American-born Russian winger Nikolai Kovalenko, 25, has signed a
two-year contract with CSKA Moscow, the KHL
club announced on social media on Saturday.
The move comes nine
days after CSKA
acquired Kovalenko’s KHL rights from Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in
exchange for recently-signed ex-NHLer Egor Sokolov.
Kovalenko was born in Raleigh, N.C. while his father, Andrei
Kovalenko, played for the Carolina
Hurricanes. He grew up in Moscow and Yaroslavl, and played in 304
KHL regular-season and playoff games for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, Ak Bars
Kazan and Torpedo between 2017 and 2024, recording 157 points.
At the end of the 2023-24 KHL season, Kovalenko, who had already
signed a two-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche, was assigned
to the AHL’s
Colorado Eagles. He made his NHL debut in that year's playoffs when he was called up to play in two games for
the Avalanche.
Kovalenko split the 2024-25 season with Colorado and the San
Jose Sharks, recording 20 points and 16 penalty minutes in 57
games. Midway through the season, he was involved in a trade that saw
goaltenders Alexandar Georgiev and Mackenzie Blackwood head in
opposite directions.
Two Days After Signing In KHL, Sokolov Traded For NHL Free Agent
Two days after signing with CSKA Moscow, Russian winger Egor Sokolov
has been traded to Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, the CSKA club announced
on Thursday.
CSKA,
colloquially known in North America as the Red Army team, is a
perennial powerhouse in Russia, but
after back-to-back Gagarin Cup titles in 2022 and 2023, has been
knocked out in the first round of the playoffs each of the past two
years.
The
team has made numerous moves in recent weeks, including signing
Sokolov and then trading
him for Kovalenko’s rights two days later. The team has
also signed
goaltender Spencer Martin and acquired
Denis Zernov from Metallurg Magnitogorsk in
exchange for New
York Islanders prospect
Ruslan Iskhakov.
CSKA
also
has under contract for 2025-26 ex-NHLers Denis Guryanov, Nikita
Nesterov, Nikita Okhotyuk and Vladislav Kamenev.
Photo © Steven Bisig-Imagn Images.
Goalie Spencer Martin Signs In KHL
Canadian goaltender Spencer Martin, 30, has signed a two-year
contract with CSKA Moscow, the KHL club announced on Wednesday.
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