After mutually terminating his contract a couple of weeks ago, former Calgary Flames prospect Dmitry Zavgorodniy is headed back to the KHL full-time. HK Sochi announced Sunday that the team inked the 21-year-old to a two-year contract through 2023-24.
No one thought much of Zavgorodniy at the time he was drafted, having fallen all the way to the Flames in the seventh round (198th overall) in the 2018 draft. But for the next two seasons, the 5′ 9″ forward took a huge step forward with the QMJHL’s Rimouski Oceanic, culminating his junior career with a 29-goal, 67-point season in 40 games in 2019-20.
He’s yet to replicate that offense after leaving juniors, though. In 29 games with the AHL’s Stockton Heat during the COVID-affected 2020-21 season, Zavgorodniy mustered just four points in 29 games. In just 12 games this season, he had one assist. He did spend some time in the KHL on loan during the past two seasons, scoring six assists in 16 games across time with SKA St. Petersburg and Sochi. Now, the Omsk-born forward will have a chance to play at home full-time as a free agent in the eyes of the NHL.
Zavgorodniy, at 21, still has time to develop his game and return to the NHL later in his career if things go right for him.