Less than a month remains until the start of the next regular season of the Kontinental Hockey League. The teams have already returned from vacation and are in full swing preparing for the pre-season tournaments, which will be the final chord of preparation for the new aspiration to the Kontinental and Gagarin Cups. However, not all players managed to find new clubs, and some are still in the status of unrestricted free agents, and among them there are quite a few big names. Who are they, forced prisoners of the market?
Nikita Soshnikov
After an unsuccessful attempt to return to the NHL, Soshnikov ended up at Traktor, where he spent the last season and a half relatively well. However, the new coach of the Chelyabinsk team obviously did not need him, so at the moment he is still looking for a new club. In May, the player’s agent, Alexander Chernykh, said that negotiations were underway on Nikita’s transfer to Avtomobilist, but apparently they were unsuccessful. Since then, nothing has been heard again about possible places to continue the forward’s career.
Nikita Soshnikov
Photo: Svetlana Sadykova, photo.khl.ru
Yakupov nails
Rumors about Nail’s possible transfer from one Tatar club to another remain rumors – Ak Bars has not reached an agreement with Yakupov, although the Kazan team still has financial room. The forward will turn 31 in two months and he has a few more years left to play at a high level. Teams, however, for some reason are in no hurry to sign the forward, although he is still capable of bringing some benefit – 19 points in 31 games for Neftekhimik is a pretty good result, and although Nail might not be useful to the KHL tops, some clubs he would fit perfectly into the court.
Alexei Makeev
Surprisingly, one of the main characters of the automobile fairy tale of the last playoffs is still unemployed almost in mid-August. According to our information, the 32-year-old forward could continue his career at Dynamo Moscow or Avangard, and the Hawks’ general director Anton Kuryanov even personally confirmed his interest in Makeev. However, in Omsk they preferred Stanislav Galiev to Alexey, and the player has not yet reached an agreement with the blue-and-whites. The forward himself is surprised by his long stay on the market.
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Anton Burdasov
Two and a half weeks ago, Anton would not be on this list: Traktor informed the player that he could look for a new club in May, but almost until the end of July in Chelyabinsk they were expecting a trade for the experienced forward. However, there was no interest from other teams, so the Bears terminated the contract with their pupil and sent him to surf the free agent market. So far it turns out so-so: even though Burdasov’s financial needs should have decreased due to the payment of the fine, he still cannot find a new place of work. Almost immediately after the termination of the contract with Traktor, there were rumors that the 33-year-old forward was going to Avangard, but it quickly became known that he was not going to be signed in Omsk.
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Nikolai Prokhorkin
“It was clear that clubs would try to take in foreigners first and foremost. For some reason they believe in them more and think that they are better for them. But this is their choice,” Prokhorkin’s agent Shumi Babaev answered in late July when asked what prevents Nikolai from signing a new contract in the KHL. This position, to put it mildly, raises additional questions, because it is hard to believe that no club in the league has expressed a desire to see one of the best Russian centre-backs in its ranks – the forward still scores half a point per game.
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It seems that the player’s own demands are more important here than just financial ones: he himself said that he was interested in fighting for the Gagarin Cup, and not just for the playoffs. However, there is a feeling that Prokhorkin will have to make concessions somewhere, otherwise he may not find a new job in September.
Other famous players without a contract in the KHL with NSA status
Goalie: Alexander Sharychenkov.
Defenders: Victor Antipin, Mikhail Pashnin.
Forward: Ivan Telegin, Sergey Kalinin, Sergey Shirokov, Sergey Shumakov, Alexander Burmistrov, Egor Averin, Ilya Kablukov, Artyom Lukoyanov.
