Three-time world champion Alexei Tereshchenko shared his thoughts on goaltender Ilya Nabokov’s move from Metallurg Magnitogorsk to the Colorado Avalanche.
“In the last two seasons in the KHL, Nabokov hasn’t looked his most confident, to say the least. Is he leaving for North America too soon?” Tereshchenko noted. “But we don’t know all the behind-the-scenes issues of his time at Metallurg. Let the guy go, try his luck, and break through. The more Russian players there, the better. Sure, the league loses players, but that means we need to develop new ones.”
The veteran forward stressed a different concern: “The real issue is that players leave for free. The club that developed him gets nothing. There’s no agreement between the KHL and NHL – only gentleman’s agreements that we respect contracts. But essentially, guys go there without any compensation.”
“Here in the KHL, we sell young players from one club to another for money, but we let them go to North America for nothing,” Tereshchenko added. “I’m not saying we should ban departures, but I firmly believe that the academies and clubs that developed these hockey players should receive financial compensation.”
