Once viewed as a key prospect for Florida, Grigori Denisenko’s stock has slid in recent years, even after a move to Vegas. Now, it appears the unrestricted free agent could be heading back home as Artur Khairullin of Sport-Express reports (Telegram link) that the winger is in contract talks with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the KHL.
The 25-year-old was a first-round pick by the Panthers back in 2018, going 15th overall after showing promise in Yaroslav’s minor league system at the MHL level. Denisenko made the jump to the KHL level the following year and spent two seasons there before coming to North America.
Denisenko spent most of his time with Florida in the minors, notching 63 points in 101 games over parts of three seasons while also getting into 26 games with the Panthers. However, they waived him in training camp in 2023 with Vegas putting in a claim, picking up the two seasons of his one-way contract in the process.
The change of scenery didn’t help Denisenko stay in the NHL for long as just one day later, he was back on waivers with Florida declining to place a claim to take him back.
Denisenko played in just seven games for the Golden Knights over those two years, with only one of those coming last season. He notched 10 goals and 14 assists in 42 games with AHL Henderson in 2024-25 before being moved to Nashville for future considerations back in February. But the change of scenery didn’t yield any NHL playing time as Denisenko stayed in the minors, picking up 15 points in 23 games with Milwaukee.
Denisenko has actually seen NHL action in five straight years, his only five seasons in North America. But the total of those outings was only 33 appearances, meaning that Denisenko qualified for Group Six unrestricted free agency this summer. Rather than try to land a two-way deal with another NHL team in the hopes of earning an in-season recall while injuries arise, it appears he has decided that returning home to the program he had success with earlier in his career makes the most sense.