Last offseason, the Jets brought in forward Andrei Chibisov to give them some depth down the middle with the hopes that he could compete for a roster spot. That didn’t really happen as he spent most of the year in the minors and as a result, he is heading back overseas as Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL announced that they’ve signed him to a three-year contract.
The 27-year-old returns to an organization that he’s quite familiar with as his best KHL campaign came with Magnitogorsk back in 2018-19 where he had 20 points in 50 games. That helped him get on Winnipeg’s radar as he signed soon after that season came to an end.
Unfortunately for them, the deal didn’t quite pan out as well as they hoped. Chibisov only played in two games for Winnipeg this season and was left off of their postseason roster. While he had a respectable 25 points in 53 games with AHL Manitoba, that type of production wasn’t going to generate much interest in NHL free agency so going back home and getting some term on his deal in the process certainly makes sense from his perspective.