Roman Kantserov terminates KHL contract, expected to sign ELC with Blackhawks
Roman Kantserov is making his way to North America.
The 21-year-old Russian winger has his sights set on the NHL, as he has terminated his contract with Magnitogorsk Metallurg of the Kontinental Hockey League and is expected to sign an entry-level contract with the Chicago Blackhawks.
At this point in time, the details of Kantserov’s contract with the Blackhawks is unknown. Given the limited variance with ELCs, it will most likely be a three-year contract, and the salary will fall somewhere between $850,000 and $1,025,000.
Kantserov was always going to sign with the Blackhawks once his KHL contract expired in June, but he and Metallurg have decided to give Kantserov a head start and terminated his contract right now. That then allows him to sign with the Blackhawks, where he will begin playing in North America next season.
Kantserov was the Blackhawks’ second-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. The draft has already seen some success for Chicago with the obvious first-overall pick in Connor Bedard, along with Oliver Moore and Nick Lardis becoming more established NHLers.
Kantserov is coming off of a career year in the KHL where he had 36 goals, 28 assists and 64 points in 63 games. He was tied for ninth in the league in points, and he was the youngest player to crack the top 10, while his 36 goals led the league.
Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis had this to say about Kantserov earlier this season when identifying prospects thriving in Europe:
“Katenserov has been the most impressive prospect abroad this year, with the 21-year-old tracking for over 40 goals and 75 points. He was excellent a year ago with 38 points in 47 games, but he has taken things up a notch this year. There’s a legit chance Kantserov could finish as the KHL’s MVP – and given he’s eligible for an NHL contract this spring, the timing couldn’t be better.
“The knock against Kantserov has always been his 5-foot-9 frame. While that hasn’t bothered him in Russia, it’s often a different story in the NHL. He was more of a playmaker a year ago, but has worked on putting more muscle behind his wrist shot – and it’s working. Still, he’ll need to bulk up to make it work in the NHL, but there’s some top-six potential here if he can make that happen.”