As the KHL tries to retain their own talented players such as Alex Radulov (as well as recruit several NHL based players), it cannot be doubted that the overall talent level and depth has improved tremendously since the KHL formed in 2008. The league benefits from players that could still perform in the NHL. From Radulov – a legitimate star in either league – to record KHL playoff scorer Josef Vasicek, Pavol Demitra, Aleksey Morozov, Viktor Kozlov and others such as Denis Grebeshkov, Maxim Afinigenov or even Alexei Yashin. There are plenty of quality players in the KHL that could still play in the NHL. This isn’t including players such as Sergei Zubov or Sergei Fedorov – quality hockey players who had been winding down their careers in Europe. (Zubov is inactive)

The KHL is still a long way behind the NHL in both quality and quantity, but given it’s inception was only 3 years ago, the quality has come on very quickly. Where will it be in 5 years from now? The biggest thing that seems to threaten to hold the KHL back as a legitimate threat to the NHL is league stability. Given that the league could not stop (or didn’t want to stop?) traditional powerhouses such as Dynamo from having to merge with lesser clubs to exist, the league doesn’t benefit from a stable foundation. Some clubs cannot pay the players on time while other oil rich clubs seem to benefit from cash rich owners. There truly is no level playing field in the KHL.

We have seen plenty of players go to the KHL to resurrect their NHL careers (or find a way back) in recent times, such as Ray Emery or even Jaromir Jagr. This may be one angle that the KHL uses to recruit and improve their own quality in the short to medium term. Former Rangers like recent KHL recruits Nik Zherdev, Nigel Dawes or Petr Prucha may hope a solid year or two in the KHL will mean an offer or two from NHL clubs looking for depth. Zherdev in particular is blessed with elite skill regardless of which league he is in.

While he was an unheralded player in the NHL, when Antti Miettinen moved to Kazan this summer it may have been the start of legitimate NHL players making the move to Russia despite having a solid NHL career that was still in progress. Miettinen (only 31) was a consistent two way player, 30-40 point forward in the NHL who regularly flirted with 20 goal seasons on defensive clubs. Given the paucity of quality free agents this summer it may have been a surprise that the Finn chose Russia ahead of NHL teams.

Is a player like Miettinen the start of a trend and is the KHL’s improving quality reason for concern? If there’s an NHL hold out on the horizon you can bet the KHL will be looking to take advantage. Despite the (apparent) improving relationship between the NHL and the KHL, evidenced by the recent signed memorandum of understanding,  the KHL would certainly look to entice any out of work NHL stars to Russia if there is indeed a lock out. This time around, there may not be short-term KHL deals with NHL out-clauses if the KHL continues to improve. Which is another thing for the NHL to consider when they discuss the next CBA.

Simply put, over the last decade there are less and less Russians playing in the NHL every year. For instance, during the 2000-01 season, there were a total of 87 Russian players in the NHL. In 2005-06, that number was down to 40. In 2010, only 23 full-time Russian players suited up for an NHL team.

Some believe that the difference in style of play has kept many young Russians from making the move, arguing that bigger rinks and more finesse systems played in Europe are just too different from the North American emphasis on defense and physicality.

While I agree that these differences, along with the language barrier, may slow a player’s initial development, I don’t believe they’re contributing to this overall decline – such dissimilarities have existed for decades.

No, the real reason the Russians are staying put is purely economic. The KHL has more money than ever before and is able to pay their players millions of dollars a year tax free. This has helped send players such as Alexei Yashin, Nikita Filatov, Alexander Radulov, and a host of other players back to Russia.

Additionally, the re-entry waiver system keeps players in the AHL making around $65,000 per year, with a maximum salary of $105,000. Any minor league player making more than $105,000 must clear re-entry waivers to get called up to the NHL…and elite Russian prospects aren’t clearing any waivers.

Not too many Russians want to come all the way over to North America to play in the AHL and make peanuts for a living when the KHL can offer much more. This waiver system, plus our tax code, makes it so that any legit Russian player in the AHL is earning less salary than he would in his homeland by a significant margin.

Between the money issue and the lack of a transfer agreement (where player contracts do not have to be honored by either league), the nail in the coffin is the draft. GM’s are beginning to avoid Russia players like the plague for fear that they’ll waste a draft pick on someone who will never step foot on American soil.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about all of this was there were more Russians playing in the NHL during the 90’s when they had a lot more to risk than money. Back then it wasn’t uncommon to hear about Russian NHL players being strong-armed by the Russian Mob for money or worse.

Evgeni Malkin, one of the best players in the world almost never came to the NHL because men associated with his former Russian club put him “under intense pressure” to sign and honor a deal to keep him in Russia. Matter of fact, he was under so much “pressure” to keep playing in Russia that he had to hide out for five days in Finland in order to escape his team and make the courageous journey to North America. This was only several years ago!

At the end of the day, the tax code is what it is. The best solution is for Bettman to not strong-arm the KHL, so the KHL doesn’t strong-arm their teenage hockey players. It would be most prudent for a transfer deal to be negotiated. Every other international sport has one, there is no reason for the NHL and KHL not to have one.

