Blackhawks close to signing prolific KHL scorer to entry-level contract

The last few years haven’t been very exciting for the Chicago Blackhawks, who haven’t made the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2020 and have seen a major roster turnover.

Gone are franchise legends and future Hall of Fame forwards Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, along with other notable icons like Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Marian Hossa, and Corey Crawford. Now, the Blackhawks are led by 2023 first overall pick Connor Bedard, along with other young forwards like Frank Nazar and Anton Frondell.

But Chicago could soon be getting another overseas talent in the mix. According to various reports, the Blackhawks are close to signing Russian forward Roman Kantserov, their 44th overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, to an entry-level contract after his deal in Russia with the KHL’s Metallurg Magnitogorsk was recently terminated.

“Thanks, Roman! OFFICIAL: Hockey club ‘Metallurg’ and forward Roman Kantserov have terminated their contract,” announced Metallurg Magnitogorsk on X, formerly known as Twitter. “The forward has decided to continue his career in the NHL ‘Chicago Blackhawks’ system.”

During his time with the club this season, he scored at over a point per game pace, tallying 36 goals with 28 assists for 64 points in the 63 games he skated in. The previous season, he scored 13 goals with 25 assists in 47 games played.

It’s been a period of transition for the Blackhawks thanks to the aforementioned departures of their top players from their glory days, and it’s been a full-on youth movement that has included plenty of growing pains.

But the hope is that with the influx of young talent Chicago has accumulated, along with the expected addition of Kantserov, it might not be long before the team is legitimately competing for a playoff spot again.

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