Brendan Leipsic Joins SKA St. Petersburg
Brendan Leipsic, a 31-year-old left winger from Winnipeg, has officially joined SKA St. Petersburg for the remainder of the ongoing KHL season, the club revealed on Sunday. This will mark Leipsic’s second stint with the St. Petersburg team, having previously suited up for them during the 2023-24 season.
The winger has been without a contract since last season’s conclusion and has been a player in the KHL since 2020, representing various teams including CSKA Moscow and Sibir Novosibirsk.
Leipsic’s NHL Career
Leipsic, who rose through the junior hockey ranks with the Portland Winterhawks in the WHL, was drafted in the third round (89th overall) by the Nashville Predators in the 2012 NHL Draft. His NHL career spanned from 2014 to 2020, during which he accumulated 59 points and received 53 penalty minutes across 187 games with several franchises, including the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Washington Capitals.
However, his contract with the Capitals was terminated in May 2020 due to the fallout from his sexist remarks in an online chat that attracted significant media attention.
SKA’s Roster Enhancements
Joining Leipsic in SKA are notable ex-NHL players such as Nikita Zaitsev and Rocco Grimaldi, as well as Nikolai Goldobin, who was recently claimed off waivers after his tenure with Spartak Moscow. Despite facing challenges this season, with SKA currently positioned eighth in the Western Conference with only 10 wins out of 23 games, the team looks forward to bolstering its lineup in hopes of improving its standing.
New Additions to the Team
In another development, Igor Larionov Jr., a 26-year-old American-Russian center, has also signed a one-year contract with SKA, further enriching the team’s roster under the guidance of Hall-of-Famer Igor Larionov.
