American-born Russian winger Nikolai Kovalenko, 25, has signed a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow, the KHL club announced on social media on Saturday.

The move comes nine days after CSKA acquired Kovalenko’s KHL rights from Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in exchange for recently-signed ex-NHLer Egor Sokolov.

Kovalenko was born in Raleigh, N.C. while his father, Andrei Kovalenko, played for the Carolina Hurricanes. He grew up in Moscow and Yaroslavl, and played in 304 KHL regular-season and playoff games for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, Ak Bars Kazan and Torpedo between 2017 and 2024, recording 157 points.

At the end of the 2023-24 KHL season, Kovalenko, who had already signed a two-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche, was assigned to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. He made his NHL debut in that year's playoffs when he was called up to play in two games for the Avalanche.

Kovalenko split the 2024-25 season with Colorado and the San Jose Sharks, recording 20 points and 16 penalty minutes in 57 games. Midway through the season, he was involved in a trade that saw goaltenders Alexandar Georgiev and Mackenzie Blackwood head in opposite directions.

Two Days After Signing In KHL, Sokolov Traded For NHL Free Agent Two days after signing with CSKA Moscow, Russian winger Egor Sokolov has been traded to Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, the CSKA club announced on Thursday.

CSKA, colloquially known in North America as the Red Army team, is a perennial powerhouse in Russia, but after back-to-back Gagarin Cup titles in 2022 and 2023, has been knocked out in the first round of the playoffs each of the past two years.

The team has made numerous moves in recent weeks, including signing Sokolov and then trading him for Kovalenko’s rights two days later. The team has also signed goaltender Spencer Martin and acquired Denis Zernov from Metallurg Magnitogorsk in exchange for New York Islanders prospect Ruslan Iskhakov. CSKA also has under contract for 2025-26 ex-NHLers Denis Guryanov, Nikita Nesterov, Nikita Okhotyuk and Vladislav Kamenev.

Photo © Steven Bisig-Imagn Images.

Goalie Spencer Martin Signs In KHL Canadian goaltender Spencer Martin, 30, has signed a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow, the KHL club announced on Wednesday.