Mikhail Sergachev shines in Montreal: our defenseman leads the NHL's debutant team to success.

After the results of today’s NHL games, the general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Julien BriseBois, was particularly upset. This summer, he traded 26-year-old defenseman and two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Lightning, Mikhail Sergachev, to the league's expansion team, the Utah Jazz. As subsequent events have demonstrated, this was clearly a rash decision by the Lightning management, who hurried to relieve their payroll by $8.5 million (the annual salary from the 8-year contract of the Russian with Tampa - Editor’s Note) in order to sign a new deal with long-time captain Steven Stamkos.

Ultimately, the Canadian forward did not stay with the team, moving to Nashville, and the Lightning's defensive lineup clearly lost its cohesion. If it weren't for the reliable play of Andrei Vasilevskiy in goal, things could have been much bleaker for Jon Cooper's squad than merely battling for the 6th to 8th spots in the Eastern Conference. Mikhail, who found the trade a real shock and happened just two days before a complete ban on any of his trades from Tampa, felt right at home in his new team, becoming a true leader for the Jazz, even without the captain's 'C' on his jersey. For now.

“My first reaction was, of course, shock. I didn’t expect to be traded. I was taking out the trash when they called me. I knew nothing about Utah, but then I spoke with my agent and various players – they all spoke warmly about Utah and the new franchise. I spoke with the coach and the general manager, and here I am. Everything is wonderful here – the city, the club. I’m very excited; this is a great opportunity to prove that I can be a leader. I look forward to this chance,” said Sergachev during the team’s presentation before the new season.

From the very first games of the regular season, our defenseman completely disproved the opinions of many overseas analysts who had prematurely written him off. They claimed he had been injury-prone lately, that “Utah” had bought a pig in a poke, and that he wouldn’t justify his multimillion-dollar contract. However, Sergachev confidently took his place on the top defensive pair, spending the most time on the ice for the team and ranking second in the league in this statistic (25:43), just slightly behind Zach Werenski from Columbus.

The product of lower Nizhnekamsk hockey is equally effective in defending his own net and in offensive actions. His excellent skating, powerful wrist shot, and positional awareness make this defenseman one of the most versatile players in his role in NHL. In the game against Montreal, Mikhail showcased all his best qualities – he played reliably in defense, earning a (+3) in plus/minus, and secured victory for Utah in the closing moments of overtime.

The 26-year-old defenseman timely joined the attack in the final seconds of extra time, clearing space for himself in the opponent's crease by redirecting a precise pass from his teammate. It was well-deserved that it was the Russian who was recognized as the best player of the match, rather than Jack McBain, who had tied the score for Utah in the third period. Let us remind you that this forward injured Alexander Ovechkin, which will now sideline our star for 4 to 6 weeks.

So far, Mikhail Sergachev has accumulated 15 (6+9) points in 22 games of the NHL season. He is the top scorer among Russian defensemen overseas and undoubtedly the strongest domestic player in this position at the moment, where we have seen a slight decline in recent years.

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