Two Canucks, Including Goldobin, Sign in KHL

Two Vancouver Canucks have decided to leave the NHL and are taking their talents to the KHL.

After a couple of months of talking like he would be leaving the NHL, it became official on Thursday that Vancouver Canucks forward Nikolay Goldobin would be playing in a different location. He signed a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow of the KHL on Thursday.

CSKA signed a two-year contract with Nikolay Goldobin. The past 5 seasons the 24-year-old forward spent in the NHL (19 G, 46 Pts, 125 GP) and in the AHL (68 G, 170 Pts, 190 GP) pic.twitter.com/IC0NgBwqwX

— KHL (@khl_eng) June 18, 2020

A first-round pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2014, the Canucks acquired Goldobin in 2017 as part of a deal that saw forward Jannik Hansen sent to San Jose. He looked good coming out of the 2014 draft, especially where he was taken, but he didn’t even get to 200 games before deciding to try his luck somewhere else.

This past season, Goldobin posted 19 goals and 50 points in 51 games with AHL’s Utica Comets. He played in one game with the Canucks and was held pointless.

The 24-year-old, who was scheduled for restricted free agency this year, appeared in 63 games with the Canucks during the 2018/19 season and registered seven goals and a career-high 37 points. There was a hope he’d have a larger role with the team but things didn’t turn out that way.

Goldobin’s new contract will begin next season.

Canucks forward Reid Boucher has also decided to sign in the KHL and has signed a deal one-year deal with Omsk Avangard in the KHL. The Canucks have given Boucher permission to get out of his contract.

Related: Could Braden Holtby Wind Up With Calgary Flames?