# 2015–16 KHL season

The 2015–16 KHL season was the eighth season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The season started on 24 August 2015 with the Opening Cup between defending champions SKA Saint Petersburg and last year's Continental Cup winners CSKA Moscow, replacing Ak Bars Kazan, the previous season's Gagarin Cup finalists.

## Team changes

Spartak Moscow returned to the league prior to this season. It was also announced by KHL President Dmitry Chernyshenko that Atlant Moscow Oblast would not participate in the league this season due to financial problems.

## Divisions and regular season format

In this season, each team played every other team once at home and once on the road, giving a total of 54 games (27 at home, 27 on the road), plus 6 additional games (3 at home, 3 on the road) played by each team against rival clubs from its own conference. Thus, each team played a total of 60 games in the regular season.
How the teams are divided into divisions and conferences is shown in the table below.
| Western Conference | Eastern Conference |
| Bobrov Division | Tarasov Division | Kharlamov Division | Chernyshev Division |
| Dinamo Minsk | CSKA Moscow | Ak Bars Kazan | Admiral Vladivostok |
| Dinamo Riga | Dynamo Moscow | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg | Amur Khabarovsk |
| Jokerit | HC Sochi | Lada Togliatti | Avangard Omsk |
| Medveščak Zagreb | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | Barys Astana |
| SKA Saint Petersburg | Severstal Cherepovets | Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk | Metallurg Novokuznetsk |
| Slovan Bratislava | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod | Traktor Chelyabinsk | Salavat Yulaev Ufa |
| Spartak Moscow | Vityaz Podolsk | Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk | Sibir Novosibirsk |

## League standings
### Western Conference

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | CSKA Moscow | 60 | 38 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 163 | 87 | +76 | 127 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | Jokerit | 60 | 31 | 5 | 5 | 19 | 167 | 140 | +27 | 108 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 3 | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | 60 | 37 | 6 | 2 | 15 | 155 | 94 | +61 | 125 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 4 | HC Sochi | 60 | 30 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 175 | 149 | +26 | 108 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 5 | Dynamo Moscow | 60 | 27 | 8 | 8 | 17 | 167 | 126 | +41 | 105 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 6 | SKA Saint Petersburg | 60 | 27 | 6 | 7 | 20 | 176 | 149 | +27 | 100 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 7 | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod | 60 | 23 | 10 | 11 | 16 | 163 | 137 | +26 | 100 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 8 | Slovan Bratislava | 60 | 21 | 11 | 4 | 24 | 154 | 148 | +6 | 89 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 9 | Dinamo Minsk | 60 | 20 | 7 | 9 | 24 | 147 | 168 | −21 | 83 | |
| 10 | Medveščak Zagreb | 60 | 19 | 6 | 9 | 26 | 144 | 172 | −28 | 78 | |
| 11 | Spartak Moscow | 60 | 20 | 5 | 7 | 28 | 139 | 172 | −33 | 77 | |
| 12 | Dinamo Riga | 60 | 17 | 8 | 8 | 27 | 129 | 151 | −22 | 75 | |
| 13 | Vityaz Podolsk | 60 | 17 | 8 | 3 | 32 | 129 | 166 | −37 | 70 | |
| 14 | Severstal Cherepovets | 60 | 12 | 8 | 6 | 34 | 124 | 167 | −43 | 58 | |
* ↑ Two winners of divisions hold the first two places in the conference

