The Calgary Flames signed defenseman Nikita Nesterov to a one-year, $700,000 contract, the team announced Friday.
Nesterov spent the last three seasons with CSKA Moscow of the KHL. As the club's captain in 2019-20, he finished first among its blue-liners with 23 points in 53 games.
The Tampa Bay Lightning selected Nesterov in the fifth round of the 2011 draft. He suited up in 119 regular-season games with the Bolts from 2014 to 2017 and had a brief 13-game stint with the Montreal Canadiens in 2017.
He's totaled 33 points in 132 career NHL games, primarily in a third-pairing role.
Nesterov has represented Russia on the international stage numerous times, winning a gold medal at the 2018 Olympics.
The 5-foot-11, 191-pound rearguard will likely serve a depth role on the Flames' blue line. Here's how Calgary's top six projects to shake out:
| LD | RD |
|---|---|
| Mark Giordano | Rasmus Andersson |
| Noah Hanifin | Chris Tanev |
| Juuso Valimaki | Oliver Kylington |
The Flames lost several defensemen in free agency: TJ Brodie, Erik Gustafsson, and Derek Forbort all signed elsewhere, and Travis Hamonic and Michael Stone remain unsigned.
Nesterov and Alex Petrovic are the team's most experienced depth options.
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