Game of the year, signing of the summer?

Saturday brought the first meaningful on-ice action of the summer as a KHL All-Star team took on a Russian NHL select roster in Moscow. Meanwhile, Dynamo might have bagged the import acquisition of 2024. Who he? Read on ...Game of the YearSaturday was a special day: Russia’s top NHL stars came home to play an exhibition game against their KHL counterparts. For fans in Moscow, it was a rare treat: a chance to see the likes of Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeny Malkin, Sergei Bobrovsky, Mikhail Sergachev and Artemy Panarin in action on home ice once again. For many, their last appearance in their homeland was at the 2016 World Championship; others were last seen in the KHL during the 2012-2013 lockout.The game drew a capacity 12,000+ crowd to the CSKA Arena, raising plenty of money for charities selected by the players. And on the ice it was honors even after an entertaining 8-8 tie. Among the KHL stars who impressed, Gagarin Cup-winning goalie Ilya Nabokov performed heroics to keep the game level in the third period.Russia’s top players meet in “Game of the Year”“I’m really happy to be here, to play in a game like this and get to know the guys. I thought I played pretty well, better than I expected! I faced a lot of tough shots but I just tried to enjoy myself and play the game.” Ilya NabokovDynamo makes big signingIt might be the biggest import arrival of the summer: Max Comtois is on his way to Dynamo Moscow. The 25-year-old Canadian winger, a World Champion in 2021 and a silver medallist the following year, is leaving the NHL and heading to Moscow. For a player with 211 appearances through six seasons with Anaheim and Carolina, it’s a bold move. But the man himself, who counts long-serving Dynamo import Eric O’Dell among his friends, is confident that he’s made the right call.“I’m still only 25 and I want to enjoy my hockey. I want to play lots of games and have a chance of winning the cup. I still have a lot to learn and, as I told Alexei Sopin and Alexei Kudashov, I’m not coming for a vacation, I’m coming to help the team win.” Max ComtoisLoko turns to Canada for Andronov replacementAfter losing veteran center Sergei Andronov, Lokomotiv responded by signing 33-year-old Canadian Byron Froese. The Manitoba native was a fourth-round draft pick for Chicago back in 2009 and eventually made 141 NHL appearances with five different teams. He spent more time in the AHL, often enjoying a leadership role in recent years. He comes to Yaroslavl on a one-year deal and is making his first move outside of North America.Thompson to tighten Torpedo’s defenseKeaton Thompson is the later player to arrive in the KHL via the German League. The 28-year-old defenseman finished last season with Adler Mannheim in the DEL. That brief spell gave him a taste for Euro hockey and prompted him to sign a one-year deal with Torpedo. Early in his career, Thompson helped Team USA to World U18 silver but he never made it to the NHL and decided to try his luck across the pond after several seasons in the AHL.Red Star sign new centerRourke Chartier has the potential to become one of the breakout players of the coming season. The 28-year-old Canadian center, who signed a one-year deal with Kunlun Red Star, played the bulk of last season in the NHL with the Senators before opting to look further afield. The issue, perhaps, was that he tended to get a bottom six role that didn’t necessarily fit well with his playmaking ability: in AHL hockey, Chartier tended to be productive, but he rarely got a real opportunity to replicate that at a higher level. With  the Dragons, the Saskatoon native can look forward to a more prominent role on the team and, potentially, more impressive scoring as a result.‘E’ are the Champions!Never afraid to set the trend, the KHL is getting involved in eSports. Three of the league’s stars are joining a special Counter-Strike 2 tournament next weekend. Anton Burdasov, Igor Ozhiganov and Prokhor Poltapov will be testing their gaming skills against cyber-athletes including Recrent, Dosia and Overdrive in the KHL STAR STRIKE 2024 challenge on July 27 and 28. There’s a 500,000 ruble prize fund, and a special hockey theme to a tournament that brings together traditional sports stars with gamers from pro teams and famous streamers.