- Canadiens sign defenseman Bogdan Konyushkov to a two-year, entry-level contract
- Montreal loans him back to the KHL’s Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod for 2026-27
- Read below for his numbers and when he could finally land in Montreal
The Canadiens finally have Bogdan Konyushkov under contract.
General manager Kent Hughes announced Friday that Montreal agreed to a two-year, entry-level deal (2026-27 to 2027-28) with the 23-year-old defenseman. He won’t be in a Habs sweater right away, though. The club is loaning him back to the KHL’s Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod for next season.
Here’s the announcement from the team:
The structure keeps things flexible. Konyushkov stays overseas for 2026-27, then becomes eligible to join the Canadiens or the AHL’s Laval Rocket once Torpedo’s season wraps up.
He’s coming off a strong year. Konyushkov put up 38 points (seven goals, 31 assists) in 67 games last season, good for 12th among all KHL defensemen. He tacked on five assists in ten playoff games.
The right-handed blueliner has been productive since breaking into the league. Since his KHL debut in 2022, he’s racked up 18 goals and 90 assists across 237 games.
Montreal grabbed him in the fourth round, 110th overall, at the 2023 draft. Getting a top-12 KHL defenseman locked up out of that pick is a nice bit of work by Hughes.
The Habs have been raiding the Russian league lately. They signed Reilly Walsh after his own standout KHL season earlier this week, and Konyushkov hands the pipeline another right-shot option on the back end.
