NHL issues update on their relationship with the KHL
Since Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February, sanctions have hit the Russian people and their government hard. The major sporting events that were to take place in Russia have been relocated, and almost every international event taking place this year and next will not feature Russian athletes.
The latest domino to fall? The National Hockey League cut all ties with the Kontinental Hockey league, suspending their memorandum of understanding (MOU), making it almost impossible for the NHL to sign KHL free agents in the off-season reports Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli.
Yesterday, formal notice was given to KHL GMs that the NHL had suspended the long-standing MOU between the two sides. The NHL sights "the unprovoked attack on Ukraine" as their reasoning. The suspension of the MOU ends all communication between the two sides regularly. Although the NHL will continue to honour existing and future KHL contracts, the NHL will no longer verify existing contract information.
This will make signing KHL free agents a challenge beyond 2022.
The NHL's decision comes a week after announcing that they were suspending all business operations with the KHL. This includes: sponsorship deals, and the publication of all social media properties, including their Russian-language website, according to Frank Seravalli.
| POLL | ||
Is this the right decision for the NHL | ||
| Yes | 24 | 46.2 % |
| Yes | 11 | 21.2 % |
| Duh | 17 | 32.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