### Eastern Conference

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Avangard Omsk | 60 | 27 | 6 | 13 | 14 | 156 | 120 | +36 | 106 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 60 | 25 | 13 | 2 | 20 | 180 | 138 | +42 | 103 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 3 | Sibir Novosibirsk | 60 | 24 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 155 | 133 | +22 | 105 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 4 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | 60 | 29 | 5 | 4 | 22 | 179 | 156 | +23 | 101 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 5 | Ak Bars Kazan | 60 | 25 | 6 | 9 | 20 | 143 | 127 | +16 | 96 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 6 | Admiral Vladivostok | 60 | 25 | 8 | 4 | 23 | 157 | 163 | −6 | 95 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 7 | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg | 60 | 21 | 9 | 11 | 19 | 145 | 158 | −13 | 92 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 8 | Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk | 60 | 20 | 7 | 12 | 21 | 130 | 135 | −5 | 86 | Advance to Gagarin Cup Playoffs |
| 9 | Barys Astana | 60 | 21 | 8 | 6 | 25 | 167 | 184 | −17 | 85 | |
| 10 | Traktor Chelyabinsk | 60 | 17 | 12 | 8 | 23 | 132 | 151 | −19 | 83 | |
| 11 | Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk | 60 | 19 | 6 | 3 | 32 | 120 | 178 | −58 | 72 | |
| 12 | Amur Khabarovsk | 60 | 17 | 6 | 6 | 31 | 112 | 143 | −31 | 69 | |
| 13 | Lada Togliatti | 60 | 17 | 5 | 8 | 30 | 120 | 153 | −33 | 69 | |
| 14 | Metallurg Novokuznetsk | 60 | 13 | 1 | 14 | 32 | 128 | 191 | −63 | 55 | |
* ↑ Two winners of divisions hold the first two places in the conference

## Gagarin Cup Playoffs

The playoffs started on 21 February 2016 with the top eight teams from each of the conferences, and ended with the last game of the Gagarin Cup final on 19 April 2016.

### Bracket

| Conference Quarterfinals | Conference Quarterfinals | Conference Quarterfinals | | | Conference Semifinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Semifinals | Conference Finals | Conference Finals | Conference Finals | | Gagarin Cup Finals | Gagarin Cup Finals | Gagarin Cup Finals |
| 1 | Avangard | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Neftekhimik | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Neftekhimik | 0 | | | 1 | Avangard | 3 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 4 | Salavat Yulaev | 4 | | | | | | | |
| 2 | Metallurg Mg | 4 | | | 4 | Salavat Yulaev | 4 | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Avtomobilist | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Avtomobilist | 2 | | | | | | 4 | Salavat Yulaev | 1 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | 4 | Salavat Yulaev | 1 | | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | 2 | Metallurg Mg | 4 | | | | |
| 3 | Sibir | 4 | | | | | | | | | 2 | Metallurg Mg | 4 | | | | |
| 6 | Admiral | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | Admiral | 1 | | | 2 | Metallurg Mg | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 3 | Sibir | 1 | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Salavat Yulaev | 4 | | | 3 | Sibir | 1 | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Ak Bars | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Ak Bars | 3 | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Metallurg Mg | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | 1 | CSKA | 3 |
| 1 | CSKA | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | 1 | CSKA | 3 |
| 8 | Slovan | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Slovan | 0 | | | 1 | CSKA | 4 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 7 | Torpedo | 1 | | | | | | | |
| 2 | Jokerit | 2 | | | 7 | Torpedo | 1 | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Torpedo | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Torpedo | 4 | | | | | | 1 | CSKA | 4 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | 1 | CSKA | 4 | | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | 6 | SKA | 0 | | | | |
| 3 | Lokomotiv | 1 | | | | | | | | | 6 | SKA | 0 | | | | |
| 6 | SKA | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | SKA | 4 | | | 5 | Dynamo Msk | 2 | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | 6 | SKA | 4 | | | | | | | |
| 4 | HC Sochi | 0 | | | 6 | SKA | 4 | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Dynamo Msk | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |

## Final standings

| Rank | Team |
| 1 | Metallurg Magnitogorsk |
| 2 | CSKA Moscow |
| 3 | Salavat Yulaev Ufa |
| 4 | SKA Saint Petersburg |
| 5 | Avangard Omsk |
| 6 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 7 | Sibir Novosibirsk |
| 8 | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod |
| 9 | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl |
| 10 | Jokerit |
| 11 | HC Sochi |
| 12 | Ak Bars Kazan |
| 13 | Admiral Vladivostok |
| 14 | Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg |
| 15 | Slovan Bratislava |
| 16 | Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk |
| 17 | Barys Astana |
| 18 | Dinamo Minsk |
| 19 | Traktor Chelyabinsk |
| 20 | Medveščak Zagreb |
| 21 | Spartak Moscow |
| 22 | Dinamo Riga |
| 23 | Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk |
| 24 | Vityaz Podolsk |
| 25 | Amur Khabarovsk |
| 26 | Lada Togliatti |
| 27 | Severstal Cherepovets |
| 28 | Metallurg Novokuznetsk |

