ZURICH – A three-team qualification tournament will be played in early autumn 2008 to determine the 12th team in the inaugural 2008-2009 Champions Hockey League. It was decided by the representatives from the top-7 European national associations and leagues (CZE, FIN, GER, RUS, SVK, SUI, SWE) in a meeting in Zurich last Thursday.

The qualification tournament will be played by the regular season winners from Germany, Slovakia and Switzerland. The date and venue will be determined when the clubs are known after the conclusion of the regular seasons in the three countries.

Qualification format: Round-robin, one game per day on Friday, Saturday, Sunday. The first placed team will earn a spot in the 2008-2009 Champions Hockey League. Example of schedule: Friday: GER-SVK, Saturday: SVK-SUI, Sunday: SUI-GER.

Directly qualified to the Champions Hockey League are two teams each from Czech Republic, Finland, Russia and Sweden, while Germany, Slovakia and Switzerland are guaranteed one team each. The 12th team will be determined through the above mentioned qualification tournament.

The meeting decided that – in principle – the national champion (playoff winner) and the winner of the regular season (league standing) will represent the countries which will have two teams in the CHL.

• If the national champion and the regular season winner is the same team, then the second team in the regular season standings will earn a spot in the CHL.
• The national champion from Germany, Slovakia and Switzerland will earn direct qualification to the CHL while the regular season winner from these countries will earn a place in the qualification. If the national champion and the regular season winner is the same team, then the same rule as above applies.
• There will be two exceptions from the above formula in the inaugural 2008-2009 CHL season:
  
  
  1. Finland will be represented by the two finalists in the 2008 Finnish SM-Liiga playoffs.
  2. Russia’s Metallurg Magnitogorsk is directly qualified to the 2008-2009 CHL as the reigning European club champion (winner of the 2008 European Champions Cup). The second Russian club will either be the national champion or the regular season winner.
  
  Both countries’ leagues will comply with the principle representation rules starting in 2009-2010.

Front runners for regular season winners in the Top-7 national leagues:

• Czech Republic (Extraliga), 4 rounds left: 1. HC Ceske Budejovice 98, 2. HC Slavia Prague 92.
• Finland (SM-liiga), 11 rounds left: 1. Karpat Oulu 98, 2. Jokerit Helsinki 88, 3. Pelicans Lahti 87, 4. Espoo Blues 86, 5. Tappara Tampere 82, 6. JYP Jyvaskyla 77, 7. Ilves Tampere 77, 8. HIFK Helsinki 75.
• Germany (Deutsche Eishockey Liga), 8 rounds left: 1. Nurnberg Ice Tigers 100, 2. Eisbaren Berlin 96, 3. Kolner Haie 92, 4. Frankfurt Lions 88, 5. Adler Mannheim 81, 6. Iserlohn Roosters 80.
• Russia (Superliga), 8 rounds left: 1. Salavat Yulayev Ufa 110, 2. Metallurg Magnitogorsk 102, 3. CSKA Moscow 92, 4. Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 92, 5. SKA St. Petersburg 91.
• Slovakia (Extraliga), 6 rounds left: 1. HC Slovan Bratislava 96, 2. Dukla Trencin 80.
• Sweden (Elitserien), 11 rounds left: 1. HV 71 Jonkoping 89, 2. Farjestad Karlstad 71, 3. Linkopings HC 71, 4. MODO Ornskoldsvik 70, 5. Frolunda Gothenburg 67, 6. Timra IK 67, 7. Djurgarden Stockholm 64.
• Switzerland (National League A), 4 rounds left: 1. SC Bern 102. SCB has clinched the regular season win.