No. 1
You know, ''a rose....by any other word,'' and the like-The Soviet League(1946-1992), The
International Hockey League(1996-1999), The Russian Super League(1999-2008) on to the
Kontinental Hockey League(2008-present). It has been the premier independent hockey league
in the world. The nominal irony is that the corporate NHL is the true ''continental'' league play-
ing their games outside of the international scope and norms of ice hockey. Like most leagues
the KHL is replete with recognizable features-3 cups, two conferences, four divisions, eight
conference playoff qualifiers for the second phase leading to the Gargarin Cup Final. 92 of the
300 players in the recent Pyeonchang 2018 Olympics play in the KHL, and the Russian Gold
Medal was 90% powered by the two best teams in the KHL-SKA and CSKA.
CSKA was the ''cornerstone'' of the Soviet League, and evolved into the greatest hockey
team ever to step on to an ice hockey rink. Their supremacy, domestically and internationally,
spans the time of their founding(1946) to 1992. To statistically numerate this dominance
would involve enough pulp to devastate a South American rain forest, and be a disservice
to the team itself which was the engine that drove the Soviet ''Big Red Machine'' that over-
whelmed all international competition for nearly half a century. The team obliterated the best
the NHL could offer, and, in the process, surmonted them in a series of games in hostile con-
ditions,irregular ice dimensions, odd rules, NHL referees and violent\hateful fans. They
played 36 games between 1976 and 1991-their record was 26-8-2. One can only imagine the
results if the conditions had been reversed, and all the games had been in the Soviet Union.
The KHL is still feeling itself along with an expanding league, including the first Chinese
team, Kunlun Red Star to play big time hockey. The 60 game season will be completed by all
29 teams today, and the playoffs start Saturday(3). Onward and Upward!
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