2011–12 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl season

The 2011–12 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl season was the franchise's 52nd season of play in professional ice hockey in Russia. It was supposed to be its fourth season in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). The season was scheduled to start on September 8, 2011. However, on September 7, while traveling to their season opener, the team's plane crashed, killing 43 people, including 25 roster players, and 11 members of the team staff. Only Alexander Galimov survived the initial impact of the crash with severe injuries, but died on September 12. Another roster player, Maxim Zyuzyakin, did not travel with the team on the plane. As a consequence, the league cancelled the September 7 Opening Cup game between Salavat Yulaev and Atlant already in progress, postponing the opening of the KHL season until September 12.

The tragedy forced Lokomotiv Yaroslavl to cancel their participation in the 2011–12 KHL season. Instead, the club participated in the 2011–12 season of the Russian Major League (VHL), the second top ice hockey league in Russia after the KHL, starting in December 2011, and was eligible for the MHL playoffs. Also, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl's squad for the 2012–13 KHL season would automatically be qualified for the KHL playoffs that season, and the club could request allowance to use more than six non-Russian players in the KHL squad.

Lokomotiv lost in the 2011 KHL Western Conference Finals 4–2 to Atlant. Following this playoff disappointment, eleven players (most notably former NHLers Daniel Tjärnqvist and Alexander Korolyuk) left the team, and nine players were added to the roster for the upcoming 2011–12 KHL season. The players set to make their debut with the team notably included former NHLers Ruslan Salei and Kārlis Skrastiņš. Also set to make their coaching debuts were former NHLers Brad McCrimmon and Igor Korolev.

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