3:45 PM: An official release from Torpedo shed some light on the reasoning behind the decision to sign Khabibulin. In a (translated) statement, Larionov did appear to mention the idea that this signing would help Torpedo from a financial and popularity perspective, specifically pointing to Spartak Moscow’s recent signing of Ilya Kovalchuk.
But in addition to that side of the equation, Torpedo does claim to have legitimate sporting reasons to sign the soon-to-be-51-year-old veteran. With former San Jose Sharks goalie Alexei Melnichuk now off to Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, the team has a legitimate need for a third goalie. So they’ve signed Khabibulin to fill that role.
2:10 PM: In an extremely surprising move, four-time NHL All-Star and 2004 Stanley Cup champion Nikolai Khabibulin, 50, has decided to resume his playing career and sign a one-year contract with the KHL’s Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod.
It’s been an active day for Torpedo, who already boasts two quality NHL prospects in Bogdan Konyushkov (MTL) and Anton Silayev (potential 2024 top-10 pick), alongside a former AHLer in Madison Bowey. Khabibulin was serving on head coach Igor Larionov’s staff as the goalie coach, but now he has elected to throw his hat in the ring as a player.
Torpedo doesn’t appear to have an immediate need for goaltending, as starter Adam Húska and backup Ivan Kulbakov each have strong numbers this season. Neither goalie appears to have suffered an injury that would necessitate such a move, either. It’s possible this signing was made with economic considerations since Khabibulin is a popular former star NHLer.
Khabibulin won Olympic gold in 1992 with the unified team of former Soviet republics and was named the best goaltender at the 2002 Olympics, helping Russia win the bronze medal along the way.
The veteran of nearly 800 NHL games remains a popular star player and could generate Torpedo a significant amount of attention should he end up playing games as part of this contract.