Former San Jose Sharks forward Nikolai Kovalenko's time in the NHL appears to be over for the time being. The 25-year-old winger has reportedly signed a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League.

This comes just nine days after CSKA traded for Kovalenko’s KHL rights, which previously belonged to Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod.

The former sixth-round draft pick was acquired as a major part of the Sharks' return for MacKenzie Blackwood when the goaltender was traded to the Colorado Avalanche this past December. Although Kovalenko was fairly productive during his time with the Sharks, posting 12 points in 29 games, there were holes in his game that left the organization unsatisfied with his performance.

There was also some off-ice drama surrounding Kovalenko and the head coach Ryan Warsofsky, which the two said was sorted out. On a Russian podcast, Kovalenko reportedly stated that the “coach didn’t like Russians.” However, he later noted that the comments were taken out of context, and he was enjoying his time in San Jose.

After all was said and done, the Raleigh, NC-born player was not issued a qualifying offer and hit unrestricted free agency and ultimately found his way back to Russia. He’s previously had success at that level, with 142 points in 257 career KHL games.

Photo  Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images

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