Sasha Chmelevski’s first attempt at playing pro hockey in North America didn’t go particularly well and when his contract with the Sharks expired in 2022, he opted to head back home to play in the KHL; San Jose tendered a qualifying offer to retain his rights at that time. However, after a strong couple of seasons there, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link) that teams are showing interest in acquiring his rights and that Chmelevski’s agent has been granted permission to try to facilitate a swap. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic notes (Twitter link) that the Canucks are among the teams showing interest.
The 24-year-old center was a sixth-round pick by San Jose back in 2017 (185th overall) out of OHL Ottawa. Chmelevski was a productive player in his final two years with the 67’s, collecting 151 points in 124 games over that stretch.
Chmelevski spent the majority of his entry-level deal with San Jose at the AHL level where he posted respectable numbers, collecting 35 goals and 53 assists in 122 games with the Barracuda. Meanwhile, while he didn’t score at the NHL level in 24 games with the Sharks, he did post ten assists despite spending a lot of time in the bottom six.
But Chmelevski’s decision to return to the KHL with a shot at more guaranteed money and a big role has paid off. He’s in his second season with Salavat Yulaev and currently sits tenth in league scoring with 21 goals and 22 assists in 49 games. Based on the trade interest, it appears there are at least some teams that are open to giving him an NHL look next season.
With San Jose in the midst of a rebuild, it’s a bit surprising that they don’t seem to be one of those teams. Otherwise, they’d be trying to work out an agreement with Chmelevski themselves. But with multiple teams showing interest, they might be able to pick up a decent draft pick or prospect for his rights which is still not a bad outcome for a player who opted to go overseas two seasons ago.