Nikita Scherbak

Russian ice hockey player (born 1995)

Ice hockey player

Nikita Scherbak

Scherbak in 2014

Born|  (1995-12-30) December 30, 1995 (age 29)
Moscow, Russia
Height|  6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight|  190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position|  Right wing
Shoots|  Left
ICE team
Former teams|  EC VSV
Montreal Canadiens
Los Angeles Kings
Avangard Omsk
Traktor Chelyabinsk
HC '05 Banská Bystrica
Mountfield HK
HC Slovan Bratislava
Ducs d'Angers
NHL draft|  26th overall, 2014
Montreal Canadiens
Playing career|  2015-present

Nikita Sergeevich Scherbak (Russian: Никита Сергеевич Щербак; born December 30, 1995) is a Russian professional ice hockey player for EC VSV of the ICE Hockey League. He was selected in the first round, 26th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Scherbak has also previously played for the Los Angeles Kings.

## Playing career

[edit]

### Junior

[edit]

Nikita Scherbak with the Everett Silvertips in 2015

Scherbak began his junior career in 2012 playing with Kapitan Stupino in the Russian Junior Hockey League (MHL).[1] Scherbak was drafted by the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League (WHL) in the second round of the 2013 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft.

He joined the Blades in 2013 where he led all rookies in goals (28), assists (50), and points (78) during the 2013–14 WHL season.[2] His outstanding play was rewarded when he was invited to play the 2014 CHL Top Prospects Game.[3]

Scherbak was rated as a top National Hockey League (NHL) prospect who was viewed as a possible first round selection heading into the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.[4] After his selection on July 22, 2014, he was signed to a three-year entry-level contract by draft team, the Montreal Canadiens.[5]

On September 22, Scherbak was traded to the Everett Silvertips from Saskatoon based on league rules which state that no more than two non-North American players may be on the same club's roster at any given time.[6]

### Professional

[edit]

During the 2016–17 season, Scherbak made his NHL debut for Montreal on January 7, 2017, against Toronto Maple Leafs and scored on the power play, on his first NHL career shot, to put the Canadiens up 3–2, with just 0.9 seconds left of the first period.[7] Montreal would win the game by a final score of 5–3.[8]

After starting the first 11 games of the 2018–19 season as a healthy scratch, Scherbak was assigned to the Laval Rocket, Montreal's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, for conditioning.[9][10] He made his season debut on October 31, 2018, in a 2–1 loss against the Belleville Senators.[11] On November 9, 2018, Scherbak scored his first goal of the season in a 5–1 victory over the Cleveland Monsters.[12] He was recalled from the conditioning stint on November 14, 2018, but did not immediately rejoin the Canadiens because of a lower-body injury.[13] On December 1, 2018, Scherbak was placed on waivers by the Canadiens. He was subsequently claimed by the Los Angeles Kings.[14]

On June 25, 2019, having completed his contract with the Kings, Scherbak was not tendered a qualifying offer by the club, releasing him as a free agent.[15] The following day, while opting to return to Russia to continue his career, Scherbak was officially signed to a three-year contract with Avangard Omsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).[16] In his first KHL season in 2019–20, Scherbak opened with just 2 goals and 6 points through 16 games before being released.[17] On November 5, 2019, Scherbak continued in the KHL, joining fellow club Traktor Chelyabinsk for the remainder of the season.[18]

As an unrestricted free agent entering the pandemic delayed 2020–21 season, Scherbak opted to return to North America, agreeing to a one-year AHL contract with the Texas Stars, affiliate of the Dallas Stars, on January 23, 2021.[19] He was productive during his tenure with Texas, collecting 5 goals and 15 points through 28 appearances in the shortened season.[20]

As a free agent in the offseason, Scherbak returned to Europe in securing a contract with Tipos Extraliga club, HC '05 Banská Bystrica, on September 9, 2021.[21] Scherbak would finish the 2021–22 season with Mountfield HK of the Czech Extraliga, joining the team in January 2022.[22]

