Nikishin signs with Hurricanes, 'has all the tools' to succeed in NHL

The Carolina Hurricanes might be adding a big reinforcement to their back end either before or in time for the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Alexander Nikishin signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Hurricanes on Friday. The 23-year-old, who is 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, has been one of the top defensemen in Russia's Kontinental Hockey League, playing for SKA St. Petersburg the past three seasons.

He was selected by the Hurricanes in the third round (No. 69) of the 2020 NHL Draft.

"He has all the tools to be a very effective all-around defenseman," Carolina general manager Eric Tulsky said Friday. "He can play a very physical game. He is a ferocious hitter. He has a good ability to manage and close gaps so he can be a really effective defender. Offensively, he sees the ice well. He can make plays. He has a strong shot. So he really has all the tools to do everything you want."

Tulsky said the hope and goal is for Nikishin to be available to the Hurricanes before the playoffs begin, possibly to play in one or both of their final regular season games -- at the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday and at the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

The Hurricanes will play the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference First Round, a series that will begin either April 19 or 20.

But, Tulsky said, "It is a complicated process" to get Nikishin to the Hurricanes.

First, they have to secure a United States visa to allow him entry into the country. Tulsky said they're hoping to have that "any day now."

However, the visa has to be placed into Nikishin's passport at a U.S. embassy, and since there is no U.S. embassy in Russia, he has to travel to another country to get that done so he can come to the United States.

Tulsky said they're also working on getting Nikishin a Canadian visa, which is required for him to be able to play in Canada. There is no timeframe on when that would happen, which is why Tulsky couldn't say with certainty if Nikishin will play in Montreal and/or Ottawa next week.

If that doesn't happen in time, Tulsky said Nikishin could play for Chicago of the American Hockey League next week, provided they can get his U.S. visa worked out in time.

Next week, the Hurricanes affiliate plays road games at Iowa on Wednesday and Milwaukee on Friday.

"I've talked to (Carolina coach) Rod [Brind'Amour] about it and ultimately it's hard for him to say what he's going to do until he sees the player," Tulsky said. "It's part of why we're trying hard to get him here in time to play games."

Tulsky expects Nikishin to be an impact player whenever he gets adjusted to the NHL pace.

He had 46 points (17 goals, 29 assists) in 61 games with SKA St. Petersburg this season as team captain. He was second among KHL defensemen in goals and game-winning goals (four), and third in points. He had three points (two goals, one assists) in four KHL playoff games.

Nikishin is SKA's all-time leader in scoring by a defenseman with 177 points (54 goals, 123 assists) in 288 games. He set a KHL record for scoring by a Russian-born defenseman by getting 55 points (11 goals, 44 assists) in 65 games in 2022-23. He broke his own record last season with 56 points (17 goals, 39 assists) in 67 games.

"Our development staff does a great job of getting guys ready and SKA is actually the one KHL team that plays a style very similar to ours," Tulsky said, "but it's still going to be a huge transition for any player. He is very well equipped to make the jump so it might be two practices and he's full speed and ready to go, it might be 20 games before he's comfortable with NHL pace."

Tulsky said there was urgency on the Hurricanes part to sign Nikishin before the playoffs.

"We're heading into a Stanley Cup run where we think we're real contenders and want to take a run at it and this is a player that can help us," he said. "We don't know how much he can help until we see him here, but there's no question at minimum he provides us with really strong depth, and so that has value. Maybe he turns out to be more than that. We'll see."

Re-affirmation of Carolina's belief in Nikishin came around the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline, when Tulsky said his was always one of the first names that came up in trade conversations.

"It was constant," Tulsky said. "I think everybody in the League recognizes that this is a player with very high potential who can help a team right away. So as you can expect, whenever they were looking for things they can try to get from us, he was one of the first players we'd get asked about. Obviously, we were not interested in doing that. We see the same things they see."