| Shanghai Dragons | |
| City | Shanghai,China/Saint Petersburg, Russia |
|---|---|
| League | KHL |
| Conference | Western |
| Division | Tarasov |
| Founded | 2025 |
| Home arena | SKA Arena (capacity: 22,500) |
| Colours | |
| Owner(s) | Billy Ngok |
| Head coach | Gerard Gallant |
| Captain | Brandon Yip |
| Website | hcredstar.com/ |
| Franchise history | |
| 2016–2025 | HC Kunlun Red Star |
| 2025-Present | Shanghai Dragons |
| Previous franchise history | |
| Championships | |
 Current season | |
The Shanghai Dragons (simplified Chinese: 上海龙之队; pinyin: Shànghǎi Lóngzhīduì) are a professional ice hockey team based in Shanghai, China. It is a member of the Tarasov Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). The club joined the KHL as Kunlun Red Star prior to the 2016–17 season, moving to Shanghai on 7 August 2025.[1]
History[]
The team, originally known as Kunlun Red Star, was originally established as part of China’s preparations for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.[2]. In March 2016, representatives of Kunlun Red Star and the KHL signed a protocol of intent to have a Chinese-based team enter the KHL. The protocol was signed by the representative from the Russian Ice Hockey Federation Vladislav Tretiak, the chairman of the KHL Gennady Timchenko, and the board of Kunlun Red Star. In mid-April, the president of IIHF, René Fasel, shared his opinion about the intention of the Chinese club to join the KHL, expressing hope that this would help China bring their hockey to a higher level.[3]. However, despite the high ambitions, the team only made the playoffs once, in 2017, and haven't played a game in China since the 2019-20 KHL season due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in China. After playing their games in Mytishchi Arena outside of Moscow since August 2020, the team announced they were going to play their home games at SKA Arena in Saint Petersburg for the 2025-26 KHL season, with the intent on returning to China the next year. On 7 August 2025, the team announced they would rebrand as the Shanghai Dragons, and relocate from Bejing to Shanghai, while still being based in Russia.
References[]
- ↑ Unleashing The Dragon: Meet The New KHL Franchise - Shanghai Dragons (2025-08-07).
- ↑ "China Hockey Team at the 2022 Olympics – Part I: How it All Began.", AsianIceHockey.com, March 16, 2025.
- ↑ You must specify title = and url = when using {{cite web}}. (ru) (16 April 2016).