Hurricanes sign Tolchinsky to entry-level contract

The Carolina Hurricanes have agreed to terms with free-agent forward Sergey Tolchinsky on a three-year, entry-level contract, the team announced Thursday.

The deal will pay Tolchinsky $550,000 at the NHL level or $55,000 at the American Hockey League level in the first year, $550,000 in the NHL or $67,500 in the AHL in the second year, and $575,000 in the NHL or $67,500 in the AHL in the third year. He will receive a signing bonus of $150,000.

Tolchinsky, 18, played last season with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League. He had 26 goals, 25 assists and a plus-8 rating in 62 games, and two goals and two assists in six playoff games. Tolchinsky attended the New York Rangers’ and the Hurricanes’ prospects development camps this summer.

Tolchinsky (5-foot-8, 165 pounds) has represented Russia in several international competitions, including the 2013 IIHF Under-18 World Championship. At the 2012 Under-17 World Hockey Challenge, he had a hat trick in the gold-medal game to help Russia defeat the United States.

The Greyhounds selected Tolchinsky in the first round (No. 12) of the 2012 Canadian Hockey League Import Draft.