Russian hockey player Marchenko exchanged from Columbus to Toronto

Forward Kirill Marchenko as a result of the exchange moved from the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Toronto Maple Leafs. This was reported by the press service of the National Hockey League (NHL).

The Russian striker has signed a six-year deal with the Maple Leafs, which will take effect from next season. Under the terms of the contract, the average annual salary of a hockey player will be $12.5 million. 26-year-old Marchenko will take second place in the list of the highest paid Russians in the NHL. The leader in this indicator is Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov, who earns $17.5 million per season.

In addition to Marchenko, Toronto received American forward Miles Wood and Latvian goalkeeper Elvis Merzlikins. In Columbus moved forwards Matthew Nuys from the United States and Canadian Stephen Lorenz, as well as Swedish defender Emil Andre. In addition, the Blue Jackets received a conditional selection in the second round of the 2027 NHL draft.

Kirill Marchenko has played for Columbus since 2022. During his career in the NHL, the forward scored 208 points (102 goals + 106 assists) in 292 games. In the last regular season, he scored 26 goals and became the best sniper of the team.

According to the results of the last season, Toronto with 78 points took last place in the standings of the Atlantic division and did not enter the play-off. In the summer, the Maple Leafs team was joined by a two-time Stanley Cup winner, Russian goalkeeper Sergey Bobrovsky. In the first match of the new regular season, the club will host the Montreal Canadiens on its ice.

Arnold Kabanov