With the NHL training camps and the KHL regular season set to begin in just under one month we wanted to take a look at the massive group of players who have departed the AHL for the KHL during the 2025 free agency period. As of Aug. 23 30 players who played a significant portion of the 2024-25 season in the AHL have signed in the KHL for the 2025-26 season. The AHL veteran rule and higher salaries are likely the two main reasons for the exodus of players to the KHL. Gerard Gallant Introduced As Shanghai Dragons Head Coach The AHL veteran rule concerns players who have played 321 or more professional games in the AHL, NHL, or Europe. Veteran Exempt players are players who have played between 260-320 games. Teams are allowed a combined six veteran and veteran exempt players per game, at least one must be a veteran exempt player. Additionally, the new NHL CBA rules will allow teams to place one 19-year-old CHL player in the AHL beginning in the 2026-27 season. This will continue to make the AHL a young mans league. Every player who played in the AHL last season, the team they left, and their current KHL team are listed below. Mason Morelli (F) - Henderson Silver Knights - Barys Astana Mike Vecchione (F) - Hershey Bears - Traktor Chelyabink - Barys Astana Tyce Thompson (F) - Bridgeport Islander - Barys Astana Nate Sucese (F) - Hartford Wolf Pack - Shanghai Dragons Riley Sutter (F) - Hershey Bears - Shanghai Dragons Reilly Walsh (D) - Ontario Reign - Barys Astana Jake Massie (D) - Hershey Bears - Barys Astana Gage Quinney (F) - Henderson Silver Knights - Shanghai Dragons Jake Bischoff (D) - Henderson Silver Knights - Shanghai Dragons Olivier Rodrigue (G) - Bakersfield Condors - Barys Astana Rocco Grimaldi (F) - Cleveland Monsters - SKA St. Petersburg Joseph Blandisi (F) - Toronto Marlies - SKA St. Petersburg Alex Limoges (F) - Hershey Bears - Dinamo Minsk Andrew Poturalski (F) - San Jose Barracuda - Avangard Omsk Daniel Sprong (F) - Coachella Valley Firebirds - CSKA Moskva Joseph Cecconi (D) - Ontario Reign - Avangard Omsk Maxime Lajoie (D) - Coachella Valley Firebirds - Avangard Omsk Chase Priskie (D) - Hershey Bears - Sibir Novosibirsk Pierrick Dube (F) - Hershey Bears - Traktor Chelyabink Ty Smith (D) - Chicago Wolves - Dinamo Minsk Louis Domingue (G) - Hartford Wolf Pack - Sibir Novosibirsk Joseph Keane (D) - San Jose Barracuda - Spartak Moskva Noel Hoefenmayer (D) - Laval Rocket - HK Sochi William Dufour (F) - Colorado Eagles - Lada Togliatti Rhett Gardner (F) - Lehigh Valley Phantoms - CSKA Moskva Spencer Martin (G) - Chicago Wolves - CSKA Moskva Brandon Biro (F) - Coachella Valley Firebirds - Ak Bars Kazan Chris Driedger (G) - Manitoba Moose - Traktor Chelyabinsk Mac Hollowell (D) - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins - Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Vasili Ponomarev (F) - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins - Avangard Omsk Reigning AHL MVP Andrew Poturalski, All-Star Rocco Grimaldi, and Calder Cup champions Chase Priskie and Mike Vecchione are among the biggest names on this list. Check out our AHL Free Agency signing tracker here [https://thehockeynews.com/ahl/latest-news/ahl-free-agency-2025-tracker-and-analysis].
