by Blain Potvin, Staff Writer, All Habs Hockey Magazine

HALIFAX, NS. — There have been rumours that Marc Bergevin has had interest in signing SKA St. Petersburg center Vadim Shipachyov for the past two months. He is a player who has never played in North America and never drafted in to the NHL, leaving many fans on this side of the Atlantic with many questions about him. So who is this player and why is Bergevin interested in him? What can he provide the Canadiens?

Vadim Shipachyov is a six foot, 187 pound, 29 year-old Russian born and trained centre. His defensive skills are not his strength, yet he is capable enough to play on a secondary penalty killing unit. He is more renowned as a playmaker with an accurate but underused shot, coupled with a fluid and fast skating stride and highly developed skills in the faceoff circle. He projects at being a top six forward in the NHL this coming season.

In his last two seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), Shipachyov has recorded 114 points in 103 games in the regular season and 37 pts in 37 games in the playoffs. In international play, at the 2016 IIHF Men’s World Hockey Championships (WHC) being held in St. Petersburg, Russia, which Shipachyov has seemingly used as his coming out party, he has scored 16 points in his first eight games.

Shipachyov also provides leadership and experience. He was the assistant captain when SKA St. Petersburg won the Gagarin Cup in 2015 and was the Captain when SKA fell in the Western Conference Final in 2016. He is also the assistant captain for Team Russia at this year’s WHC, and also holds a Silver Medal and a Gold Medal from the two previous WHC.

IIHF World Championship 2016 Scoring Leaders

Player	Team	Pos	GP	G	A	PTS
SHIPACHYOV Vadim		F	9	5	11	16
LAINE Patrik		F	9	7	5	12
PANARIN Artemi		F	9	5	7	12
GRANLUND Mikael		F	9	4	8	12
DADONOV Yevgeni		F	9	5	6	11
BRASSARD Derick		F	8	4	6	10
STONE Mark		F	8	4	6	10
KOIVU Mikko		F	9	4	6	10
JOKINEN Jussi		F	9	3	7	10
HALL Taylor		F	8	6	3	9

But does Vadim Shipachyov want to leave the KHL to join an NHL team? It would seem to be the case as he has officially terminated his KHL contract with SKA St. Petersburg this offseason making himself a free agent and reportedly intends on moving to the NHL according to  sources in Russia.

Leading scorer Shipachyov now has 16 (5+11) pts, as much as Crosby had in 2006 #87 #TeamRussia Shipachyov intends to move to the #NHL

— Igor Eronko (@IgorEronko) May 19, 2016

We can see now why Bergevin would be interested in Shipachyov. He provides an instant upgrade in offensive talent, he is in his prime and has leadership qualities. And, should he wish to choose to play in Montreal, the Canadiens can provide him a top six position immediately. He should also feel more comfortable and integrate with the team faster as there are many familiar faces from Team Russia, as well as several Russian speaking players.

If he were to sign in Montreal, his arrival could signal larger moves being made in the summer. And, Bergevin is capable of offering both Shipachyov and his KHL and WHC linemate Evgenii (Yevgeni) Dadonov an NHL contract as the need for scoring goes beyond adding one top six forward, Montreal’s roster is in search of two to complete a legitimate group. This type of aggressive move could be what is needed to land the most sought after European free agent. It can also signal a busy summer of trades, perhaps something as drastic as a trade using the teams newly found center depth in a package to upgrade the team further.

Even if nothing else is done, the addition of this level of talent would add more scoring to a team in desperate need of more goals.

At 29 years old, Shipachyov would is an unrestricted free agent and not bound to any limitations in term or salary that his former teammate and Calder Trophy nominee Artemi Panarin faced. So the question is, now that Shipachyov is showcasing himself internationally and the demand for his services have gone up, will Bergevin offer an attractive enough package to lure him to join La Sainte Flannelle?

UPDATE

Elliot Freidman on Calgary’s Sportsnet 960
On Vadim Shipachyov:

“He’s not coming. No, I tweeted it out earlier in the week, and I’ve been able to get some more intel about it. I spoke to somebody over there in Saint Petersburg. He’s got another year left on his contract. They can’t get him out of it.

“I’ve heard from another source that it’s going to cost about $700,000 U.S. to buy him out of that contract, and I just don’t think anybody is going to do it. I think he’s not coming.

“And the other I heard was they’re trying to extend him… A year is a long time. I don’t know what his future is, but I’ve been told he can’t come this year because he still owes time there.”

https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/735158255438172160

https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/735159033603235841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

So, unless the Canadiens, or any other NHL team is willing to pay the fee to SKA St-Petersburg, Shipachyov will be spending another season in the KHL. And may just be a ploy to get more than the $700,000USD owed them in a transfer payment. If this is the case, this saga may continue well into the summer.