The wait is finally over and top blueline prospect Alexander Nikishin has at long last joined the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh.

The touted player took the ice Saturday morning for his first practice with the team.

“It was a good practice," said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour. "He’s a big kid, which is what we thought. He can skate, snap it around. I certainly don’t make assessments from a practice like that, but he looks like he has all the tools, that’s for sure.”

"The first thing that comes out right away is his kindness," said Andrei Svechnikov. "Just a kind guy. Hard working as well. All those things, but he's always happy, always smiles. Yesterday, I would have been nervous so much probably meeting hundreds of people, but he was good and handled it. That popped out right away."

The Russian defenseman arrived in North Carolina yesterday after having gotten his petition granted at the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday.

It had been over a week long process to get Nikishin over to North America, but now that he's finally here, the acclimation process can start.

There's a lot that the 23 year old is going to have to learn — his teammates, the organization, systems, the area, the culture, etc. — but luckily for him, there's already a established group of his fellow countrymen in the locker room to help him throughout the process.

"There's a lot of different roles, mentalities and it's different when you're just adapting to work and life here," said Pyotr Kochetkov. "Three years I play here and every year, every month, I learn something new. It's an interesting process."

Right off the bat, Kochetkov took up the mantle as translator in Nikishin's first meeting with the Raleigh media too (although that may not have been the best idea given his not so full grasp on the English language either).

"It's always tough and a good challenge for you," Kochetkov said. "I think it's good for him to have Svech here, Orly and maybe me too. I think he'll be able to speak a little more than when I came, because he had a couple import guys in SKA. We'll help him adapt here and I don't think the language will be a problem for him."

Dmitry Orlov and Andrei Svechnikov were also instructing Nikishin in where to be and what to do during drills and also acting as intermediaries between the coaching staff and him.

"He looked great out there already," Svechnikov said. "Doesn't panic, tries to play calm. I think he's a physical guy that crushes people sometimes. For his size, he moves very well and moves the puck very well. We'll see. It's going to be an exciting time and I think he's going to be really good for us."

Svechnikov, who met Nikishin over the summer during the NHL-KHL charity match, has stayed in frequent contact with the young blueliner and has really taken it upon himself to be a guiding light for him.

"I remember when I was in his shoes when I came over at 16," Svechnikov said. "Didn't know any English. I remember I needed tape for my stick and I couldn't even ask. I remember those things and how hard it is. You need help and that's what I'm trying to do for him."

While many fans are excited about Nikishin's potential and abilities, it's very unlikely that we see him anytime soon barring injuries. 

Carolina's systems are notoriously difficult for defensemen to fully get comfortable with and we've seen that for years with nearly every top guy that's come through the organization.

There's also no real harm in Nikishin taking his time to learn and adapt to life and hockey in North Carolina, especially with a first round matchup which the Hurricanes are clearly favorites in.

"We’re just taking it day-by-day," Brind'Amour said when asked about the team's plans for Nikishin. "Just going to get him acclimated and try to get him to figure out how it works and all that. I mean, that takes a lot of time, especially with the language [barrier]. We just wanted to get him over here and I think we’ll just progress as it goes. I don’t think we have a set-in-stone plan. We just have to get him on the learning curve.”

  Playoff Prep
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