Wild sign 2020 second-round pick Khusnutdinov to entry-level deal

The Minnesota Wild have officially signed a former second-round pick to his entry-level contract.

The club announced Wednesday that forward Marat Khusnutdinov agreed to a two-year deal that will run through next season.

The 21-year-old has spent most of this season with HK Sochi of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), recording 20 points (6-14=20) in 49 games after he was traded by SKA St. Petersburg on Oct. 10.

Minnesota picked him 37th overall in the 2020 NHL Draft, and the Russian has excelled in recent years.

Khusnutdinov tied Artemi Panarin for the seventh-highest single-season point total in KHL history by a player younger than 21 and became the youngest player in SKA St. Petersburg history to reach 50 career points. Over the past four seasons, Khusnutdinov appeared in 162 career KHL games, tallying with 75 points (22-53=75), 38 penalty minutes and a plus-6 rating. He also played in 32 career Gagarin Cup playoff games as a member of SKA St. Petersburg, posting 11 points (2-9=11) and has represented Russia at several other international competitions.

He’ll now get a chance to jump right to the NHL and finish out the rest of the season with the Wild.

Minnesota is back in action Thursday night at Nashville.