A lunch in Miami helped Kuzmenko decide on the Vancouver Canucks.
Before even signing in free agency, Ilya Mikheev was contributing to the Vancouver Canucks.
The speedy winger signed a four-year contract with the Canucks on Wednesday worth $4.75 million annually. He previously helped in their efforts to sign the other Russian winger they signed on Wednesday, Andrei Kuzmenko.
“I talked to Kuzi in Miami,” Mikheev said during a Zoom call Thursday morning. “We were in Miami at the same time and had lunch. He asked me about the NHL and asked me about his options, [the offers] he has. And I tell him that Vancouver is the best option for him.
“He was thinking a lot about Vancouver and another team, but that’s my take on him — I told him Vancouver was the best option for Cousy.”
That’s a pretty impressive assist for Mikheev without even playing a game for the Canucks. Knowing that Kuzmenko would be there, along with Russian Vasily Podkolzin, made the Canucks a more comfortable landing spot for him as well. He can help ease the transition for Kuzmenko, who has had a bit of a rough go of it in his first year.
“I played two and a half years in Toronto, probably with only one Russian,” Mikheev said. “When I came to the NHL, just the first year, having Russian guys was good because my English was bad. You train, of course, you talk to guys, at the rink, in the restaurants outside the rink, and that’s good for you.
“Now that you know English better, it’s just a bonus when you have Russian guys.”
Mikheev said he came to appreciate Vancouver as a team and as a city when the Toronto Maple Leafs played them so much during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season, when the Leafs and Canucks were in the same division.
“I saw this team play, I saw the rink and maybe no fans, but — it was my first free agency and it’s a long decision,” Mikheev said. “We talked to my family, everyone, and Vancouver was the best option. I like the city, I like the team, I like how they built this team.”
After playing in Toronto, Mikheev clearly has no problem playing in the hockey-crazed Canadian market. He joked that he knows the importance of pressure after his time with the Leafs and immediately said he feels a “responsibility” to play well for fans who are so passionate.
Mikheev made a breakthrough last year, scoring 21 goals in just 53 games. He believes he can continue to score with Vancouver.
“I worked a lot in the summer before last year,” Mikheev said. “I understand more hockey in the NHL, it’s more experience. Everything was easier for me – playing, training – and I feel more comfortable. And, of course, I understand my mistakes.”
It helped that he was no longer recovering from a nasty injury where his wrist was cut by the blade of a skate.
“I had two injuries my freshman year, first I cut my wrist,” he said. “It’s tough. It’s not easy because you cut tendons … but I understand that I just had to work hard and come back stronger. Because I’m a professional and I want to play.”
Although Mikheev has yet to play a full NHL season, they’ve largely been accidental injuries — a cut wrist, an awkward crosscheck into the boards and a broken thumb. Here’s hoping Mikheev can avoid similar bad luck with the Canucks.
If so, Mikheev could be in line for a career year and maybe pick up a few more assists with Kuzmenko.
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