With NHL interest not being to his liking, it appears as if free agent winger Sammy Blais is considering options in the KHL, according to Metaratings’ Dmitry Levin. The 28-year-old had a breakout showing in 2022-23, notching 25 points in 71 games, the bulk of which came after being reacquired by St. Louis; he had 20 points in 31 contests down the stretch that year. However, Blais wasn’t able to carry over that success into last season as injuries and ineffectiveness limited him to just 53 games where he had only one goal and six assists along with 194 hits in 9:41 of action. From a longer-term standpoint, the idea of Blais going overseas where he can play a bigger role and work on his offensive game makes some sense in the hopes of trying to get back to North America with a better market than he appears to have now.
Other KHL news:
- Earlier this week, UFA winger Alexander Barabanov signed a two-year deal with Ak Bars Kazan but it wasn’t for a lack of NHL interest. His agent Yuri Nikolaev told AllHockey.ru that he had NHL options on the table but that they didn’t suit him. Speculatively, that’s likely to mean that teams were coming in with low-cost offers (or even tryout agreements) following a rough year that saw him record just four goals and nine assists in 46 games with San Jose, well below the 47 points in 68 games he put up in 2022-23.
- Former Tampa Bay goalie prospect Amir Miftakhov wasn’t a fan of playing in the AHL early in his career, which eventually led to a mutual contract termination. However, he might be open to a change of heart, telling AllHockey.ru that he would be ready to play in the AHL moving forward. The 24-year-old was limited to just nine KHL appearances last season but has a 2.20 GAA and a .919 SV% over five years at that level. He’s under contract with Ak Bars Kazan through the upcoming season but if he’s still willing to go to the AHL when free agency opens up, he’ll likely garner some NHL interest at that time.