Still heartbroken Colorado Avalanche fans will have to wait a bit longer to see 2023 first-round pick Mikhail Gulyayev in North America.
According to the Denver Gazette’s Evan Rawal, Gulyayev signed a two-year extension keeping him in the KHL until 2028.
Avs first round pick won’t be making his way to North America. https://t.co/eSMeRW5HAQ
— Evan Rawal (@evanrawal) May 29, 2026
That’s not a shocking situation considering the path facing the 21-year-old at the moment. Gulyayev appeared in 54 games with the Avangard Omsk this season, scoring a goal and adding two assists. He actually fared better in the KHL playoffs, seeing action in 17 games, notching five points.
The numbers don’t jump off the screen, but they don’t exactly translate into an NHL-ready defenseman. The book on Gulyayev is that he’s an offensive defenseman. As such, he would need to show better numbers.
That said, the best thing for Gulyayev’s development at the moment is actually getting regular playing time in a highly competitive league like the KHL. If Gulyayev were to come to North America at this point, there’s just no room for him in the NHL. He would slam into the ridiculous Avalanche depth chart.
In the best of cases, he’d be a regular in the AHL with the Colorado Eagles. While that’s not a bad thing at all, both the player and organization would like to see him get more seasoning in the KHL before jumping to the North American game.
Avalanche in no rush to bring Gulyayev over to North America
One of the interesting things about draft picks is the sign-by date attached to them. Most prospects come with a limited window by which teams have to sign them to an NHL contract or lose their contracts.
That situation generally applies to North American prospects drafted out of Canada or the United States.
In the case of Gulyayev, he was drafted while playing in Russia. As such, those rules don’t apply to him. For instance, players drafted out of the NCAA have a specific window to sign with the team holding their rights once they leave school.
If they don’t sign, such players become UFAs. At that point, they can sign with any team they choose.
That was sort of the case of TJ Hughes. He was undrafted and finished his tenure in the NCAA. So, he was free to sign with whoever he wanted.
In Gulyayev’s case, that will not be the case. Since he does not have a specific date attached to his selection, the Avalanche can take their sweet time to sign him.
Ultimately, there’s a chance his KHL club could allow Gulyayev to attend camp in North America for something like a rookie camp or some summer training program. But beyond that, he’ll be suiting up in the KHL for the foreseeable future.
Incidentally, PuckPedia shows the Avalanche have several Russian prospects in a similar situation as Gulyayev. So, it remains to be seen if we’ll ever see any of said prospects in North America any time soon.
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