Tampa Bay Lightning Alumni Nikita Nesterov headed to the KHL
Former Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Nikita Nesterov has elected to continue his career in his native Russia and join one of the clubs in the KHL.
The Free Agency Period is a very volatile time in the National Hockey League. Players come and go from their various teams, causing all sorts of uprisings and celebrations among fans. Under normal circumstances, these movements involve a player moving from one NHL club to another. This is not the case when it comes to one former Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman.
According to his agent, Dan Milstein, former Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Nikita Nesterov has decided he would rather head home to his native Russia to continue his hockey career. Milstein says Nesterov intends to sign with one of the clubs in the KHL.
Nesterov was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 5th Round (148th Overall) in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. The now-24-year-old defenseman would spend two more seasons in his native Russia before making the jump to North America, where he would join the Lightning’s AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.
Tampa Bay Lightning
In his first season with the Lightning organization, Nesterov would spend a majority of his time with the Crunch, occasionally filling in with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Just one season later, the tide would turn and Nesterov found himself with a more permanent position here in the Sunshine State.
Unfortunately, things seemed to go downhill rather quickly for Nesterov. As his production started to slip, he would find himself as a healthy scratch far more often than any player would hope.
Then, on January 26, Tampa Bay Lightning Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman decided to trade Nesterov to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Jonathan Racine and a 6th Round Pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.
For those of you who are interested, Yzerman took the 6th Round Pick given to the Lightning by the Canadiens and used it to select forward Cole Guttman at the 2017 NHL Draft.
Following his trade to the Canadiens, Nesterov was able to suit up for a total of 13 games. In this amount of time, he would score a goal and four assists for a total of five points. Unfortunately for the Canadiens, Nesterov doesn’t seem to have any plans of sticking around.
At the conclusion of the 2016-17 season, Nesterov was set to become an Unrestricted Free Agent. If what Nesterov’ agent says is true, which it more than likely is, his time in the NHL may have come to a close. (At least for the time being, that is.)
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Setting aside his on-ice play, Nikita Nesterov was well liked, both on and off the ice. Nesterov had a good relationship with his teammates as well as his fans. We here at Bolts By The Bay wish Nikita Nesterov the best of luck as he prepares to embark on the next phase of his hockey journey. May the KHL bring you the success you are in search of.