Difference Between the KHL and the NHL

Posted: February 15, 2022

Updated: February 15, 2022

The debate about the difference between the NHL or the KHL is ongoing
American hockey championship is stronger than the Russian one
However, the Russian hockey school is strong

The debate about which is better - the NHL or the KHL, has been going on for a long time. In some way, it is quite obvious that the American hockey championship is many times stronger than the Russian one. Otherwise, players from the KHL would not have moved to the NHL for higher salaries and competition. However, the Russian hockey school is strong. Therefore, we need to discuss it as well. In this article, we will look at the difference between the KHL and the NHL.

Dry Statistics

For comparison, we will take the 2019/2020 season, as the 2020/2021 campaign has been heavily modified. For example, the NHL played only 52 regular-season games, far fewer than usual. However, in the 2019/2020 season, each team played 68-71 matches against exactly 60 in the KHL. First, let’s take the number of goals scored. In the American League, this number reached up to 6534, whereas in the Russian League - 3666. Someone will object that there were fewer games, so the KHL players performed worse. Thus, let's take the average number of goals scored per match. In the NHL, this figure was 6 versus 4.9 in the KHL. Indeed, the difference between the KHL and the NHL is more than obvious! That is, in America, viewers see more goals scored. By the way, in the USA and Canada, an average of 17,666 fans went to the top hockey division, in Russia - 6486. That is, both the sport itself and the championship overseas are more popular, and more than 2 times, if we take the number of fans at each match. The best scorer of the overseas tournament, Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals then scored 48 goals along with David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins. Kirill Kaprizov from CSKA at the same time managed to distinguish himself only 33 times. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2j06ejYMC4 Vadim Shipachev became the top scorer earning 65 points. Not far behind him was Dmitry Yashkin with 63 points. However, both of them were very far behind Leon Draisaitl, who had 119 points! This data is for the regular season only. If we also take into account the playoffs, the data there will be much more eloquent. Learn about the Best KHL Goaltenders of All Time before visiting online sportsbooks in the USA.

The Difference Between the KHL and the NHL: Unpredictability

It is very difficult to imagine a situation in which the conditional Jokerit or Dinamo Riga, which have been hanging at the bottom of the standings for many years, made it even to the playoff final. In the entire history of the tournament, only Ak Bars, Salavat Yulaev, Dynamo, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, SKA, CSKA, and in the last season Avangard have won it. Interestingly, three of the last five champions included the same player - Danis Zaripov. The 1XBET Sportsbook always follows such events. In the US-Canadian championship, everything is much more unpredictable. Consider, for example, the last season in which the Montreal Canadiens reached the final of the playoffs. That is the Stanley Cup, for the first time in 28 years. Or the same Vegas, which in the first season managed to reach the decisive series of the league! Each season is won by different teams. In the KHL, even before the start of the campaign, you can guess who will be in the conference finals, which is not clear about the NHL.

Player Level

If you look at the statistics of players who have played in both leagues, their performance will be very different. That is, when a player moves from Russia to America, his statistics immediately go down. And only after many years at the highest level can a hockey player become the best in the National Hockey League. For example, take Alexander Radulov. He received the award for the top scorer, that is, the MVP in the KHL scoring an average of 1-1.5 points per game, depending on the year. He also tried his hand at the AHL for the Milwaukee Admirals and averaged 1.6 points per game there. That is, only in the lowest American division Radulov was able to reach his former level. Another example is Jeff Platt. In the KHL, his average score was about 0.75 points per game. In the NHL, he tried out for several different teams for several different seasons but never played a full season. During this time, the average was 0.3 points per match. In the AHL, his score was about 0.95 points. Besides, watching the NHL and KHL live, many fans notice that one of the biggest problems for guys moving from the Russian league to the American one is the speed of the game.

Each off-season, several NHL players can be seen deciding to continue their careers in the KHL while avoiding offers from clubs in their league. At the top of the list is former San Jose Sharks goaltender Evgeny Nabokov, who signed a four-year, $24 million contract with SKA Saint Petersburg. He is followed by former Atlanta striker Maxim Afinogenov, who signed a five-year contract with the same SKA. For many Russian players, returning home is not only money but also convenience.

Difference Between the KHL and the NHL: Competition

It should also be taken into account that 32 clubs participate in the NHL (last season there were 31), in the KHL - 24. New, competitive clubs come to the league across the ocean. The Vegas Golden Knights blew up the tournament when they reached the playoff finals in their first season. Now the Seattle Kraken has joined the league - a team that was also created to fight and has already shown it in the first matches of the season. Moreover, in the US and Canada, there are no situations when teams cease to exist or move to a lower level competition due to a simple lack of funds or other problems. And in Russia, it happens all the time! Recall the same Ugra from Khanty-Mansiysk, which dangled (no other way to call it) in the championship until the 2017/2018 season.

This club constantly lost, did not even qualify for the playoffs, and eventually moved to the VHL. The same fate befell Lada from Togliatti in the same season and Metallurg from Novokuznetsk a year earlier. Although there were quite interesting, competitive clubs, such as Lev from Prague. But for various reasons, they left the composition of the participants. Besides, the problem is that these good teams have not been replaced by a worthy replacement, and indeed, there was no replacement. Here is a list of the Best Russian Ice Hockey Teams. You can bet on them in online sportsbooks in the USA.

Who Will Be The Most Likely Winner In a Game?

Nowadays, the NHL team would be the biggest favorite. Journalist Steven Rigg did a great job of answering the question of how the National Hockey League came to be considered the premier professional hockey league in the world. Here are his words: “Forgive me, Russia, but our trophy is a hundred years older than yours. If your players get the right to choose where to play - in the NHL or the KHL, they will most likely be able to play only in a weaker league.” That is why North Americans today who are good enough to play in the NHL are trying to do so. They will play in the minor leagues here in America rather than going to Russia hoping they can make it to the KHL. While the best Russians come to play with the NHL, we don't see the best North Americans play in the KHL. If these North Americans were good enough to play in the NHL, they would play here instead of moving thousands of miles away. Let’s look at it another way: when the NHL is allowed to send players to the Olympics, America and Canada don't send KHL players, even if they have them. Russia can also send some KHL players, but it sends mostly Russian NHL players if it has the opportunity. It is very difficult to argue with this journalist and the facts that he cited. Therefore, we can once again confirm that the American hockey league is much stronger than the Russian one, and this is confirmed by numerous facts. Read our article about the 2021-22 NHL Season Preview before visiting the 1XBET Sportsbook.