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Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) -  After the turbolences in the summer negotiations with CSKA Moscow, goalkeeper Konstantin Barulin (St. Louis Blues) got a new contract after he declared to be financially dissatisfied as we reported on August 27th. CSKA's president Vyacheslav Fetisov offered him a new contract, which terms weren't disclosed, and the goalie replied with a 22 saves win in the first CSKA match of the season against Dinamo Moscow, won in the overtime thanks to a doubly by Denis Parshin (Colorado Avalanche). Captain Konstantin Korneev (Montreal Canadiens) was on roster too and he had an assist, just like Alexander Nikulin (Phoenix Coyotes), while Maxim Goncharov (Phoenix Coyotes) has been pointless.

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National Hockey League (NHL) -  On July 1st Enver Lisin (Phoenix Coyotes) offered a qualifying offer, thus allowing the Yotes to hold the rights on him. It's still not clear where the forward, who scored 21 points in 48 games, will play in the 2009-10 season. KHL's Atlant Mytischi is reported to have offered him a 2-year deal, but in spite of that most likely he'll continue his career in the NHL. Also Alexander Nikulin (Phoenix Coyotes) got a qualifying offer. Let's remember that the center signed for CSKA Moscow about one month ago.

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National Hockey League (NHL) -  Most likely Alexander Nikulin (Phoenix Coyotes)’s return to the red army’s rows wasn’t unexpected for experts and fans. The center admitted to be very happy to be at home again. During this interview for CSKA’s press office he talked about pluses and minuses of his overseas experience and about his former line mates. (CSKA Press office interview translated by Alessandro Seren Rosso) READ MORE

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National Hockey League (NHL) -  "My contract ended and I decided to return back home. I don't want to sign a two-way contract and most likely they wouldn't offer me a one-way deal" - these the words of Alexander Nikulin (Phoenix Coyotes) after he signed a deal with CSKA Moscow. The young center played two seasons in America, mostly in the AHL farm teams of the Ottawa Senators and the Phoenix Coyotes. He did play in the NHL, but just three matches, without scoring a single point. READ MORE

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National Hockey League (NHL) -  Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) has been called up by Phoenix and made his season debut today against the Nashville Predators during the Coyotes 1:2 loss. The young center skated in 8 shifts, totalling about five minutes, but also being on the ice for one of the goals scored against Phoenix. Nikulin was traded to Phoenix by the Ottawa Senators earlier this season and has been playing for the San Antonio Rampage.

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National Hockey League (NHL) -  Phoenix Coyotes assistant general manager Brad Treliving said Wednesday he understood the risks in trading for Binghamton Senators center Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators), but that the potential payoff made the move worth it. (Press & Sun Bulletin article by Michael Sharp) READ MORE

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Continental Hockey League (KHL) -  The Ottawa Senators finally found a trading partner for Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators), sending the young talented center to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for defenseman Drew Fatta. Interestingly the Coyotes, like the Senators have been one of the last teams tending to draft Russian born players. The deal also appears to be at least in part the work of Nikulin's agents, who have strong relationships with the Coyotes and also represent the NHL club's Enver Lisin (Phoenix Coyotes) and used to represent another Phoenix drafted skated Dmitri Pestunov (Phoenix Coyotes) (who was likely drafted as high as he was because of this relationship between the Gretzky camp and at the time IMG agency). This largely represents a new beginning for Nikulin, who will hopefully be able to crack the lineup and skate along side Viktor Tikhonov (Phoenix Coyotes) and possibly Enver Lisin (Phoenix Coyotes), who is currently on an assignment to the AHL.

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Continental Hockey League (KHL) -  Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) and Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) were part of the latest and likely last large group of seven players that Ottawa assigned to Binghamton earlier today. The young players were expected to compete for spots, but at the same time were also widely expected to be assigned to the AHL farm club and be the top call up players.

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Continental Hockey League (KHL) -  Senators general manager Bryan Murray noted yesterday that the Senators still regard Zubov and fellow Russian Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) as developing players. That seemed to provide a hint about the team's plans for them. "He's improved, he's in really good shape," Murray said of Zubov. "Obviously, he's worked hard over the summer to get ready for camp and I'd like to think that in camp, he'll show up." (faceoff.com article) READ MORE

