Wild are taking an intelligent gamble on Maxim Shabanov

Earlier this week, the Minnesota Wild signed Russian forward Maxim Shabanov to a one-year, 1.6 million dollar deal. Shabanov spent four seasons in the KHL before playing his first NHL season with the New York Islanders last year. 

Michael Russo of The Athletic recently wrote that the Wild are hoping Shabanov can fill a top-nine forward role next season. At first glance, this may look like wishful thinking, but I think taking a gamble on Shabanov is well worth the risk for the Wild.

Shabanov is certainly built like a top-six skilled forward, listed at 5-foot-9 and only 167 pounds. However, Shabanov’s first NHL season doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence in his ability to be an offensive difference-maker. In 44 games with the Islanders last season, Shabanov scored 5 goals and 18 points. Shabanov’s .409 points per game put him on pace for 34 points across an 82-game season.

However, there is cause for optimism about Shabanov's offensive potential in the NHL.  According to Moneypuck, Shabanov’s 1.3 assists/per60 was fourth best among Islander forwards, and 8 of Shabanov’s 13 assists were primary assists. Shabanov also finished with an on-ice goals percentage of 51.7%, which was seventh best among Islander forwards.

According to HockeyReference, Shabanov averaged only 13:41minutes of ice time per night for the Islanders, 11th most among Islander forwards. He also saw a little time on the power play, averaging 1:32 minutes of power play time per night, which was tenth among Islander forwards.

The offensive numbers from year one in the NHL aren’t gaudy, but Shabanov has a track record of producing offensively in the KHL. In his final KHL season in 2024-2025, Shabanov scored 23 goals and 67 points in 65 KHL games, good for a 1.03 points-per-game mark at 24 years old. Shabanov also added 10 goals and 20 points in 21 playoff games for Chelyabinsk Traktor in the 2024-2025 season.

Across three full seasons in the KHL, Shabanov scored 66 goals and 148 points in 196 games.

Shabanov’s numbers in the KHL indicate plenty of offensive talent. His KHL numbers look very similar to a couple of other former KHL players who came to the NHL at a similar age and became solid top-nine contributors.

One similar player is Andrei Kuzmenko. During his final KHL season at age 25 in 2021-2022, Kuzemko scored 20 goals and 53 points in 45 games for SKA St. Petersburg, good for 1.18 points per game. 

Kuzmenko had a breakout rookie season in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks, but he has battled some injuries since. When healthy, he’s been a solid contributor for a handful of teams. Across his career, Kuzmenko has scored .67 points per game in 271 NHL games.

Similarly, Ilya Mikheyev was 24 in his final KHL season with Avangard Omsk in 2018-2019. In that season, Mikheyev scored 23 goals and 45 points in 62 games, for .73 points per game. Mikheyev doesn’t have quite the offensive track record of Shabanov or Kuzmenko in the KHL, but he’s carved out a solid career in the NHL, topping out at 18 goals and 36 points in 77 games for the Chicago Blackhawks last season.  He's put up .47 points per game in 427 NHL games.

Based on his KHL numbers and his first NHL season, there is certainly reason to believe that Shabanov can be a solid top-nine forward as the Wild hope. I'd be curious to see Shabanov get some time on the power play and in a top-six role, where his KHL numbers suggest there could be more offense to be unlocked. 

With flashes of skill like this, it’s hard not to dream about Shabanov’s offensive potential.

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