NHL to Reassess Future Finland Games Following Russian Athlete Entry Ban

The NHL will evaluate Finland's decision to block Russian athletes when scheduling future regular-season games after the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Seattle Kraken 4-1 in Helsinki.

The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Seattle Kraken 4-1 in Helsinki on Thursday during the first of two NHL regular-season games in the Finnish capital. Russian winger Andrei Svechnikov recorded an assist for the Hurricanes, while Pyotr Kochetkov served as the backup goaltender. The two teams are scheduled to play a second game in Finland on Saturday.

The NHL informed The Associated Press on Friday that it will consider Finland's new plans to prevent Russian athletes from entering the country when deciding on future regular-season contests. These restrictions, announced by Finland and Norway on Thursday, are set to take effect Monday. The Finnish foreign ministry stated that Russians will only be permitted to work in the country on tasks essential to national interests, citing concerns that Russia uses sports as a propaganda tool.

As of the 2026-27 season opening in September, 53 Russian players were on NHL rosters, accounting for 7.3% of the league. This represents the fourth-largest national contingent in the NHL. While the league held Global Series games in Finland in 2022 and 2024, no future games in the country have been officially announced.

The entry block follows a backlash against Russia's reinstatement to the hockey world championships, a non-NHL event. Other organizations are also affected; the International Skating Union noted potential impacts on the March figure skating world championships in Finland, and Estonia has informed the International Ski and Snowboard Federation that Russian and Belarusian athletes are barred from the world junior Nordic skiing championships in January.