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The Colorado Avalanche officially announced on Sunday, July 20, the signing of Russian forward Georgii Merkulov for the 2026-2027 season. The one-year, two-way contract will pay the 25-year-old $850,000 if he plays in the NHL, and $350,000 in the AHL, with a $400,000 guarantee. Undrafted, the Ryazan native arrives in Denver with an impressive resume: all-time leading scorer for the Providence Bruins, Boston's farm team where he spent the last three seasons.
A path built off the radar
The route taken by Merkulov defies the standards of North American hockey.
The route taken by Merkulov defies the standards of North American hockey. He made his professional debut at age 19 in the VHL, Russia's second division, wearing the jersey of HK Tambov during the 2019-2020 season. Six games later, he was already on the other side of the Atlantic, with the Youngstown Phantoms in the USHL, where he compiled 40 points in 38 games. Ohio State University then opened its doors to him for the 2021-2022 campaign: 34 points, including 20 goals, in 36 games. These performances earned him a spot on the All-Rookie Team and the Big Ten Conference First All-Star Team. No NHL franchise drafted him, however.
Boston gave him a chance in April 2022 with an undrafted free agent contract. Merkulov didn't let it slip away. In three seasons in Providence, he piled up 240 points — 94 goals, 146 assists — in 271 regular-season games, an absolute record for the Rhode Island franchise. Invited to the 2024 AHL All-Star Game, a member of the 2023 All-Rookie Team, he dominated the league but couldn't convert that momentum into ice time in the big league. Only eleven games with Boston, for a single assist, recorded on November 16, 2024.
The trophy season, the door closing
The 2025-2026 campaign will stand as his peak in the AHL. Merkulov led Providence's offense with 61 points — 24 goals, 37 assists — in 70 regular-season games. The team's top scorer and top assist man, second in goals behind Matthew Poitras, he guided his squad to the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy, awarded to the league's best regular-season team. In the Calder Cup playoffs, he added a goal in four appearances. Boston gave him just one NHL game, without a point.
In the offseason, the Bruins chose not to qualify him. Merkulov reached Group 6 unrestricted free agency — those players aged 25 and older who have at least three professional seasons without playing 80 NHL games. A profile Colorado knows well and has already exploited in the past.
Colorado continues its raid on the Bruins
The Avalanche didn't miss the mark. In late June, the Denver franchise had already grabbed Fabian Lysell, the Swedish winger drafted in the first round by Boston in 2021 and Merkulov's teammate in Providence since 2022. The two will share the same locker room at training camp, hoping to earn a spot on a roster seeking stability among its depth forwards.
General manager Chris MacFarland has multiplied low-cost bets this summer to solidify a bottom-six that has seen intense rotation over the past three seasons. Merkulov, with his small frame of 5'11" and 174 pounds, will have to prove that his offensive touch and vision can withstand the speed and physicality of the NHL. The two-way contract offers a safety valve: if the adjustment takes time, a stint with the Colorado Eagles, the franchise's AHL affiliate, remains possible without salary cap consequences.
The parallel with Valeri Nichushkin, another Russian with a bumpy path that the Avalanche managed to revive, is tempting but premature. Nichushkin already had 223 NHL games under his belt before joining Denver. Merkulov, for his part, starts from a nearly blank slate at the highest level. The 2026-2027 season will give him the opportunity, perhaps his last at age 25, to prove he is more than an eternal AHL king.