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June and July 2008 have been two busy months for Russian prospects. Many skated in North Americans development camps, some have changed teams, being or not at the centre of a controversial move, others are “simply” training hard for the upcoming season. Many players belong to the first group. As written earlier in our website, Dmitri Kosmachev (Columbus Blue Jackets) and Maxim Mayorov (Columbus Blue Jackets) skated with Columbus Blue Jackets, Maxim Goncharov (Phoenix Coyotes) and Viktor Tikhonov (Phoenix Coyotes) with the Phoenix Coyotes, Nikolai Lemtyugov (St. Louis Blues) with St. Louis, Igor Makarov (Chicago Blackhawks) with the Chicago Blackhawks, Ruslan Bashkirov (Ottawa Senators), Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) and Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) with Ottawa, Evgeni Grachev (New York Rangers) and Artem Anisimov (New York Rangers) with the New York Rangers, Semen Varlamov (Washington Capitals) and Nikita Kashirsky – a Russian player who spent the last seasons playing USA College hockey - in Washington, with Kugryshev in the stands, Fedor Fedorov (New Jersey Devils) with the New Jersey Devils, Nikolai Kulemin (Toronto Maple Leafs) with Toronto, Anton Khudobin (Minnesota Wild) with the Minnesota Wild, Vyacheslav Voinov (Los Angeles Kings) and Andrei Loktionov (Los Angeles Kings) with Los Angeles. The list might even grow as Montreal Canadiens are yet to release their rosters. (Exclusive article by Alessandro Seren Rosso for RussianProspects.com) READ MORE

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OTTAWA – 2007 draftee Ruslan Bashkirov (Ottawa Senators) is skating with his NHL team in the annual Development Camp. After a rocky season that seen him jumping from Kristall Saratov to Khimik Mytischi and its farm team the talented winger has been drafted in the CHL import draft by OHL’s Petersburgh Petes. His presence in NA seems to be a sign of his will to report there. He seemed to please Ottawa’s staff with his above average puck skills and his good motivation. Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) and Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) also reported to camp, but thus far they reportedly looked out of shape.

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From Faceoff.com NHL Notebook: The Ottawa Senators on Saturday recalled 22-year-old Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) from the Binghamton Senators of the American Hockey League. While GM/coach Bryan Murray said it's possible that Nikulin could play in either Game 3 or Game 4 of the Eastern Conference quarter-final against Pittsburgh - "there's a chance, depending on what happens," - he said the main reason for recalling Nikulin was to give him some exposure to the excitement of the NHL playoffs. Binghamton was officially eliminated from playoff contention on Friday. READ MORE

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Super League -  According to Allen Panzeri of the Ottawa Citizen, Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) and Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) are first in line to being called up to Ottawa for the playoffs. Here is what the newspaper had to say: Centre Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) figures to get the first call. The scouting reports indicate he's one of Binghamton's top players. Where Nikulin would figure in Ottawa's lines is a question, but Murray would ideally have to have him here for several days before the start of the playoffs to give him a chance to feel comfortable. If Binghamton's season ends without a playoff berth, several other players will be recalled, including centre Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) and defenceman Lawrence Nycholat, who has just been named an AHL all-star. READ MORE

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New photos has been added to the profiles of Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators), Denis Parshin (Colorado Avalanche), Nikolai Lemtyugov (St. Louis Blues), Sergei Shirokov (Vancouver Canucks), Nikita Nikitin (St. Louis Blues) and Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) profiles.

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...Winger Nick Foligno and Russian centres Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) and Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) appear to be battling for two available forward spots in Ottawa. If centre Mike Fisher doesn’t return from his groin injury by the season opener, the equation changes again....(Canada.com article) READ MORE

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After the disastrous Alexei Kaigorodov (Phoenix Coyotes) experiment of a year ago, the Ottawa Senators might have been excused for adopting a once burned, twice shy philosophy toward young Russian hockey prospects. Instead, the Senators are ecstatic at the training camp play of 20-year-old Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators) and 22-year-old Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators), who have arrived in North America with significantly less fanfare than Kaigorodov. (Canada.com article by Ken Warren) READ MORE

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Reports have surfaced from Russia that the reason behind Ilya Zubov (Ottawa Senators)’s release has been his imminent move to North America. The young forward is expected to sign with the Ottawa Senators in the next couple of weeks and be present at the club’s training camp. Zubov would be the third Russian to move to North America this summer and join Ottawa’s system. The others include Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) and Dmitri Megalinsky (Ottawa Senators), with the latter’s move still not confirmed, though widely expected.

