Kostitsyn seeks NHL return; teams weigh risks
Andrei Kostitsyn is looking for another opportunity in the NHL. (USATSI)
Given the financial struggles facing many of the teams in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League, several players have used this offseason as an opportunity jump over to the NHL. We have already seen Viktor Tikhonov and Artem Panarin join the Chicago Blackhawks, while Sergei Plotnikov recently signed a contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins on the first day of the free agent signing period.
The combination of players looking for an opportunity (and to get some financial security) and the risk-reward nature of the signings makes players like former Montreal Canadiens and Nashville Predators forward Andrei Kostitsyn an intriguing option this summer as he looks to return to the NHL — even on a one-year contract — after spending the past three seasons in Russia.
Provided, of course, somebody is willing to sign him.
And as Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston pointed out as part a recent interview with Kostitsyn, that might be easier said that done.
From Johnston:
Kostitsyn’s last stint in the NHL ostensibly ended when he and Nashville Predators teammate Alexander Radulov missed curfew during the 2012 playoffs. It resulted in a team-issued two-game suspension and both men bolted for Russia after Nashville was eliminated soon after.
That indiscretion won’t soon be forgotten in NHL circles, which is what makes Kostitsyn’s current job search so interesting: Is a general manager willing to look past it to add a former 53-point man at a bargain basement price?
With so little money to go around in a salary cap world it is certainly worthy of consideration.
Yes. It certainly is worthy of consideration, and yes, some general manager looking for offense should absolutely be willing to take that chance.
Kostitsyn may have never been a perfect playing during his time in the NHL, and he may have his share of baggage following him around from the way he exited the league, but it’s sometimes easy to forget just how productive he was during his time in the NHL. He was never a top-line scorer he was always at the very worst scoring a at top-six rate among NHL forwards, and that is not something that should just casually be tossed aside.
Now that he is entering his 30s he isn’t in what should be considered the prime of his career any longer, but based on his recent KHL production he should at least still be able to come close to matching what he did before he left the NHL.
Between 2007 and 2012 he averaged 1.83 points per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play. Just for comparisons sake, only 90 of the NHL’s 359 forwards with a minimum of 500 minutes of ice time reached this past season reached 1.83 points per 60 minutes. He maintained a similar scoring rate in the KHL (a league that is actually a lower scoring league than the NHL) and is coming off his best season in that league when he recorded 35 points in 50 games (again, a very strong scoring rate for the KHL, where only four players topped 60 points in a full season) for Sochi and Chelyabinsk Traktor.
For teams pressed against the NHL salary cap that are looking for skill in an increasingly thin free agent group, players like Tikhonov, Panarin, Plotnikov and especially Kostitsyn are pretty solid low-risk, potentially high-reward signings.
If they wash out, there was minimal financial commitment and the problem is gone after a year.
If they succeed, your teams get useful a contributor for a dirt cheap price, and that is something that can not be overlooked in a salary cap world. Don’t be afraid to look where other teams are afraid to go in an effort to find value.
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