From the league's inception in 2008 until 2010 there were always team changes in the Kontinental Hockey League between seasons as some new teams joined the league while others left it. There is no promotion/relegation system with the VHL in place like there was with the Superleague and Vysshaya Liga. The number of teams in the league stayed at 24 throughout the first two seasons. In the third season the number of teams was reduced to 23 because Budivelnyk, a team that planned to join the league, dropped out before the start of the season. However Lev Poprad replaced Budivelnyk to retain the number of teams at 24. However later Lev was excluded from the league by the KHL. The league plans to expand this number for future seasons.