With tension rising amidst the Russo-Ukrainian War entering the 2022–23 season, Scherbak would be forced to leave the Czech Republic due to his visa renewal application being denied based on his Russian nationality.[23] As a result, he returned to Tipos Extraliga, signing with HC Slovan Bratislava for the remainder of the season.[24]

In July 2023, Scherbak joined the Ducs d'Angers of the Ligue Magnus, the top men's division of ice hockey in France.[25]

On April 26, 2024, Scherbak agreed to a one-year contract with Austrian-based EC VSV of the ICE Hockey League.[26]

## Career statistics

[edit]

|  | Regular season |  | Playoffs

|
|
|
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Season | Team  | League  | GP  | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP  | G  | A  | Pts  | PIM
2012–13  | Kapitan Stupino | MHL | 50 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 14  | — | — | — | — | —
2013–14 | Saskatoon Blades | WHL | 65 | 28 | 50 | 78 | 46  | — | — | — | — | —
2014–15 | Everett Silvertips | WHL  | 65 | 27 | 55 | 82 | 60  | 11 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 10
2015–16 | St. John's IceCaps | AHL | 48 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 20  | — | — | — | — | —
2016–17 | St. John's IceCaps  | AHL  | 66 | 13 | 28 | 41 | 32  | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4
2016–17 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0  | — | — | — | — | —
2017–18 | Laval Rocket | AHL  | 26 | 7 | 23 | 30 | 20  | — | — | — | — | —
2017–18 | Montreal Canadiens  | NHL  | 26 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 8  | — | — | — | — | —
2018–19 | Laval Rocket  | AHL  | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2  | — | — | — | — | —
2018–19 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL  | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2  | — | — | — | — | —
2018–19 | Ontario Reign | AHL  | 23 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 18  | — | — | — | — | —
2019–20 | Avangard Omsk | KHL | 16 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 10  | — | — | — | — | —
2019–20  | Traktor Chelyabinsk | KHL  | 15 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 12  | — | — | — | — | —
2020–21 | Texas Stars | AHL  | 28 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 12  | — | — | — | — | —
2021–22 | HC '05 Banská Bystrica | Slovak | 25 | 6 | 15 | 21 | 20  | — | — | — | — | —
2021–22 | Mountfield HK | ELH | 17 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 4  | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6
2022–23 | Mountfield HK  | ELH  | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4  | — | — | — | — | —
2022–23 | HC Slovan Bratislava | Slovak  | 10 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2  | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2
2023–24 | Ducs d'Angers | Ligue Magnus | 41 | 10 | 37 | 47 | 63  | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8
NHL totals  | 37  | 6  | 2  | 8  | 10  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
KHL totals  | 31  | 3  | 8  | 11  | 22  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —

## Awards and honours

[edit]

Award  | Year  |

|
|

WHL
CHL Top Prospects Game (Team Cherry)  | 2014 | [27]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Nikita Scherbak prospect profile". HockeysFuture.com. May 1, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
2. ^ Friesen, Kelly (April 30, 2014). "Saskatoon Blades' Nikita Scherbak snubbed of rookie honour, and other WHL awards notes". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
3. ^ Pike, Ryan (June 4, 2014). "Nikita Scherbak - The Next Ones: 2014 NHL Draft Prospect Profile". TheHockeyWriters.com. Retrieved June 15, 2014.
4. ^ Campbell, Caitlin (June 5, 2014). "Nikita Scherbak Top 30 NHL Draft Prospect". FanSided. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
5. ^ "Canadiens sign first-round pick Scherbak". Sportsnet.ca. July 21, 2014. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
6. ^ "BLADES TRADE SCHERBAK TO SILVERTIPS". WHL.ca. September 22, 2014. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
7. ^ @CanadiensMTL (January 7, 2017). "Nikita scores his first career NHL goal! It's a beauty move with 0.9 seconds remaining in the 1st - and it's a power play snipe! #GoHabsGo" (Tweet) - via Twitter.
8. ^ McCarthy, Dave (January 8, 2017). "Five Canadiens score in win against Maple Leafs". NHL.com. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
9. ^ Blades, Justin (October 30, 2018). "Nikita Scherbak assigned to Laval Rocket for conditioning". SB Nation. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
10. ^ "Canadiens' Nikita Scherbak: Heads down for conditioning". CBS Sports. October 30, 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
11. ^ "'It's frustrating': Nikita Scherbak makes season debut with Rocket, loses 2-1". SB Nation. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
12. ^ "Jake Evans has two goals to lead Laval Rocket past Cleveland Monsters 5-1". National Post. November 10, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
13. ^ "Le Canadien rappelle Nikita Scherbak" [The Canadiens recall Nikita Scherbak]. La Presse (in French). November 14, 2018. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
14. ^ Cowan, Stu (December 2, 2018). "Canadiens lose Nikita Scherbak to Los Angeles Kings on NHL waivers". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
15. ^ "Blake on draft, approach to free agency". LAKingsInsider.com. June 23, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
16. ^ @HCAvangardOmsk (June 26, 2019). "⚡ А вот и наш новичок! Встречайте нападающего Никиту Щербака

