Slava Voynov signs with KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg

Former NHL defenseman Slava Voynov has signed with the Kontinental Hockey League’s SKA St. Petersburg, the team announced. He has signed a three year contract.

Voynov began his playing career in the Russian Superleauge, which has been rebranded into the KHL, in 2006-07. After his second season for Traktor Chelyabinsk, the Los Angeles Kings drafted him him in the second round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. In the same offseason, he was also drafted 5th overall by the Moncton Wildcats of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) in the Canadian Hockey League’s (CHL) import draft. He was able to forego the junior process and was assigned to the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Manchester Monarchs.

His offensive ability grew exponentially in the AHL. He recorded in 107 points before he was called up in 2011-12 and added 16 more in a brief stint in 2012-13. To compare that, Voynov scored just four points in his RSL career. He has 81 career points in the NHL, and was released after a Domestic Violence incident early in the 2014-15 season.