Former NHLers Nikita Okhotiuk, Ivan Prosvetov, Egor Afanasyev among signings by KHL’s CSKA Moscow
KHL club CSKA Moscow continued its busy day on Thursday by officially announcing that they have signed five more former NHL players.
In addition to former Dallas Stars forward Denis Gurianov, whose signing was announced on its own, CSKA has also agreed to terms with forwards Egor Afanasyev and Ruslan Iskhakov, defensemen Nikita Okhotiuk and Dmitri Samorukov, and goaltender Ivan Prosvetov.
CSKA announced the signings on its official Telegram channel on Thursday. Iskhakov and Okhotiuk both signed two-year contracts with the club, while Afanasyev, Samorukov, and Prosvetov signed three-year deals.
Samorukov and Prosvetov were both unrestricted free agents with no ties to any NHL clubs, while the NHL rights to RFAs Iskakhov, Okhotiuk, and Afanasyev remain with the New York Islanders, Calgary Flames, and San Jose Sharks, respectively.
CSKA loading up: #Isles RFA Ruslan Iskhakov and #Flames RFA Nikita Okhotyuk on 2-year KHL deals
Three-year deals for #SJSharks RFA Egor Afanasyev, UFAs Dmitri Samorukov (PIT) and Ivan Prosvetov (COL)
Afanasyev, 23, spent most of the last three seasons with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals as a Nashville Predators prospect. The 6’4″ left wing led the Admirals with 54 points (27 goals, 27 assists) in 56 games during the 2023-24 season but only appeared in two NHL games during the year. The Sharks acquired Afanasyev’s NHL rights from Nashville after the season in exchange for forward prospect Ozzy Wiesblatt.
Iskhakov, 24, is a 5’8″ forward who put up big numbers with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders over the last two seasons. The 2018 second-round pick has collected 101 points in 138 career AHL games but only found his way into two NHL games with the Islanders last season, prompting him to return to his native Russia.
Okhotiuk, 23, split the 2023-24 NHL season between the San Jose Sharks and the Flames, collecting one goal and nine points in 52 games. The Sharks initially acquired the 6’1″ left-handed defenseman from the New Jersey Devils in the Timo Meier trade but flipped him to Calgary just over a year later in exchange for a 2024 fifth-round pick.
Samorukov, 25, spent the entirety of the 2023-24 season with the AHL’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, racking up five goals and 15 points in 64 games. The 6’3″ left-handed defenseman has played almost exclusively in North America since 2016, save for a brief stint with CSKA during the COVID-impacted 2020-21 season. Samorukov has appeared in three NHL games with the Edmonton Oilers and St. Louis Blues during his career.
Prosvetov, 25, appeared in a career-high 11 NHL games with the Colorado Avalanche during the 2023-24 season, posting a 4-3-1 record and an .895 save percentage. The 6’5″ goaltender has taken part in 24 NHL games with the Avalanche and Arizona Coyotes during his career, going 8-9-2 with an .881 save percentage and a 3.70 goals-against average.
As RFAs, Iskhakov, Okhotiuk, and Afanasyev will remain affiliated with their previous NHL clubs until they turn 27 or are traded. If they elect to head back to North America when their new KHL contracts expire, they will only be able to negotiate with the Islanders, Flames, and Sharks, respectively.