Colorado Avalanche sign Nikolai Kovalenko to two-year contract

The Colorado Avalanche have signed prospect Nikolai Kovalenko to a two-year contract. They did not say what the AAV is for this contract. Kovalenko is currently playing in the KHL for the Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo and scored 21 goals and 54 points in 56 games this past season.

Kovalenko was originally a sixth-round pick of the Avalanche in the 2018 NHL Draft. He has played his entire professional career in the KHL so far but is interested in coming over to North America. However, he is still under contract in the KHL for one more year and will presumably come over to Colorado for the 2024-25 season.

Depending on how far his KHL team goes in the playoffs he might even have a chance of joining the Avalance towards the end of the 2023-24 season. He is a all-purpose top-nine winger who can play well at both ends of the ice and has a strong offensive touch. He would likely slot into the Avalanche bottom-six for a playoff run.

At 23 years old, Kovalenko has developed to a point where he can be considered one of the best prospects in the Avalanche organisation, but he’s not too young to step right into the NHL. However, if he shows that he’s not ready for the NHL, the team will send him down to play in the AHL with the Colorado Eagles.