaz. It HAS to be.

 

[Caser]

With Yugra it was obvious, their only assets were young players and nice jerseys.

Shame about Lada though, but no surprise there too.

Severstal is clearly next in line, Vityaz not far away (if I were them, I'd urgently try to relocate to Mytishchi), probably Slovan too.

 

[MaxV]

Will these teams become farm teams? Or individual VHL franchises?

 

[SoundAndFury]

They will probably sign a deal with one of the KHL teams in the long run (like Kurgan, Saryarka, etc.) but since there aren't too many KHL teams in need of a farm club it will take time. Yugra is really unattractive team for geographic reasons as well.

 

[Alessandro Seren Rosso]

At this point, it has to be Vityaz. It HAS to be.

I would rather get them out than Severstal, that's for sure, but the "rankings" had Severstal lined up next unfortunately.

 

[MaxV]

Isn't it 2 teams? It might be both Severstal and Vityaz.

 

[cska78]

Politically now KHL has no future. Financially never has....The existence of this league is unjustified, money/salaries are unfair/unearned.
So sooner, than later, it's going to be Russian teams plus a few Chinese. Than NHL will get serious about the Asian market, and KHL will lose aforementioned teams as well.

 

[Rcknrollkillnmachine]

I wonder about that Uzbeki team since Wiki states that once their new rink is opened they could host games from next season i.e. KHL