For the 2014–15 season, Ukrainians constituted the 14th most numerous nationality within the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). During the 2009–10 KHL season, 26 Ukrainian players participated in the competition, the most to date, out of the 41 total to have played. Alexei Zhitnik, along with Anton Babchuk and Nikolay Zherdev are of a select few to have been named to the annual

All Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or di ...

. Oleg Tverdovsky became the first Ukrainian-born player to win the Gagarin Cup, doing so with

HC Salavat Yulaev Hockey Club Salavat Yulaev (russian: Хоккейный клуб «Салават Юлаев», Hokkejnyj klub «Salavat Julajev»; ba, «Салауат Юлаев» хоккей клубы, «Salawat Yulayev» xokkey klubı), commonly referred ...

in 2010. In 2013, Kostiantyn Kasianchuk became the first Ukrainian national team player to do the same; after which the Cup was brought to Kyiv in celebration. According to Sokil Kyiv general manager Vyacheslav Zavalnyuk, 13.5% of all players in the KHL have Ukrainian roots.

Players

Note: ''A (★) denotes a player who has participated in an

''
All statistics accurate to the end of the

2012–13 KHL season The 2012–13 KHL season was the fifth season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The regular season began on 4 September with the Lokomotiv Cup between last year's finalists Dynamo Moscow and Avangard Omsk. For the first time, the league consisted ...

Breakdown of players by nationality

Captains

Several players have acted as captains of their respective KHL clubs, including: Alexei Zhitnik ( Dynamo Moscow); Vitaly Vishnevsky ( SKA); Serhiy Varlamov, Ruslan Fedotenko, ( HC Donbass); and Nikolay Zherdev ( Atlant)

Players of Ukrainian descent

The following is a list of KHL players who while not born in Ukraine, are of documented

Ukrainian descent Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Or ...

. *

Mikhail Anisin Mikhail Vyacheslavovich Anisin (born March 1, 1988) is a Russian professional ice hockey forward who is currently playing with SC Csíkszereda in the Erste Liga. Playing career On 20 October 2013, Anisin was acquired by HC Donbass from HC N ...

* Alexander Eremenko *

Shaun Heshka Shaun Heshka (born July 30, 1985) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman, who currently plays for Rauman Lukko of the Finnish Liiga. Playing career Heshka played his junior years for the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey Lea ...

* Andrei Nikolishin

Notes

* Figure includes both Ukrainian-born and Ukrainian national players. * Denis Denisov was born in Kharkiv, Ukrainian SSR to a military family who relocated to Tver prior to Ukraine's independence. As a result, he never was a Ukrainian citizen. * Yuri Silnitsky and Vladislav Shalimov played in the 2012–13 season, but did not gain Ukrainian citizenship until the following year. * Indicates a player who was born in Russia and became a naturalized Ukrainian citizen *

Vitaly Anikeyenko Vitaly Serhiiovych Anikeyenko (2 January 1987 – 7 September 2011) was a Ukrainian-Russian professional ice hockey player. Life Born in Kyiv, Anikeyenko spent the entirety of his professional hockey career with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Kontin ...

, Daniil Sobchenko, and

Alexander Vyukhin Oleksandr Yevhenovych "Alexander" Vyukhin ( ua, Олександр Євгенович Вьюхін; January 9, 1973 – September 7, 2011) was a Ukrainian and Russian professional ice hockey goaltender who last played for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of th ...

were killed in the

2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash On 7 September 2011, YAK-Service Flight 9633, a Yakovlev Yak-42 air charter, charter flight operated by Yak-Service, YAK-Service carrying players and coaching staff of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl professional ice hockey team, crashed on take-off nea ...

prior to the opening game of the

2011–12 KHL season The 2011–12 KHL season was the fourth season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The regular season began with the Opening Cup game on 7 September 2011, but because of the 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash, which occurred during the first perio ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ukrainians In The Kontinental Hockey League Ukrainians * Kontinental Hockey League