Контракт рассчитан на три сезона.

В прошедшем сезоне Щербак сыграл 8 матчей и забросил одну шайбу за «Лос-Анджелес Кингз» в НХЛ, а также провел 28 игр в АХЛ за «Лаваль Рокет» и «Онтарио Рейн», набрав 12 (5+7) очков" [⚡ And here is our newcomer! Meet forward Nikita Scherbak

The contract is for three seasons.

Last season, Scherbak played 8 games and scored one goal for the Los Angeles Kings in the NHL, and also played 28 games in the AHL for the Laval Rocket and Ontario Reign, scoring 12 (5+7) points.] (Tweet) (in Russian) - via Twitter.
17. ^ "Avangard terminated a contract with Nikita Shcherbak". KHL.ru. October 31, 2019. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
18. ^ "НИКИТА ЩЕРБАК ПРОДОЛЖИТ КАРЬЕРУ В "ТРАКТОРЕ"" [Nikita Scherbak will continue his career in Traktor]. Traktor Chelyabinsk (in Russian). November 5, 2019. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
19. ^ "Texas Stars announce signings of six forwards". Texas Stars. January 23, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
20. ^ "Nikita Scherbak Stats and Player Profile". TheAHL.com. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
21. ^ "Baranov posilní Nikita Scherbak, útočník so skúsenosťami z NHL" [Baranov will be strengthened by Nikita Scherbak, a forward with NHL experience]. Bystricoviny.sk (in Slovak). September 9, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
22. ^ Vavřina, Jan (January 15, 2022). "Změna v týmu: Patrik Lamper se loučí, novou tváří Nikita Ščerbak" [Change in the team: Patrik Lamper says goodbye, new face Nikita Ščerbak]. Mountfield HK (in Czech). Retrieved July 26, 2024.
23. ^ "NIKITA SCHERBAK FORCÉ À QUITTER LA TCHÉQUIE" [NIKITA SCHERBAK FORCED TO LEAVE CZECHIA]. TVA Sports (in French). September 29, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
24. ^ @nikscherbak; (February 6, 2023). "95 is BACK". Retrieved July 26, 2024 - via Instagram.
25. ^ "Ligue Magnus:le Russe Nikita Scherbak signe à Angers" [Magnus League: Russian Nikita Scherbak signs for Angers]. L'Equipe (in French). July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
26. ^ "Groß, kräftig und spielstark: Der VSV holt Nikita Scherbak in den "Adlerhorst"!" [Tall, strong and strong: VSV brings Nikita Scherbak to the “Adlerhorst”!]. EC VSV (in German). April 26, 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
27. ^ Pike, Ryan (January 22, 2014). "Top Prospects Game Standouts". TheHockeyWriters.com. Retrieved July 18, 2014.

## External links

[edit]

* Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database

Awards and achievements

Preceded by

Michael McCarron

|  Montreal Canadiens first round draft pick
2014 | Succeeded by

Noah Juulsen