RALEIGH, N.C. — The Islanders signed Russian right-winger Maxim Tsyplakov to a one-year deal on Thursday, giving them an option to fill out their bottom-six ahead of next season.
The Rangers were among a group of 10 teams that had expressed interest in Tsyplakov, Tikhon Chernykh of his agency Winners Hockey told The Post on Thursday.
The Islanders’ interest dated back two to three months and lead European scout Jim Paliafito had been in touch with Tsyplakov’s camp regularly since then.
Tsyplakov, 25, scored a career-high 31 goals for Spartak Moscow this season. He is 6-foot-3, 190 pounds and is said to play a physical style.
He has played seven seasons in the KHL, though 2023-24 was by far his best in terms of production — prior to this year, Tsyplakov had not scored more than 10 goals in a season.
After Spartak Moscow lost in the KHL quarterfinals to Metallurg, his contract was up. Chernykh had said Tsyplakov was hoping to make a decision on his future over the next 10 days.
The Maple Leafs and Canadiens were two of the other teams with interest in the Moscow native. The Athletic reported that the Maple Leafs had met with Tsyplakov’s camp in February and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mentioned Montreal’s interest in a recent episode of the “32 Thoughts” podcast.
Tsyplakov has played wing in the KHL, but Chernykh said the Islanders were among the teams that were curious about his fit at center.
Tsyplakov’s deal will come with a $925,000 base salary and he should fit with the Islanders as a depth forward.
The Islanders, who have not made a first-round pick since 2019, do not have much organizational depth in their prospect pool, and longtime fourth-line stalwarts Matt Martin and Cal Clutterbuck are both unrestricted free agents with unclear futures.
Ruslan Iskhakov figures to compete for a spot in camp next season if he returns as a restricted free agent, but Tsyplakov’s path to playing time is fairly clear on Long Island.
This appears to be the first step towards making the bottom-six younger and adding a little more scoring punch to a group that had almost none last season, if Tsyplakov’s game translates to North American ice.