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2 additional scouting reports added to Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators)'s profile. The two scouting reports are from the 2004-05 U20 Team Russia (made available from premium content) and the 2006-07 Super League playoffs. READ MORE

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CSKA Moscow forward Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) made the decision to travel to North America. In 2004 the young forward was drafted by Ottawa in the fourth round. The player, who on August 25th will turn 22, believes that not to go to Canada means that it may be too later after. CSKA head coach Vyacheslav Bykov underlined that his club hopes Alex makes the Senators. Although, if this does not happen, they will always be glad to welcome their player back. In any case, Nikulin is sure that he will not be back in Moscow this season. READ MORE

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Russian Super League -  Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) signed a rookie three year deal with the Ottawa Senators, confirming recent speculation that he will attend the NHL club’s training camp with the aim of earning a spot in the NHL. The young forward has been a national team member for two years, though he has struggled with some injuries this past season that lead to his absence from the 2007 World Championships where Russia took the bronze.

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Russian Super League -  There have not been any surprises in the Super League playoffs, with the top 8 clubs advancing to the playoff quarterfinals. The Avangard

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Russian Super League -  Forward Alexey Cherepanov shined for HC Avangard, scoring his 19th goal of the season, and also assisting on the game’s final tally with a great feed to Kuryanov from behind Vityaz net. The Denis Parshin (Colorado Avalanche) READ MORE

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Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators)'s game worn HC CSKA jersey added READ MORE

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Russian Super League -  HC Lokomotiv rolled as Alexei Mikhnov (Edmonton Oilers) and Ivan Nepriayev (Washington Capitals) each scored twice in the club’s 6:1 victory against HC Metallurg. Semen Varlamov (Washington Capitals) was in net for the Yaroslavl based club and also performed well, stopping 20 of the 21 faced shots. Losing to HC Avangard 2:3 did not stop CSKA’s Denis Parshin (Colorado Avalanche) from shining, as the young forward scored both of his club’s goals, with his Parshin READ MORE

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Russian Super League -  A detailed recap of the game between two of the strongest Russian Super League clubs. The game featured Super League's top forward Alexei Morozov, as well as a number of young NHL prospects. READ MORE

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Russian Super League -  An analysis of how and why young Russian forward prospects Denis Parshin (Colorado Avalanche), Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators), and Sergei Shirokov (Vancouver Canucks), as well as defensemen Kiril Lyamin (Ottawa Senators) and Anton Belov have developed into HC CSKA's leaders. READ MORE

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World Championships -  Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators), Konstantin Barulin (St. Louis Blues) today left Latvia without playing a single game for Russia. Barulin was constantly Russia’s third goaltender behind starter Zvyagin and backup Fomichev. Now the team had to make room for the return of the former starter Maxim Sokolov, who will likely start Russia’s next game against Sweden. Nikulin was consistently Russia’s back up player in case of injuries, but has not received any ice time. He did skate for the squad at the Sweden Games just a couple of weeks ago at the final leg of the EuroTour circuit.

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Russian Super League -  Metallurg crushes Lada 7:0 with NHL veteran Dmitri Yushkevich earning a hattrick, while Evgeny Malkin (Pittsburgh Penguins) scored a double and assisted on two more goals. Avangard blew out CSKA for the second game in a row, with only Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) getting on the board for CSKA. READ MORE

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Karjala Cup (EuroTour) -  Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) will make his debut on Russia’s national team, replacing injured center Ivan Nepriayev (Washington Capitals) on the roster. Nikulin will not garner a lot ice time, but this is a significant step in his career. Last year he successfully secured a spot in CSKA’s lineup. Now, the young forward is enjoying a breakout season this year, consistently skating on the club’s second and third lines. Since being drafted, Nikulin has thus far reinforced the Senators and RussianProspets scouting staffs’ belief in his ability. Reportedly, the Ottawa Senators Russian contact ranked the young center as a player with first round potential.

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Alexander Nikulin's (Ottawa Senators#122/2004) profile has been made available to everyone! READ MORE

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Russian Super League -  SEVERSTAL (Cherepovets) – METALLURG (Magnitogorsk) – 3:3 (1:1, 0:1, 2:1, 0:0).
Yuri Dobryshkin (Atlanta Thrashers) potted a couple of goals for Severstal. He scored the first one by converting with a precise wrist shot on a defensive error of a former Washington Capitals prospect Alexei Tezikov.

MOLOT-PRIKAMYE (Perm) — SALAVAT YULAYEV (Ufa) — 0:1 (0:0, 0:0, 0:1).
Igor Grigorenko (Detroit Red Wings) skated in his first game for Salavat Yulayev (Ufa) after being loaned to the Super League club by Lada (Togliatti). Former Pittsburgh Penguins 2nd round pick Alexander Zevakhin was another new addition to Salavat’s roster.