## Player statistics
### Scoring leaders

As of 18 February 2016
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
| Sergei Mozyakin | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 57 | 32 | 35 | 67 | +11 | 0 |
| Alexander Radulov | CSKA Moscow | 53 | 23 | 42 | 65 | +28 | 73 |
| Brandon Bochenski | Barys Astana | 60 | 20 | 41 | 61 | +16 | 48 |
| Vadim Shipachyov | SKA Saint Petersburg | 54 | 17 | 43 | 60 | −8 | 63 |
| Linus Omark | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | 60 | 18 | 39 | 57 | +12 | 40 |
| Matt Ellison | Dinamo Minsk | 54 | 26 | 29 | 55 | −10 | 54 |
| Danis Zaripov | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 60 | 22 | 32 | 54 | +9 | 26 |
| Nigel Dawes | Barys Astana | 55 | 31 | 22 | 53 | +15 | 16 |
| Justin Azevedo | Ak Bars Kazan | 59 | 17 | 36 | 53 | +6 | 26 |
| Jan Kovář | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 58 | 20 | 32 | 52 | +7 | 61 |
Source: KHL

### Leading goaltenders

As of 18 February 2016
| Player | Team | GP | Min | W | L | SOP | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
| Ilya Sorokin | CSKA Moscow | 28 | 1638:53 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 29 | 10 | .953 | 1.06 |
| Alexei Murygin | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | 34 | 1962:29 | 22 | 8 | 3 | 37 | 13 | .954 | 1.13 |
| Stanislav Galimov | CSKA/Ak Bars | 28 | 1669:11 | 18 | 6 | 4 | 42 | 7 | .938 | 1.51 |
| Viktor Fasth | CSKA Moscow | 20 | 1122:04 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 31 | 3 | .921 | 1.66 |
| Alexander Yeryomenko | Dynamo Moscow | 23 | 1392:08 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 41 | 2 | .936 | 1.77 |
Source: KHL

## Awards
### Players of the Month

Best KHL players of each month.
| Month | Goaltender | Defense | Forward | Rookie |
| September | Alexei Murygin (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) | Mat Robinson (Dynamo Moscow) | Sergei Mozyakin (Metallurg Magnitogorsk) | Roman Manukhov (Metallurg Novokuznetsk) |
| October | Alexander Salák (Sibir Novosibirsk) | Mikhail Pashnin (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) | Nigel Dawes (Barys Astana) | Artyom Zub (Amur Khabarovsk) |
| November | Danny Taylor (Medveščak Zagreb) | Staffan Kronwall (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) | Anatoly Golyshev (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) | Alexander Polunin (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) |
| December | Dominik Furch (Avangard Omsk) | Kevin Dallman (Barys Astana) | Danis Zaripov (Metallurg Magnitogorsk) | Vladislav Gavrikov (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl) |
| January | Ilya Sorokin (CSKA Moscow) | Mat Robinson (Dynamo Moscow) | Vadim Shipachyov (SKA St. Petersburg) | Igor Ustinsky (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg) |
| February | Alexander Yeryomenko (Dynamo Moscow) | Anton Belov (SKA St. Petersburg) | Peter Regin (Jokerit) | Artur Lauta (Avangard Omsk) |
| March | Ilya Sorokin (CSKA Moscow) | Denis Denisov (CSKA Moscow) | Sergei Mozyakin (Metallurg Magnitogorsk) | Yuri Sergiyenko (Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod) |
| April | | | | |