This way the NHL gets the players they want, the KHL gets the money they want and young Russian players have a chance at living a little thing called the American Dream.

“It looks like that we will not see such matches next season. And we have only one reason that the NHL due to their, sort of say, exclusively business-like approach…”

Without getting into all the messy details (read Chesnokov’s article for those), this is probably a good thing for the Rangers, who were slated to play the biggest goons in the league. Considering the rash of Ranger injuries this year, a game against a ton of goons is not a good idea. Seriously, have you seen Vityaz Chekhov’s stats?

As per Puck Daddy, Vityaz GM Alexei Zhamnov was a little bit surprised that the Rangers, who are organizing this voluntarily, picked Vityaz:

“I have no idea why they picked us,” Zhamnov continued. “Last week I received the first phone call about it. And on Thursday a representative from the Rangers will fly to Moscow. On Friday we are going to have a meeting with him to negotiate regarding details. We are very interested in this project. We had no doubts whether to agree to it.”

It is a little surprising that the Rangers would pick Vityaz over a team like the Dynamo Moscow (Jaromir Jagr’s team). They are a bit of a dirty club, but a dirty club that sits in the bottom of the standings. That probably has a lot to do with it. If the Rangers do wind up playing Vityaz next season, let’s hope that it doesn’t open with a brawl like that. The Rangers have had enough injuries to deal with this year.

Heikkinen also granted an interview with Maria Levinskaya, and a full translation of the interview can be found at Beyond the Blueshirts.

Zherdev, who led the Rangers in scoring with a line of 23-35-58 in the 2008-2009 season, fell out of favor with fans after his disappearing act in the last month of the season and the playoffs against Washington. The Rangers, who are currently extremely thin on RW, offered Zherdev $3.25 million in the offseason, with Zherdev wanting closer to $4.5 million. An arbitrator awarded Zherdev the medium, at $3.9 million, to which the Rangers walked away, making him an unrestricted free agent. With no market for him, Zherdev reportedly attempted to return to the Rangers for the original $3.25 million, but the Rangers turned him away. Zherdev then bolted for the KHL.

Zherdev would provide some nice complimentary scoring for Marian Gaborik, and would give the Rangers a very nice 1-2 punch on the RW. It would also take some of the pressure off of Gaborik, who seemed to be the only consistent scorer on the Rangers this past season. At the right length and price, the Rangers, and their fans, should welcome back Zherdev. It is highly unlikely, considering how the negotiations went in 2009, that Zherdev gets a multi-year deal. Market value puts him right around the $3 million -$3.5 million range, but with little negotiating power on his side, it is highly possible that Zherdev signs for under that amount.

Update 2:55pm: Steve Zipay is tweeting that the Rangers have denied this rumor.

Update 1:05pm: I should probably note that the deal isn’t finalized, but it is very likely he will sign there.

Update 6:40pm: Darren Dreger has refuted this rumor. That didn’t take long.

In terms of skill and production, Tarasenko deserves the #2 international skater ranking. The 18 year old RW, who plays the off-wing (he is a left handed shot), is putting up great numbers in the KHL with the Novosibirsk Siber, with a line of 13-11-24 in 42 games. That may not seem like much, but considering the seniority style of play in the KHL, thus severely limiting the young Tarasenko’s ice time, those are solid numbers.

The HockeysFuture blurb about Tarasenko’s skating ability is hard to ignore:

A dynamic and unbelievably skilled offensive player, Tarasenko is as dangerous as they come around the puck…and away from it for that matter.

Tarasenko is decently sized at 5’11 200 lbs, and according to Goran Stubb, NHL Director of European Scouting, “very effective around the net with his excellent overall skill level and vision. He is a strong, mobile skater with a quick shot. He is not only a sniper, but also a good passer and playmaker. There are no real weaknesses in his overall game and he will be one of the most interesting prospects at the draft.”

The Rangers will luck out if Tarasenko does indeed drop in the draft due to transfer agreement issues. He is truly an elite talent in the draft. He is incredibly gifted offensively, but plays a two-way game and can find the open ice with relative ease. The Rangers organization, in addition to lacking any elite talent, is incredibly weak at the RW position. The Rangers have shown in the past that they are not worried about a lack of transfer agreement, so if he is available at #10, you can expect the Rangers to sprint to the podium to call him name.

S/t to Adam Rotter at SNYRangersBlog.

If you’re like me, thanks to his time in NY you’ll have a soft spot for Jaromir Jagr, the big Czech.

Im sure many of you have read the THN column discussing the notion of Jagr coming back to the NHL. If he does, where do you think he’ll go? If he comes back should The Rangers be interested and can he still help them?

Right now, he’s playing at around a point per game pace in the KHL. He’s also apparently in supreme condition (according to ex Omsk coach Wayne Fleming…) For the record I think (at a reasonable price) he could be huge for the Rangers. He doesnt need to be the go-to-guy anymore thanks to Gaborik. He seems willing to take a small(er) salary to play so the Rangers should be interested.

I really like the idea of a second line featuring Avery and Jagr flanking perhaps Dubinsky. Finally some genuine secondary scoring?

I had a look in more depth at the idea at nasports.co.uk. Let me know what you think.