"Unlucky." How the rising Russian star debuted in the NHL

Russian striker “Chicago Blackhawks” Roman Kanzerov on the night of September 30 made his debut in the National hockey League (NHL). In the first five matches, he failed to perform well. However, in the next two games, the forward has already scored three goals, marking a double.

RBC Sport is about Kantserov’s career and performance in the KHL, as well as his prospects in the NHL.

Breakthrough in KHL

Kanzerov made his debut in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) in January 2023. In his first match for the main team of Metallurg, he played against Novosibirsk Siberia. From the next season, the striker was entrenched in the main team of the club.

Kantserov’s first full season in the KHL was the 2023/24 season. In the regular season, he played 53 matches, scored eight goals and made seven assists.

The main achievement of the season for the young striker was the Gagarin Cup. Metallurg won the KHL playoffs, and Kantserov became part of the championship team. In 23 playoff games, he scored 13 points - four goals and nine assists.

The following season, his performance increased. In the regular season 2024/25, Kanzerov scored 38 points in 47 matches, scoring 13 goals and making 25 assists. In the playoffs, he played six games and scored two points.

KHL's best sniper

The most productive in Kantserov’s career was the 2025/26 season. In the regular season, the forward at the age of 21 spent 63 matches, scored 36 goals and made 28 assists. Kanzerov with 36 goals became the best sniper of the regular championship of the KHL.

The last time such a young player topped the list of snipers in the season 2018/19: then it managed 21-year-old Kirill Kaprizov. Since then, Kantserov became only the third Russian who was the best sniper of the league (before him, the achievement was set by Dmitry Yashkin and twice Kaprizov).

Over the course of last season, foreign media and NHL scouts began to draw parallels between Kancerov and Kaprizov, now playing for Minnesota.

Metallurg finished the regular championship in first place, but in the playoffs lost to Kazan Ak Bars in the semifinal series. Kanzerov in 15 matches of the Gagarin Cup scored eight points - four goals and four assists.

NHL Draft and Chicago Blackhawks

Kanzerov was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2023 NHL draft in the second round under the overall number 44. The Russian got the opportunity to continue his career in the NHL three years after the selection in the draft.

Chicago signed a three-year rookie contract with him in May 2026. The NHL included Kanzerov in the list of 26 most interesting young players of the season 2026/27. The forecast noted that the forward should get a place in one of the two leading threes of Chicago.

In the fantasy ranking of newcomers to the NHL, the Kanzerov took sixth place. Daily Faceoff and bookmakers included Kantserov among the top ten candidates for the Calder Trophy prize, which is awarded to the league's best rookie.

How to Start the NHL Season

The start of the championship was not easy for the forward. The first puck in the regular season, he scored only in the sixth match - against the Carolina Hurricanes, in which Chicago lost 2-5. The Russian could not distinguish in the first five games.

The 22-year-old newcomer of the team on the night of October 14 issued a double in the match against Pittsburgh (5: 3). So the forward scored three goals in the last two matches of the season.

Kanzerov after the first goal in the NHL admitted that in previous matches he was simply not lucky. He also said that with each game he feels more confident and better understands how to act on the ice.

Chicago Blackhawks head coach Jeff Blashill on October 12 noted the progress of the Russian forward in the first six games of the NHL.

“He is a very smart, very talented hockey player. I saw glimpses of his capabilities even in the first two games, but then his game got better and better, the NHL club coach said.

Metallurg head coach Alexander Razin praised Kantserov, noting that while the forward makes unusual mistakes due to excitement.

He was good, he showed himself in pre-season games, he goes to Chicago in the first link. But he's got excitement, he's taking unusual losses. If there is trust, everything will work out, Razin said.

Razin recalled that the striker also started in the KHL: “For a long time I could not score, because of this I was very worried.” Then he burst, and he rose psychologically. Now in the NHL it was the same situation, he said.

Former coach of the Russian national team Ilya Vorobyov on the You-Tube channel “This is hockey, brother” noted that it is easier for the striker to play on the flank.

He had a very cool athletic anger and audacity here [in the KHL]. - RBC. He was expected to move them there and not look at the names he was playing with. But it seems to be a process of adaptation. I think when he plays with the edge it will be better for him to start. It is clear that we are used to seeing Roma like this in recent years and want to see him like this. But there seems to be a little bit of adaptation. We hope that it will not be too long, Vorobyov said.