59 Days Until Opening Night At Nationwide Arena: Yegor Chinakhov
Yegor Chinakhov was drafted in October 2020, and when he was taken #21 overall. It was a headscratcher to experts, and the silence was deafening.
Chinakhov had only played junior hockey in Russia before being drafted and he would make his KHL debut during the 2020-21 for Avangard Omsk. In his first pro season in the KHL, he scored 10 goals and had 17 points. Chinakhov played so well that he was elevated to the top line for Avangard Omsk. After one season in the KHL, Chinakhov was signed to a three-year ELC in May of 2021.
Chinakhov then came to North America to start his pro career later in 2021. He would play in 62 games for the Blue Jackets in his rookie year, scoring seven goals and totaling 14 points. Under ex-coach John Tortorella, he averaged 12:30 of ice time and chipped in a single powerplay goal. He played one game for the Cleveland Monsters scoring one goal.
Chinakhov's 2022-23 season was derailed by a high-ankle sprain. He played in 30 NHL games, scored 4 goals, and totaled 13 points. After he came back from injury, he was sent down to Cleveland where he played seven games, and tallied eight points. He was again struck by the injury bug playing for Cleveland.
In April of 2023, Chinakhov was signed to a one-year contract extension for an AAV of 800k. He was still waivers exempt, so he spent some time in Cleveland last season, playing in three games, and scoring 3 goals while rehabbing an injury.
In the 23-24 season, Yegor Chinakhov broke out. While playing in 53 games, he set career highs in goals, assists, and points. He scored 16 goals and had 29 points while averaging 15:10 of ice time. He also shot 14.5%, which was up by 5% from the previous year.
Unfortunately, he dealt with some injuries last season. He missed the first few weeks of the season, making his CBJ debut on November 4th. He also missed the final month of the season with an upper-body injury.
Chinakhov is still a young 23, turning 24 in February, so he still has plenty of time to prove himself. He's only played in 145 NHL games so it's easy to forget he's barely been in North America for three years. He has a wicked shot and can score on any goalie he wants, but he needs to get better defensively, and he'll need to with playing for Dean Evason.
When he was drafted, the Jackets needed a shoot-first winger who could score goals. Now they have two in the form of Kirill Marchenko and Chinakhov.
Don Waddell got his new contract taken care of almost right away after coming to Columbus, signing him to a 2-year, $4,200,000 contract on June 21st. About a week before his re-signing, his agent told THN Columbus that the two sides weren't really close on a new deal. A week later the deal was made.
Chinakhov played well last season when he wasn't hurt. His next goal is going to have to be to stay healthy and play more than three-quarters of a season. In his rookie year, he played 62 games, followed by 30, and then 53 last year.
There's no doubt that Yegor Chinakhov is talented, but these next few seasons are going to be critical for the young Russian. He needs to have a big year if he wants that big payday in 2026.
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