The full list of 2017/2018 VHL participants

The Russian Ice Hockey Federation can now confirm who will take part in the 2017/2018 VHL season.

HC Gornyak (Uchaly), Metallurg (Novokuznetsk), CSK VVS (Samara), Kunlun Red Star Heilongjiang and Tsen Tou Jilin will all compete in this season.

HC Ariada-NKH (Volzhsk), Dynamo (Balashikha), Kristall (Saratov) and THC (Tver) will not take part in the 2017/2018 campaign.

2017/2018 VHL participants:

1. Bars (Kazan)

2. Buran (Voronezh)

3. Gornyak (Uchaly)

4. Dizel (Penza)

5. Dynamo (Saint Petersburg)

6. Ermak (Angarsk)

7. Zauralye (Kurgan)

8. Zvezda (Chekhov)

9. Izhstal (Izhevsk)

10. Kunlun Red Star Heilongjiang (Harbin)

11. Metallurg (Novokuznetsk)

12. Molot-Prikamye (Perm)

13. Neftyanik (Almetevsk)

14. Rubin (Tyumen)

15. Saryarka (Karaganda)

16. SKA-Neva (Saint Petersburg)

17. Sokol (Krasnoyarsk)

18. Sputnik (Nizhny Tagil)

19. Toros (Neftekamsk)

20. Torpedo (Ust-Kamenogorsk)

21. HC Ryazan (Ryazan)

22. HC Sarov (Sarov)

23. Khimik (Voskresensk)

24. Tsen Tou (Jilin)

25. CSK VVS (Samara)

26. Chelmet (Chelyabinsk)

27. Yuzhniy Ural (Orsk)

RIHF president Vladislav Tretiak:

- I think that this season should be interesting. Five new clubs have joined the league, in turn making the VHL bigger in terms of geography. Teams like HC Metallurg Novokuznetsk are well known to fans, while two new Chinese teams are joining. This will make the league and Russian ice hockey in general more interesting for the supporters. I am confident that this season will have unforgettable matches, games which the VHL deserves.

VHL organising committee chairman Dmitry Kurbatov:

- With two Chinese clubs joining the VHL, the league will move on to a serious international level. The teams are becoming younger, helping KHL clubs with the amount of high level players. This season, we will do everything possible to make the championship more interesting and unpredictable while making sure that financially clubs are fine. 

Russian Ice Hockey Federation