NEFTKHIMIK (Nizhnekamsk) – SPARTAK (Moscow) – 0:2 (0:0, 0:1, 0:1).
Spartak’s new top line Shalamai – Fedorov (Vancouver Canucks) – Koltsov (Pittsburgh Pengiuns) looked very strong in its first game. The line didn’t move mountains, but the did account for both of Spartak’s goals. On the first goal, Fedor Fedorov won the face off and passed the puck to Korsunov (Anaheim Mighty Ducks), who scored with a slap shot from the blue line. Towards the end of the game, Fedorov himself scored the first Super League goal of his career.

CSKA (Moscow) – LADA (Togliatti) – 2:0 (0:0, 0:0, 2:0).
Maxim Kondratiev (New York Rangers) skated in his first game for Lada since returning back from Hartford. The young blue liner impressed with his “Robocop” looking blue visor. Lada’s head coach was happy with his performance. From what may have been leftovers of playing in the AHL, Kondratiev was a physical force on the ice, hitting everything that moved. Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators) looked great centering CSKA’s second line. The young center assisted on both CSKA goals.

AK BARS (Kazan) – LOKOMOTIV (Yaroslavl) – 2:1 (0:0, 1:0, 1:1).
Enver Lisin (Phoenix Coyotes) didn’t get much more than 7 minutes of ice time during the game. This is largely because he is satisfying the two U20 player requirement for Ak Bars. Unlike Lisin, however, Kazan’s other “requirement” player Andrei Pervyshin (St. Louis) skated in regular shifts all game long.

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U20 U20 4 Nations Tourn. -  Premium Content: Performance Reports for Dmitri Chernykh (New York Islanders #48/2001), Denis Ezhov (Buffalo Sabres #114/2003), and Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators #122/2003).

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Russian Super League -  Molot-Prikame (Perm)

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Wingers Nikolai Zherdev (Columbus Blue Jackets) and Alexander Frolov (Los Angeles Kings) have a new center. After former New York Islanders prospect Dmitri Upper went down, being hampered by a pulled groin and strained abdomen muscles, CSKA’s management moved 19 year old Alexander Nikulin to center the two NHL forwards. Alexander Nikulin (Ottawa Senators #122/2004) has spent the majority of the 2004-05 season thus far skating on CSKA Moscow’s third and fourth lines. The young forward has been very mature and reliable on the ice, which did not go unnoticed by the coaches.

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After strong seasons, Alexander Nikulin and Anton Dubinin (both 2004 NHL Entry Draft) have been called up to Russia’s team, which is preparing for the U20 tournament in St. Petersburg. Nikulin has delivered a strong season with CSKA 2, spending most of the season as the club’s captain and amongst it’s leading scorers. Dubinin, a member of last year’s U18 squad at the WJC, broke out of CSKA’s second team into the Super League, splitting the season between the two teams. This is the first tournament for next year’s U20 squads.

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1st League (Junior) Playoffs -  1st League Quarterfinals Game 2
CSKA 2 vs. Severstal 2 - 5:4 (Best of Three Series 1:1)
Goals: 1:58 Shirokov (Lemtyugov) - 1:0; 13:48 Yushkov (Kryukov, Seregin) - 1:1 (pp); 30:05 Skachkov (Anshakov, Nikulin) - 2:1; 37:52 Kokuev (Nikitin, Bozhko) - 2:2; 41:27 Shtikov (Parshin, Nikulin) - 3:2; 44:51 Kulyash (Lemtyugov, Shirokov) - 4:2; 46:09 Nikulin (Parshin, Shitikov) - 5:2 (pp); 49:48 Bozhko (Sychev, Seregin) - 5:3 (pp); 51:55 Bruy (Sidorov) - 5:4;
Penalties: 34-26
Goalies: Borisov

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Performance grades for Alexander Nikulin (2004 NHL Entry Draft) have been added to 2004 NHL Entry Draft Prospect Rating Matrix.

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Alexander Nikulin's (2004 NHL Entry Draft) profile added to the RussianProspects 2004 NHL Entry Draft's Premium Coverage. You may access his profile by clicking on his name in the top right corner of this page. Note: You have to be a Premium Coverage member to view Alexander Nikulin's profile. If you are not currently a member, subscribe now!

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RussianProspects has learned that 2004 NHL Entry Draft prospect Alexander Nikulin broke his hand approximately a week ago. The young prospect should return to practicing in 10 days. Thus far, he has been enjoying a solid season with CSKA’s junior farm team, CSKA 2. A product of Molot Prikamye’s system, this is Nikulin’s first season in with CSKA Moscow.