The Gagarin Cup (russian: Кубок Гагарина, Kubok Gagarina) is the trophy presented to the winner of the
Kontinental Hockey League
The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya khokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs ba ...
(KHL) playoffs, and is named after Soviet
cosmonaut
An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space. Tr ...
, the first human in space. The Cup was supposedly named after Gagarin because the last possible game of the inaugural KHL season would take place on April 12, the
anniversary date of Gagarin's flight.
After the end of the KHL's
regular season
In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...
, sixteen teams participate in the
playoff
The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
s. The 1/8 and quarter-finals were a
best-of-five series during the
first season, and the semi-finals and finals were a
best-of-seven series during the first season. Conferences were established for the
second season. Conference quarter-finals are a best-of-five series while the conference semi-finals,
conference finals Conference Finals may refer to:
* NBA Conference Finals, National Basketball Association
* NHL Conference Finals
The National Hockey League (NHL) Conference Finals are the Eastern Conference and Western Conference championship series of the NHL. ...
and Gagarin Cup finals are a best-of-seven series. The winner of the final best-of-seven series receives the Gagarin Cup.
It has been reported that the Cup weighs 18 kg (40 lbs), making it heavier than the
NHL's Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...
.
[ ]
Naming history
According to league president
Alexander Medvedev
Alexander Ivanovich Medvedev (russian: Александр Иванович Медведев, ) (born 14 August 1955 in Shakhtyorsk, Sakhalin Oblast) is the current Deputy Chairman of the Management Committee of Russian energy company Gazprom ...
, the Cup was named after
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space. Tr ...
because Russian citizens associate his name with the achievement of great accomplishments, and the man himself has been described as a symbol of the nation.
Series results
Appearances
In the table, the teams are sorted by the number of appearances in the Gagarin Cup finals, then by the number of wins. ''Italicized'' marks now non-existent (not playing in the
KHL
The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya khokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs b ...
) teams. In the "Years of appearance" column, bold years indicate winning Gagarin Cup Finals appearances.
References
{{Kontinental Hockey League
Monuments and memorials to Yuri Gagarin
Kontinental Hockey League trophies and awards
Sports trophies and awards
Awards established in 2008
Russian ice hockey trophies and awards
2008 establishments in Russia