After being unable to land a spot with Detroit in training camp, veteran winger P.A. Parenteau has signed a one year with Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg, the KHL team announced. He skated in four games with the Red Wings in the preseason, tallying one assist but the team instead opted to sign winger David Booth before the season got underway.
Last year, the 34-year-old spent the majority of the season with New Jersey (after being claimed off waivers from the Islanders at the end of training camp) where he fared relatively well, recording 13 goals and 14 assists in 59 games. He was dealt to the Predators at the trade deadline to serve as extra depth but he was a frequent healthy scratch, particularly in the postseason where he played in just five of 22 games.
Although it looks like his NHL playing days may now be over, Parenteau has still had a successful NHL career. He was largely an afterthought after being a ninth rounder of Anaheim back in 2001 and it took him until 2010 before he became an NHL regular. Despite that, he has managed to put up four seasons of 40 points or more, including a 67-point campaign with the Islanders in 2011-12. Overall, he has played in 491 regular season games with eight different teams, tallying 114 goals and 182 assists.
As is the case with many veterans heading across the pond, it will be interesting to see if Parenteau garners any Olympic consideration. He isn’t on Canada’s entry for the Karjala Cup later this month but a strong start to his KHL season would certainly put him on their radar as productive forwards are in short supply with NHL players not being allowed to participate in the Olympics this time around.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.