Top-6 forward leaves the NHL after his team ignores his trade request
After generating significant interest at the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline, Alexander Barabanov has decided to leave the NHL and sign with Ak Bars Kazan in the KHL.
Barabanov's agent, Yuri Nikolaev, informed Championat's Pavel Panyshev that his client received interest from multiple KHL teams. Ultimately, Barabanov chose to sign a two-year deal with Ak Bars Kazan.
@Artur_Khairul
Alexander Barabanov signs a two-year contract with Ak Bars Kazan #KHL. His base salary ₽65 million (2024-25) & ₽85 million (25-26)
Despite interest from several NHL teams, including the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs, the San Jose Sharks decided to keep Barabanov at the deadline. Now, the 30-year-old forward is set to return to Russia, where he was born and played the first seven seasons of his professional hockey career.
Barabanov joined the NHL in the 2020-21 season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. After 13 games, he was traded to the Sharks, where he played for four seasons, scoring 106 points in total. His departure marks another instance of a Russian-born NHL player returning to the KHL after playing in North America.
Credit: KHL & Euro Talk KHL & Euro Talk Twitter
| POLL | ||
31 JUILLET | 94 ANSWERS Top-6 forward leaves the NHL after his team ignores his trade request Do you think Alexander Barabanov will ever return to the NHL? | ||
| Yes | 17 | 18.1 % |
| No | 77 | 81.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
