Marat Khusnutdinov's season has come to a close in the KHL. What's next for one the Wild's top prospect?
Marat Khusnutdinov played in only six games for SKA St. Petersburg this year after playing in 63 games last year with 11 goals and 41 points. SKA eventually traded Khusnutdinov to HC Sochi in October. His season in the KHL this year is now officially over.
Khusnutdinov, 21, was the Wild's second-round pick in 2020. They acquired the draft pick when they traded Luke Kunin to the Nashville Predators for Nick Bonino and the 37th overall pick. In 49 games for Sochi, Khusnutdinov recorded six goals and 20 points.
Sochi was one of the worst teams in the KHL this year but Khusnutdinov played most of his minutes with Matvei Michkov who was the recent seventh overall pick by the Philadelphia Flyers last season and looked great.
Marat Khusnutdinov being compared to Kirill Kaprizov using Byron Bader's Hockey Prospecting Comparison Tool.Kirill Kaprizov is a name Wild fans know very well and according to Byron Bader's Hockey Prospecting model, Khusnutdinov could be heading down a similar path. There is no doubt that if Khusnutdinov continued to play in the KHL he would probably have even more productive seasons and probably progress more down the path Kaprizov did in the KHL.
But with his season officially over, there is a chance the Wild sign Khusnutdinov and bring him over to play in the NHL.
As it stands right now, Khusnutdinov 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 last year the 5-foot-9 center put up a terrific season.
In 63 games last year, Khusnutdinov posted 11 goals and 41 points as a 20-year-old. His 41 points as a 20-year-old puts him fourth all-time in the KHL ahead of Kaprizov's 40 point season in 2017-18, according to QuantHockey.
Khusnutdinov is an elite talent and hopefully Wild fans will get to see him in a green sweater soon as it seems more and more possible that the Wild will sign Khusnutdinov since his season is now done.
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