"I will be glad if Ovechkin and Malkin continue their careers in our league."

The new season of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) starts exactly one week later. On September 5, the current Gagarin Cup winner, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, will host Traktor Chelyabinsk, the finalist of the last playoffs.

In an interview with Izvestia, KHL President Alexei Morozov told how likely it is that the league will be replenished in the near future, which of the All-Russian Hockey League (VHL) clubs have shown interest in promotion in recent years, and explained why his organization cannot, by analogy with the NHL, withdraw from RUSADA's jurisdiction and independently apply sanctions against hockey players. He also assessed the chances of Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin returning to the KHL, whose current contracts with NHL clubs expire in 2026.

— Alexander Ovechkin's contract with Washington ends next year, and Evgeni Malkin's contract ends with Pittsburgh. Do you want them to return to Russia next summer and start playing in the KHL?

— All I can do now is wish them well. So that they can keep it. And to have the strength to keep playing. If they decide to continue their career in the KHL, I will be only glad and happy. I think our fans will also be happy to support their arrival and will come to watch their game. If Ovechkin and Malkin come to us, they will definitely raise additional excitement, additional interest in the league.

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— Will they have a place under the salary cap? Won't it be necessary to come up with points in the regulations about the withdrawal of stars from under the ceiling, as the then president Alexander Medvedev was going to do in the first seasons of the KHL?

— Evgeny Kuznetsov came to SKA last year. And he didn't have to be taken out from under the ceiling. Ilya Kovalchuk came to Avangard in the first season of the current season — no one took him out either. Their contracts fully complied with the KHL regulations. In addition, our big stars often enter into agreements involving large bonuses. And they can make good money from it. Take Kuznetsov's contract at SKA. If he had been able to complete it, if he had not had an injury and other situations, he would have eventually earned money comparable to what he earned in North America.

— So you don't see any problems with this if our megastars return?

— Let's wait and see. We'll wait to see if the guys come to Russia next year and if they want to play. And if they want to, which teams will they sign contracts with. These will be the teams that will have enough room under the salary cap to sign hockey players of this level.

— At a recent pre-season press conference, answering a question about relations with RUSADA, you said that you live by the laws of the Russian Federation and are obliged to comply with the requirements of WADA and RUSADA. But in 2024, the league managed to coordinate with the country's governing bodies a change in the law that allowed the KHL to withdraw from the FHR's subordination. How does the situation with the federation differ from the situation with RUSADA?

— There is a law that defines the obligations of the Russian Olympic Committee. This is a federal law that sets out the rules that we follow. Therefore, in order to change something, it is necessary to first change the federal law.

— Is it more difficult to change it than those points of the law that previously ordered the KHL to obey the FHR?

— We are not the body that changes federal laws. We can make suggestions, but the decision depends on the Olympic Committee, the Russian government and the Ministry of Sports. If they want to and give their consent, the laws will be reviewed and amended. And now we are subject to the federal law that is in force in our country.

— After Vityaz withdrew from the competition, there were 22 teams left. Are you satisfied with the number of participants? Are you planning to start looking for someone in the VHL in order to invite them to your championship in the future?

— We're watching everyone. We look at who is playing how, who has what kind of arena. We are well aware of the capabilities of the teams across the country. If anyone wants to join the KHL, we will work on this issue in detail, look at the infrastructure, the financial component, and many, many more points that need to be checked. So far, there are no takers, so I don't see any point in forcing anyone to come to us. We won't pull anyone's ears, it would be wrong.

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The main deals of recent weeks in the KHL

— Who was the last person to show a specific interest in joining the KHL?

— A year ago, the leadership of the Krasnoyarsk Sokol was interested in joining the KHL.

— How serious was the interest?

— They just found out the requirements necessary for joining the KHL, what our minimum wage threshold is, and how it will increase in the near future. We told them everything. About a year and a half ago, Ugra also asked what would happen to the floor, how much it would amount to, how it would grow, and what introductory investments were needed. And we talked to AKM. But you know that now their general sponsor, the owner of the Mikhailov Academy, has signed a contract with Lada and is now financing it in the KHL.

— Have you analyzed how ready the infrastructure is for Sokol and Ugra if they show interest in joining the KHL in a more substantive way?

— To give a complete answer to this question, you need to get on a plane, fly to them, communicate, and study the infrastructure. This will need to be done only when they show a specific interest.

— Did you talk to them about such specifics last year?

- no. They only asked for what needs to be done. They were just wondering what they should provide if they wanted to join. When we gave them the first set of documents, they said they weren't ready yet.