Once again

12 Jun 2016 | Davide Tuniz

For the fourth time in the last five years Ukraine League changes name in the attempt to create a professional league to relaunch hockey in the country

Professional Hockey League, Vyscha Liha, Ukranian Hockey Extra League and from next season UHL - Ukraine Hockey League: the Ukranian domestic championship changes name almost every years, always with the same goals: to create a professional league and to establish serious management in the hockey clubs. These are the essential conditions for the creation of a competitive championship. After the positive experience with the Extra League last season, eight clubs reached an agreement on the formation of a new entity, the Ukrainian Hockey League (UHL): Bilyy Bars Bila Tserkva, Yunist' Kharkiv, Vytyaz' Kharkiv, Generals Kyiv, champion Donbas Donets'k, Companion-Kryzhinka Kyiv, HC Kremenchuk and newly formed Kryvbas Kryvyỹ Rih will play the XXV edition of Hockey Championship of Ukraine. From last season only Rapid Kyiv is at moment out of competition, even if the board of the newly established League will consider the application of unspecified another club to join the UHL.

To promote and develope the hockey in the country a limit of 10 imports was introduced. The proposed format for the league consists of a regular season with 42 games, followed by a playoffs quarter finals. Semifinals and final series will play with best-of-four format