Alex Galchenyuk: a first point in his first KHL game

At the beginning of the summer, Alex Galchenyuk seemed destined to spend another year in North America. He signed a one-year contract with the Coyotes on July 1, which seemed to guarantee him at least one spot in the AHL.

However, due to legal troubles, Chucky’ s contract was terminated by the Coyotes, making him a free agent. And not surprisingly, interest in North America was visibly slim.

That’s why he decided to play in the KHL with SKA St. Petersburg (Matvei Michkov’s team) this year.

And today was his first game in Russia. For the occasion, he was at the center of the first trio (while Michkov was left on the sidelines). In the first period, he took a hooking penalty, but in the second period, he picked up his first point.

Against all odds, it was by playing a little physical and taking the disc from his opponent that he was able to score. He then passed the puck on to Sergey Tolchinsky, who scored with a well-taken shot.

1ST KHL POINT FOR GALCHENYUK TIES IT ‼️
🚨 Sergei Tolchinsky #hcSKA
🍎 Alex Galchenyuk
1-1 #KHL pic.twitter.com/OF642BZkAs

– Field hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) September 2, 2023

In addition to scoring his first point, the former CH player also got his first taste of victory in Russia in his first game, as his team won 2-1 against Dinamo Moscow.

It’s a good feeling, though.

Galchenyuk may be a step ahead of a lot of players in Russia, but we’re talking about a professional league with some excellent players. He’s one of the best field hockey players in the KHL, but it’s not like Connor McDavid is going to play in Ireland’s eighth division, for example.

That said, we wish Galchenyuk every success with his new team. It would be an encouraging sign for him if he were able to revive his career a bit in Russia, after all.

He may never come back to play in North America, but if he finds his feet in Russia, that’s no bad thing either.