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In what is already going to be a star-studded free agency class, a name we haven’t heard in a while could become available this offseason. Alexander Radulov is rumored to be thinking of making another NHL return.
If the name isn’t ringing a bell, Radulov was originally on the Nashville Predators. He looked like he was going to be a centerpiece for the future of the franchise when he scored 26 goals and 58 points in 2007-08. Then, that offseason, he signed a deal with the KHL‘s Salavat Yulaev Ufa despite the fact that he was still under contract with the Predators. He said he could get more money and better conditions while in Russia.
Four years later, Radulov made his first NHL ‘comeback.’ The Preds officially lifted his suspension and returned him to the team in March of 2012. He didn’t miss a beat, scoring seven points in nine games. Then, in the playoffs, he was suspended for a game for being caught at a bar at 5 a.m. before a game. The Predators decided not to re-sign him, and he went back to Russia.
He has been stellar while playing in the KHL. Last season with CSKA Moscow, he scored 71 points in 46 games. That would translate to 126 points in a full NHL season. He is close to some of the league records over there, and he is still only 29 years old.
He may be looking for a new challenge. He probably wants to see if he can be as dominant in the NHL as he is in Russia. He wants to do it before he is past his prime. The problem is, he is making a bad decision.
Radulov seems to be the kind of guy who wants what he wants and that’s the end of the conversation. He wanted to go to Russia, so he went despite the tension it caused with hockey leagues around the world. He wanted to stay out late despite having a playoff game that day, so that’s what he did. People with that kind of attitude end up losing fans, which means the team has no reason to keep them.
Radulov will have a lot of speculative interest, but how much will teams in the NHL be willing to pay him? He is making more than $9 million per season right now. Nobody in the NHL is going to pay him that. Nobody is going to pay him half of that.
Maybe he has grown up. Maybe Radulov doesn’t care about the money and just wants to make a stamp on the legacy of the league. Sometimes people start to think about their legacy when a big birthday comes, especially athletes who turn 30. Radulov will be 30 this offseason. He plans on making himself available. He should probably just stay in Russia. He can break all the records for the league. He can live his life under his own rules. He can keep himself away from the headaches of being under an NHL contract.
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