The Wild have announced today they have signed Marat Khusnutdinov to an entry level contract.
The Wild have announced today they have signed Marat Khusnutdinov to an entry level contract.
ST. PAUL - After Marat Khusnutdinov's season ended on Sunday his team in the KHL, HC Sochi, had to terminate his contract to allow the Wild to sign Khusnutdinov.
His KHL contract ended at the end of April but the Wild have now announced they have signed Khusnutdinov, one of their top prospects, who has been playing in the KHL since 2020.
Khusnutdinov, 21, was the Wild's second round pick back in 2020 when they traded Luke Kunin to Nashville for Nick Bonino and the 37th overall pick.
The 5-foot-9 center ranks sixth in KHL history for most career points as an U21 player. He wasn't treated the best this year with limited ice time and role changes, due to the fact his KHL contract is expiring. But once he was traded, Khusnutdinov played well.
In 49 games for Sochi, Khusnutdinov recorded six goals, 20 points, and took on a leadership role by the end of the season.
Khusnutdinov's production levels in the KHL were good enough to have a full comparison to Kirill Kaprizov, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Martin Havlat.
If he would've played a full season this year without the drama of his contract, I'd be willing to bet he would have put up similar numbers to the year before when he had 11 goals and 41 points in 63 games with SKA St. Petersburg.
After the signing, Khusnutdinov will be considered as on non-roster status player but count against the cap until he gets his work visa figured out.
Nonetheless, it will be exciting for Wild fans to see a top tier talent in Khusnutdinov make his mark on this Wild team. It will be one of the best deadline deals yet the Wild never had to trade anything to get him.
Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' Minnesota Wild page for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.