Gagarin Cup
Encyclopedia
The Gagarin Cup is the trophy presented to the winner of the Kontinental Hockey League
(KHL) playoffs, and is named after cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin
, 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
, sixteen teams participate in the playoff
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
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 Cup was named after Gagarin 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. Additionally, according to the founders of the KHL, his ascent into space serves as a metaphor for the contemporary Soviet breakthrough in hockey.
Another candidate for the namesake of the Cup was Soviet hockey legend Anatoli Tarasov
, considered the "father of Soviet hockey". It was later decided that one of the four divisions would bear his name.
Kontinental Hockey League
The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league in Eurasia founded in 2008. As of 2009, it is ranked as the strongest hockey league in Europe....
(KHL) playoffs, and is named after cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space, when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961....
, 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
Season (sports)
In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...
, sixteen teams participate in the playoff
Playoff
The playoffs, postseason, or finals of a sports league are a game or series of games played after the regular season by the top competitors, usually but not always with a single-elimination system, to determine the league champion or a similar accolade.In the U.S...
s. The 1/8 and quarter-finals were a best-of-five series during the first season
2008–09 KHL season
The 2008–09 KHL season was the inaugural season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It started on September 2, 2008, and finished on February 26, 2009...
, and the semi-finals and finals were a best-of-seven series during the first season. Conferences were established for the second season
2009–10 KHL season
The 2009–10 KHL season was the second season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It was held from 10 September 2009 to 27 April 2010, with a break for the Olympic winter games from 8 February to 3 March...
. Conference quarter-finals are a best-of-five series while the conference semi-finals, conference finals
KHL Conference Finals
The Kontinental Hockey League Conference Finals are the Eastern Conference and Western Conference Championship series of the KHL. The Conference Finals are best-of-seven series. The two series are played after the first and second rounds of the playoffs and before the Gagarin Cup Finals. The final...
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
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
.
Naming History
According to league commissioner Alexander MedvedevAlexander Medvedev
Alexander Ivanovich Medvedev is the current Deputy Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of Russian energy company Gazprom, president of the Kontinental Hockey League, and the Director-General of Gazprom's export arm Gazprom Export...
, the Cup was named after Gagarin 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. Additionally, according to the founders of the KHL, his ascent into space serves as a metaphor for the contemporary Soviet breakthrough in hockey.
Another candidate for the namesake of the Cup was Soviet hockey legend Anatoli Tarasov
Anatoli Tarasov
Anatoli Vladimirovitch Tarasov was an ice hockey coach, styled by Encyclopædia Britannica "the father of Russian hockey", who established the Soviet Union as "the dominant force in international competition"...
, considered the "father of Soviet hockey". It was later decided that one of the four divisions would bear his name.
Cup winners
| Win for eventual play-off winner | |
| Loss for eventual play-off winner | |
| W | Western Conference champion |
| E | Eastern Conference champion |
| N/A | N/A, KHL conferences established during the second season of competition 2009–10 KHL season The 2009–10 KHL season was the second season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It was held from 10 September 2009 to 27 April 2010, with a break for the Olympic winter games from 8 February to 3 March... |
| Season | Teams | Game scores | Series score |
Series-winning goal scorer | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |||||
| 2008-09 2008–09 KHL season The 2008–09 KHL season was the inaugural season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It started on September 2, 2008, and finished on February 26, 2009... |
N/A | Ak Bars Kazan | 0–3 | 4–3 OT Overtime (ice hockey) Overtime is a method of determining the winner and loser of an ice hockey match when the scores are tied after regulation. The two main methods are the overtime period and the shootout.-Overtime periods:... |
2–3 | 1–0 | 4 | Aleksey Morozov Aleksey Morozov Aleksey Alekseyevich Morozov is a Russian professional ice hockey player currently playing for Ak Bars Kazan of the Kontinental Hockey League... (50:04) |
|||
| N/A | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Hockey Club Lokomotiv , also known as Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, is a Russian professional ice hockey team based in Yaroslavl. The name of the team is derived from its owner, Russian Railways, the national railroad operator.... |
3–0 | 2–5 | 2–3 OT Overtime (ice hockey) Overtime is a method of determining the winner and loser of an ice hockey match when the scores are tied after regulation. The two main methods are the overtime period and the shootout.-Overtime periods:... |
3 | ||||||
| 2009-10 2009–10 KHL season The 2009–10 KHL season was the second season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It was held from 10 September 2009 to 27 April 2010, with a break for the Olympic winter games from 8 February to 3 March... |
E | Ak Bars Kazan | 2–3 | 1–2 | 7–1 | 4 | Nikita Alexeev Nikita Alexeev Nikita Sergeyevich Alexeev is a Russian professional ice hockey forward currently playing for Ak Bars Kazan of the Kontinental Hockey League . He most recently played in the National Hockey League for the Chicago Blackhawks.- Playing career :... (21:18) |
||||
| W | HC MVD | 2–3 | 1–4 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 3 | |||||
| 2010-11 2010–11 KHL season The 2010–11 KHL season is the third season of the Kontinental Hockey League. It was held from 8 September 2010 and ended on 16 April 2011.The season started with the Opening Cup game between the last season's finalists, Ak Bars Kazan and the new team that was created by merging last season's... |
E | Salavat Yulaev Ufa Salavat Yulaev Ufa Salavat Yulaev is a professional ice hockey team based in Ufa in the Republic of Bashkortostan, a federal subject of the Russian Federation. They are members of the Chernyshev Division of the Kontinental Hockey League, and were part of Group C of the 2008–09 Champions Hockey League.-History:The... |
2–1 OT Overtime (ice hockey) Overtime is a method of determining the winner and loser of an ice hockey match when the scores are tied after regulation. The two main methods are the overtime period and the shootout.-Overtime periods:... |
3–1 | 3–2 | 4 | Alexander Svitov (55:48) | ||||
| W | Atlant Moscow Oblast | 2–3 | 4–0 | 1 | |||||||