Former Rangers 1st-round bust returns from Russia, signs with Canucks
Vitaly Kravtsov is returning to North America after the most productive season of his professional hockey career. The former New York Rangers bust signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Vancouver Canucks after two solid seasons in the KHL.
The 25-year-old forward established career highs across the board offensively with 27 goals, 31 assists and 58 points in 66 games. He helped Traktor Chelyabinsk advance to the Gagarin Cup Final, where it lost the best-of-7 series in five games to Lokomotiv. Kravtsov was second on Traktor with six goals in 19 postseason games.
Kravtsov scored 18 goals and finished with 34 points in 55 games with Traktor in 2023-24.
“Vitali had a strong season in the KHL and was an impact player for his team,” Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said in a statement. “In his two seasons in Russia, he has worked hard on his game, and we look forward to seeing where Vitali is at when he comes to training camp in Penticton.”
Kravtsov played 16 games and had two points (one goal, one assist) for the Canucks after they acquired the mercurial former first-round pick in a trade with the Rangers on Feb. 25, 2023.
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Vitali Kravtsov had tortured Rangers tenure, gets another NHL chance
The Rangers selected Kravtsov No. 9 overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, but he played just 48 games during his tumultuous tenure with the organization. He was the first of three first-round picks for the Blueshirts that year. None remain with the Rangers after they traded K’Andre Miller (No. 22 overall) to the Carolina Hurricanes this summer. Defenseman Nils Lundkvist (No. 28 overall) was traded to the Dallas Stars before the 2022-23 season.
Kravtsov bucked the Rangers at every turn, especially the times they assigned him to Hartford of the American Hockey League for seasoning. Chris Drury, then the assistant general manager of the Rangers, called out Kravtsov in 2019 for quitting on the team. That led to more acrimony. And the talented forward bounced back between Russia and North America for several years.
The Canucks are hoping that his third — and most recent — return to his native Russia finally has him on the path to success in the NHL.
Kravtsov had four points (two goals, two assists) in 20 games with the Rangers in 2020-21, a season he split between the NHL and KHL — to the organization’s chagrin. He was back in the NHL two years later and managed six points (three goals, three assists) in 28 games before the Rangers decided they had seen enough and traded him to the Canucks.
There’s no questioning Kravtsov’s talent. But it will be interesting to see how he’s matured since his his Rangers days, or even his last venture in the NHL with Vancouver. The two-way contract limits the Canucks’ risk, and gives them the opportunity to properly evaluate where Kravtsov sits at this moment in what’s likely his final chance in the NHL.
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