Prospect Info: Semyon Chistyakov, D, 117th Overall, Ufa

[Caser]

Not much more than than what could be given at entry level nhl pay but itd be a 2 way contract and thats a huge knock

I feel svechkov like askarov hasnt been given great opportunities at the khl level so i think he is more likely to make the jump

Basically your post describes what is pretty much well known: that if a player is an established KHLer he is very allergic to the idea of playing in the AHL more than like for a couple of months.

If you cannot get Russian players to come over and play or cause disruptions (see AK and Radulov), then stop drafting them. At some point, it just doesn't make sense. This is really a scouting and organizational failure. Part of the scouting should be on potential to come over, and organizationally, you need to get them over here instead of staying. The longer they stay, the more likely they will not come over.

This isn't an indictment of the KHL or Russian prospects, just a statement on the situation.

iirc Chistyakov was rather close to signing two years ago.

We have Trenin, Askarov, and Afanaseyev over here already and it should probably be assumed that Russia's (relatively unforeseen at the time we drafted Svechkov and Chistyakov) decision to invade and engage in a prolonged war with Ukraine has severely complicated the situations for some of these other prospects.

It doesn't sound like the war stuff will be an issue for Svechkov to sign though.

 

[Scoresberg]

I'm fairly confident on Svechkov.

He seemed excited in the post-draft interview as did Askarov IIRC. I think if he wanted to stay in Russia, he would've signed there already longer-term.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

Converts to 1.3 million USD.

Bearing in mind it’s the total for 3 years…. I think it’s comparable to what he might have gotten in his first 3 yrs in NA, grand total.

He also might have struggled to clear $200,000 in those 3yrs in NA, after taxes, *if* he simply couldn’t crack the NHL at all and was just making $70-80k per year in the AHL (plus one signing bonus).

So the gamble is mostly on the years that come afterwards on his part.

I guess it's not impossible the Preds will keep tabs on him meanwhile, but by the time he's turning 25 and that contract is over, I would like to think the Preds would have found other ways to build up their defense corps. What we don't have is prospects who are ready NOW/next season. But we do have quite a few guys who should be coming on the radar in the next 2-4yrs, and a ton of draft picks. So if he had a chance of making an impression here, it was probably going to be more in the short/immediate term, whereas by waiting until 2026 the ship will probably have sailed.

Of course, I don't watch him play, so maybe both sides just think he's not really that good and truly wouldn't have had a chance here for a few years either. From a stats-watching perspective his season in the KHL seemed impressive, but maybe there are other issues in his game that would have precluded him having any chance to play here in the shorter term also.

 

[Caser]

According to a report in Russian sports media, Predators have been kind of passive while negotiating with Chistyakov, were like "It would be great if you could sign..." and nothing much aside from that, so Avangard took advantage of that situation.

 

[herzausstein]

According to a report in Russian sports media, Predators have been kind of passive while negotiating with Chistyakov, were like "It would be great if you could sign..." and nothing much aside from that, so Avangard took advantage of that situation.

According to cap friendly, we have indefinite time to sign him. Maybe when this contract is up we can bring him straight over to NHL if hes playing well still. Will only be 24 which is pretty typical for nhl dmen.

 

[Caser]

According to cap friendly, we have indefinite time to sign him. Maybe when this contract is up we can bring him straight over to NHL if hes playing well still. Will only be 24 which is pretty typical for nhl dmen.

He will be 25 in 2026 though.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

According to cap friendly, we have indefinite time to sign him. Maybe when this contract is up we can bring him straight over to NHL if hes playing well still. Will only be 24 which is pretty typical for nhl dmen.

I was gonna say.... "but the Preds never do that, they want guys to play a year in Milwaukee first, even Ekholm, Josi, Arvy, Rinne"... then I remembered... we don't actually know what the Preds do anymore. New bosses. So who really knows.

It'll take a while to shift gears!

 

[herzausstein]

I was gonna say.... "but the Preds never do that, they want guys to play a year in Milwaukee first, even Ekholm, Josi, Arvy, Rinne"... then I remembered... we don't actually know what the Preds do anymore. New bosses. So who really knows.

but we got them all under contract earlier. We may never sign Chistyakov but if he doesnt want to spend time in the AHL and wants to make some money this may be the best route for him. From a development side, i would think big KHL minutes are as good as big AHL minutes. We just have no ability to bring him up to the NHL before this contract ends.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

but we got them all under contract earlier. We may never sign Chistyakov but if he doesnt want to spend time in the AHL and wants to make some money this may be the best route for him. From a development side, i would think big KHL minutes are as good as big AHL minutes. We just have no ability to bring him up to the NHL before this contract ends.

Yeah, in the old days I think Poile really valued that familial attachment of coming up through the organization and being part of things, where having a guy just jet in would put them in the back of the line. It's not really about KHL minutes vs. AHL minutes... he'll develop as well in the KHL as he would have in Milwaukee, but he won't have the adjustment and organizational attachment time under his belt.

Nobody is going to throw a guy away if he's really THAT good a player though. But I don't think that applies in his case? If he is just one of a bunch of guys fighting for the same jobs, old school Preds thinking probably would have put him behind the others who paid their dues here. Most players need to do something to break a tie to get their foot in the door. Staying in KHL these next 3 years isn't going to give him a way to do that, unless he becomes a really big superstar there somehow (highly doubtful).

No doubt KHL teams will be quick to tell these young players they can just jet on over and skip the AHL lineup, but I'll be surprised if it works out like that. Preds are going to prioritize players who WANT to be here, and this guy just said he's not that into it, so...

 

[Flgatorguy87]

It's been a while since I had to think about this (what year was Rads watch), but how long do we own his rights and how long does he have to play for us to satisfy his requirements that would then allow him to move to any organization in the NHL?

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

It's been a while since I had to think about this (what year was Rads watch), but how long do we own his rights and how long does he have to play for us to satisfy his requirements that would then allow him to move to any organization in the NHL?

We have his rights "forever".

Or at least until some transfer/CBA change comes along that handles Russian drafted players differently.