Canadiens defense prospect Bogdan Konyushkov has signed a one-year extension with the KHL’s Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod to keep him in Russia through the 2026-27 season, the league announced. Konyushkov, 22, was a fourth-round pick in 2023 and came to Montreal for development camp a few weeks ago, per Marco D’Amico of RG.
The news gives the intriguing right-shot some extended runway in his development, but it doesn’t necessarily affect Montreal’s ability to sign him at some point since they hold his rights indefinitely. Montreal selected the smooth-skating rearguard two years after he was initially eligible to be drafted after he broke out in a full-time KHL role with Torpedo, and he’s since recorded an 11-59–70 scoring line with a -13 rating in 196 games at Russia’s top level.
Last season did mark something of a step back for Konyushkov, who recorded a career-low 17 points and a minus-five rating. He was assigned to the VHL’s Torpedo-Gorky NN of Russia’s second-tier pro league for their postseason, leading the playoffs in scoring by a defenseman with 13 points in 17 games as he helped them to a championship. Despite his age, his well-rounded game made him Torpedo’s leader in average ice time last year. He’ll now be eligible to come to the Canadiens on June 1, 2027, unless they negotiate an early release with Torpedo.
More from the KHL:
- Former Sabres prospect Alexander Kisakov has landed a tryout contract with Dynamo Moscow, per a team announcement. Kisakov, 22, was a second-round pick by Buffalo in 2021 but was non-tendered when his entry-level contract expired in June, making him an unrestricted free agent. While the undersized winger displayed a high-ceiling and high-energy offensive game in the Russian junior ranks, he scored just 25 points in 93 games for the AHL’s Rochester Americans over the past three years as he battled injuries.
- Winger Dmytro Timashov has signed a two-year contract with Admiral Vladivostok, Ronnie Rönnkvist of HockeySverige reports. The Ukrainian-born Swedish national recorded nine points in 45 NHL games for the Maple Leafs, Islanders, and Red Wings across the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons. He’s been overseas since terminating his contract with New York early in the 2021-22 season. He split last season between the KHL’s HK Sochi and Geneve-Servette HC of Switzerland’s National League, limited to 13 points in 44 games across the two clubs.
Sabres chose Kisakov instead of Matthew Knies, who went 4 picks later to the Buds.