The Maple Leafs have made a rumour a reality by signing Russian right wing Ilya Mikheyev to an NHL contract.
While Mikheyev turns 25 this fall, his birthday is after September 15, which means under the CBA, he’s still only eligible to sign a one-year ELC which has to be a two-way deal and is capped at $925,000. This contract will expire with Mikheyev an RFA with arbitration rights.
Mikheyev is listed at 6’2” and 194 lb, which makes him about Egor Korshkov’s size, give or take a couple of inches of height. Much will be made of the pair of them as some “size” the Leafs are apparently in need of, and while they are both taller than all of the Leafs current right wingers — who all claim to be six feet tall — both of these players are smaller and less powerful physically than Auston Matthews, height notwithstanding.