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The Continental Hockey League, considered to be the greatest threat to NHL stability since the World Hockey Association, is undergoing growing pains in its inaugural season.

Clubs in the Russian league, commonly known by its Russian initials, KHL, have missed payroll and there's uncertainty about its smaller franchises. Worries are also mounting about the possible impact of the world economic crisis on its well-moneyed backers, many of them who rely on high world oil prices for their wealth.

"I should be, and I must be, and I will be honest with you — that is a big concern," Igor Larionov said yesterday before he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in recognition of his distinguished 27-year career, mixed between international and NHL play.

Larionov, the player personnel director for the KHL club in St. Petersburg, had the president of the league, Alexander Medvedev, and the chairman of the board, fellow Hall of Famer Slava Fetisov, as his guests for the induction ceremony.

And while the honour gave Larionov a chance to reflect on his career, he was also willing to talk about the future — particularly the future of the startup (or upstart, as some would say) league in his home country.

Larionov said the economics of the KHL make little sense today, given that some teams in Moscow draw as few as 1,000 or 2,000 fans a game and ticket prices are modest — the equivalent of $5, $10 or $15. At that rate, he does not believe the salaries on offer last season — as much as $10-million to Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin — are sustainable over the long term. Malkin's former team in Russia, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, is one of several clubs struggling to meet its payroll commitments.

"I ask myself: How long is it going to last?" Larionov said. "You want to be wise economically. You want to get ticket sales and apply to the salaries. Now, we have great support from big companies and business people, but how long is it going to last? That is why we have to sit down and talk."

Larionov said the KHL plans to meet again in the spring, once its regular season wraps up, to devise a plan for the future. One possibility is to expand the league beyond the Russian border. He envisaged an Asian division (with China, Japan and the teams on the Russian East Coast) and another division that would incorporate some of the major cities in Europe.

The KHL's level of play "is not close" to the NHL's, Larionov acknowledged, predicting parity was optimistically "five to 10 years away."

He also believed that resolving the Cold War between the NHL and the KHL over player contracts is a priority. Alexander Radulov's contract is particularly contentious. The KHL club in Ufa poached him from the Nashville Predators last summer, despite having a year remaining on his NHL contract.

Ufa, according to Soviet journalists, is one of the clubs behind in paying its players. The league is telling players that their contracts will eventually be honoured, which differs from Russia's Superleague days, when player strikes occasionally occurred and once, a few years ago, the venerable Soviet Wings were evicted from their arena for failing to pay their electricity or gas bills.

Larionov, too, has heard stories about missed payrolls and said he addressed the problem with Medvedev, who also owns the team in St. Petersburg. Larionov also thought Fetisov's decision to join the KHL as its new chairman will add credibility as well.

"We're going to try to find a way to make it work," Larionov said. "It's impossible, like I said, to have a $40-million payroll with the revenues coming in.

"Right now, the two leagues [KHL and NHL] are going their separate ways, but at some point, they should be getting close together, so that there is more co-operation, more stability in the relationships."

Medvedev, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and National Hockey League Players' Association executive director Paul Kelly were in Toronto yesterday for the Hall of Fame ceremonies, but according to Kelly, there were no plans for them to get together to discuss their various differences.

"I don't see any reason why they can't communicate today, and hopefully get some good news in the next few weeks," Larionov said.

Bettman said he agreed with Larionov's sentiments that a truce is in the best interests of both leagues, but he didn't think it was possible until the KHL is willing to respect the sanctity of NHL contracts.

"The reality is, the KHL has been and still is unwilling to respect valid contracts," Bettman said. "I've had a very candid cordial meeting with Alex [Medvedev] over the summer in Rome, but we were unable to get beyond the fact that the KHL has continued to take players under contract.

"You don't need a transfer agreement to respect contracts. We will not register a player if he's under a valid contract somewhere else. We expect the same."

Ultimately, the exodus of players to Russia from North America may trickle to a stop if the KHL cannot offer premium salaries to high-profile players. The league might do everything to keep premier box-office attractions such as Jaromir Jagr, who signed with Avangard Omsk, but second-tier NHL players might not find nearly as many options in Russia as they did a year ago.

All 24 teams are expected to finish the season, but there could be casualties in the off-season. With a few exceptions, clubs could also substantially slash their player budgets.

That would limit the options of players who've gone there to play for seven-figure salaries (mostly tax-free) as an alternative to the AHL or NHL entry-level salaries.