The NHL said it will take Finland’s government position into account when deciding whether to stage future regular-season games in Finland.
The Story
The NHL said it will consider Finland’s plans to prevent Russian athletes from entering the country when deciding whether to stage more regular-season games there in future.
Finland and Norway announced plans to refuse entry to Russian athletes on Thursday, the same day as Carolina Hurricanes and Seattle Kraken played the first of two NHL regular-season games in Helsinki.
The Finnish restrictions take effect from Monday, after the NHL games, according to the NHL’s statement.
When asked on Friday whether the new restrictions would be an obstacle to future games in Finland, the league said, “We are aware of the government’s position and we’ll have to take that into account.”
The Finnish foreign ministry’s statement outlining the restrictions did not distinguish between Russian athletes on national teams, those competing as neutral athletes, or those on club teams in sports such as hockey or soccer.
According to the ministry, Russians would only be allowed to work in Finland on “tasks that are essential to Finland’s national interests,” and it added that Russia “uses sports as a propaganda tool.”
The NHL has played regular-season games in Finland as part of its Global Series in 2022 and 2024, and it has not confirmed any future games there yet.
During the opening day of the 2026-27 season in September, there were 53 Russians on NHL rosters, making up 7.3% of the league.
In Thursday’s game in Helsinki, the Hurricanes beat the Kraken 4-1, with Andrei Svechnikov recording an assist and Pyotr Kochetkov serving as Carolina’s backup goaltender.
The Hurricanes and Kraken are scheduled to play again in Finland on Saturday.
The Finnish government decisions were made following a backlash in Finland to Russia being reinstated for the ice hockey world championships, which is not an NHL event.
Separate reporting cited in the evidence says the International Skating Union warned of a “possible consequential impact” on its figure skating world championships in Finland in March, and ERR reported that Estonia had written to the International Ski and Snowboard Federation saying athletes from Russia and Belarus would not be allowed to enter the country for Nordic skiing’s world junior championships in January.
← More stories