Nikishin Makes Much Anticipated Canes Debut In Series Closing Victory

RALEIGH, N.C. - The day finally arrived.

1,681 days after being selected by the Carolina Hurricanes in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft, Alexander Nikishin played his first game as a Carolina Hurricane.

On October 7, 2020, it would have been hard to imagine the level of hype surrounding last night at Capital One Arena. Back then, he was regarded by the Canes' management as a bigger defenseman with an ability to have tight gaps and bring an element of physicality. Since then, he's become so much more.

Twice selected as the best defenseman in the Kontinental Hockey League by general managers, Nikishin blossomed over six years in his home country's top tier, ultimately becoming regarded as one of the best players outside of the NHL as recently as this season.

But after Nikishin finished out his contract with SKA St. Petersburg and finally made the jump to North America last month, the Canes were finally in need of his services on Thursday.

After practicing with the team and patiently waiting for his chance for over a month, Nikishin skated 10:33 in last night's victory, stepping in for the injured Jalen Chatfield. Working mostly alongside Shayne Gostisbehere at five-on-five, Rod Brind'Amour called it "a tough spot to throw a kid into," but thought his new #21 did just fine given the high intensity of the situation.

“I don’t know if there is a tougher spot to throw a kid in, especially when there’s such a language barrier," Brind'Amour said post-game. "I thought he did alright. We got a little fortunate on the (Capitals’ would-have-been goal) that was offside, because I think he turned that one over, but he hung in there. You can see he’s going to be a good player for us. He’s got a bright future.”

Inked to a two-year, entry-level contract, Nikishin wasted little time showing his excellent use of his 6-foot-4, 214-pound frame, standing up an attempted check from Capitals forward Andrew Mangiapane on his first shift.

Moments later, he let his first shot fly, clocking 92 miles per hour on what looked like a routine blast. Previously winning the KHL's Hardest Shot Competition, the 23-year-old was quickly showing that some of his best attributes are as advertised.

“I thought he was great. With the language barrier, that can be tough for a guy like that, but Orly and the other Russians we have did a great job communicating," fellow defenseman Sean Walker reviewed. "He’s a big body, skates well, shoots the puck well. He really ended some plays in the D-zone, and in the O-zone, you see he can get a pretty good shot off, so it was great to see.”

In addition to his cheeky neutral zone stick strip of Alexander Ovechkin, Nikishin, who has long said it was his dream to play with or against Ovechkin, then locked him down defensively during the second period.

“He played an awesome game. I was so nervous, whenever a Russian guy comes and starts playing, but I tried to give him a couple (bits of advice) and I think he did a great job," countryman Andrei Svechnikov reviewed. "I couldn’t imagine just coming from Russia and playing a playoff game. It must be so hard. He did a great job. I’m very proud of him.”

Earning a shout-out in the post-game locker room victory speech from Brind'Amour, it was the first of what is expected to be many, many nights in a Hurricanes sweater for Nikishin.