The Predators were very much interested in Vitali Pinchuk - as was just about every other team in the National Hockey League.
So, the fact Nashville was the club that ultimately landed the 6-foot-3 centerman - who produced at a point-per-game clip in the KHL during the previous campaign - should be viewed as more than just another transaction in the early portions of the offseason.
Instead, the Preds are quite enthusiastic they were able to sign the 24-year-old to a one-year, entry-level contract on Monday - and while nothing is guaranteed at this juncture, hopes are high for what Pinchuk could soon provide.
“He was the most sought after free agent in Europe, certainly - and in terms of the college and European free agent market, he was probably the most coveted guy that was out there,” Predators Assistant General Manager and Director of Scouting Jeff Kealty said of Pinchuk. “So, when you consider the profile of the player in terms of a 6-foot-3 centerman that makes plays and scores goals and produces points, we're certainly really excited about landing him.”
A native of Belarus, Pinchuk is coming off of a season where he recorded 31 goals and 66 points in 65 games with Dinamo Minsk of the KHL. That goal total ranked third in the League, and he was just one of 10 KHL skaters to record at least a point-per-game in 2025-26.
Undrafted, Pinchuk spent a season with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs before returning to Europe to grow his game. Now, with four full KHL seasons to his name - and at least a 20-point increase in each of the last three - the Predators believe Pinchuk is ready to prove himself at the NHL level.
“The profile of the player, a big centerman that can produce offense and make plays, that's as coveted as a type of player you can find, and you’re always looking for them,” Kealty said. “The one thing that we always say with these types of signings is they’re quote, unquote ‘free’ in the sense that you didn't use a draft pick or anything like that. So, I think anytime you can add a player like this that has already produced at a high level in a top league outside of the National Hockey League, that’s certainly a good thing for our organization.”
So, how does a signing like this come together for a player skating in a league on the other side of the world? The deal is a perfect example of the work of a scouting department and the tireless efforts to identify the best players available, no matter where they reside.
Kealty says he and Predators European Scout Denis Tolpeko discussed Pinchuk last year, and after Kealty reached out to the forward’s agent in October, a season-long process of discussions and recruiting essentially took place to try and convince Pinchuk why he should come to Nashville.
Kealty believes a large majority of teams in the NHL also had interest, but the Predators were able to sell not only the market, but also the opportunity that could exist for Pinchuk within the organization.
And before long? The deal was signed.
“You’ve heard it forever with our organization, but we’re always looking for centermen that can produce offense,” Kealty said. “So, I think he's going to get a really good opportunity right away to play in an offensive role, to play in the power play, and he's got a track record of production. To put up 30-plus goals and a point-per-game in the KHL, that’s not an easy thing to do. He’s done some really good things outside of the NHL, and now he’ll get his opportunity. He’s still a young player as far as his career goes, and now he's going to get an opportunity to be at the highest level. We’re an up-and-coming team with a lot of good, young players, and then obviously with some established offensive NHL players for him to play with. So, I think that the opportunity and what we have in place right now really lined up well for him.”
While it’s not yet clear what the next few months will look like before training camp arrives in September, Kealty expects Pinchuk to arrive in Nashville soon enough to become acclimated and make the most of his chance.
Plus, for the Predators to take care of a piece of business this early in the offseason is no small feat - especially when the player at the other end has the potential to make an immediate impact come this fall.
“It’s a really nice kind of feather in the cap for us where you're getting ahead of it a little bit, and this is a free agent signing that we think can play and contribute right away,” Kealty said. “In a lot of our offseason preparations, we did talk about, ‘OK, if we get Pinchuk, here’s how our lineup can look,’ and those sorts of things. So, to have that in place at this point certainly puts us a little bit ahead of the game going forward.”
