The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today the team has signed goaltender Ilya Nabokov to a two-year, entry-level contract through the 2026-27 season.
Nabokov, 22, spent the 2024-25 season with Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the KHL, posting a 23-17-6 record with a 2.22 GAA, a .923 SV%, and three shutouts in 49 regular-season appearances. He also appeared in five playoff games, recording a 2.13 GAA and a .920 Sv%. In the regular season, Nabokov ranked 14th in the league in Sv% and 11th in GAA (min 20 GP), and tied for sixth in wins. The 49 games played marked a career-high, while he matched his KHL personal best in wins and shutouts.
The 6-foot-1, 179-pound netminder has spent two full seasons with Metallurg, compiling a 46-30-9 record, 2.19 GAA, .926 Sv%, and six shutouts over 93 career regular-season KHL contests from 2023-25, adding one appearance in 2022-23. He was awarded Rookie of the Year in his first full season with the team, ranking sixth in the league in wins (23). The netminder helped Metallurg capture the 2024 Gagarin Cup, recording a 1.82 GAA and .942 Sv% with four shutouts in 23 postseason contests to become the youngest goaltender to win playoff MVP honors.
Prior to turning pro, Nabokov played for Stalnye Lisy Magnitogorsk in the MHL, Russia’s major junior hockey league, from 2019-23. In MHL regular-season play, he posted a 61-27-10 record with a 2.02 GAA, .930 Sv% and 14 shutouts across 105 games. In his final junior campaign of 2022-23, Nabokov registered a 18-9-7 record, adding a 1.93 GAA and a .933 Sv%, leading to a selection to the MHL All-Star Game.
A native of Kasli, Russia, Nabokov was selected by Colorado in the second round (38th overall) of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft and was the first netminder selected among his draft peers. The draft choice was the highest the Avalanche have selected a goaltender since taking Philippe Sauve at 38th overall in 1998.
