There aren’t many NHL fans familiar with Igor Ozhiganov. Toronto Maple Leafs supporters may be the only ones interested that the defenseman has been traded.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are the only team that the longtime professional player, Igor Ozhiganov, dressed for in the NHL.
Prior to playing in North America, the 27-year-old d-man played eight seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) in Russia.
Ozhiganov played one season with Toronto and has returned home to play for Ak Bars Kazan in the KHL. Yesterday, he received news that he would be changing teams yet again. He was traded to SKA Saint Petersburg.
Toronto Maple Leafs Ex-Dman Traded
Toronto Maple Leafs fans may wonder why this news is relevant, especially if they aren’t Russian Puckheads. It helps evaluate Ozhiganov’s worth if he were still a part of Toronto’s organization. Last season with the Buds Ozhiganov didn`t set the world on fire, but he was decent enough in his role as a bottom pairing defenseman. He scored thee goals and had four assists in 53 games. Ozhiganov didn’t play in the playoffs.
SKA will be receiving a player who wanted to be back in the KHL. To get him, they gave up defenseman Roman Rukavishnikov and forward Viktor Tikhonov. Rukavishnikov has played his entire career in Russia and has had a disappointing start to his season. Tikhonov’s career has seen him bounce back and forth between Russia and North America.
Tikhonov was drafted in the first round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. He went 28th overall to the Phoenix Coyotes. Unfortunately, he didn’t manage to live up to the expectations set for him. Tikhonov’s best year in North America was actually his NHL rookie year. He played 61 games for the Coyotes and only posted 16 points.
This same player, the main return in the trade for Ozhiganov, is now 31 years old. He had five goals and seven assists in 38 games last season with SKA. This suggests that the NHL value of Ozhiganov is likely equivalent to a late seventh-round draft pick, if that.
Kyle Dubas may have been made aware of this trade. If so, there is no way that it has impacted his opinion of Ozhiganov or his potential value to the team. A mistake was not made allowing the defenseman to leave the organization.
The Toronto Maple Leafs were right to let Ozhiganov go, as there is no one on the team`s current roster, let alone Rasmus Sandin, Kevin Gravel or Jordan Schmaltz, that Ozzie would play ahead of.
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November 08, 2019 at 11:00PM
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