From: http://sports.nationalpost.com/2012/10/30/khl-grants-exception-for-leafs-joffrey-lupul/

Leafs’ forward Joffrey Lupul will be in familiar territory when he joins Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg, the Toronto Maple Leafs of the KHL.  Avtomobilist, which finished dead-last in the Russian league last year, is once again at the bottom of the barrel, with just four wins in 21 contests.  Lupul joins the team despite not meeting the KHL’s definition of a “top-level” North American player, a set of standards they used in determining which foreign-born players would be given entry to the league during the NHL lockout.  I guess they just felt sorry for him?

…which is why no other non-Russian Leafs are playing in the KHL.