Buffalo Sabres defense prospect Nikita Novikov might head back to the KHL, where his signing rights are held by Dynamo Moscow, ahead of the 2026-27 season.
Hockey News Hub, which broke the news when goalie Alexandar Georgiev left the Sabres organization to join the KHL's Spartak Moscow early this season, reported Tuesday that Novikov "may return" to the KHL over the summer. He'll become an NHL restricted free agent on July 1.
Novikov previously spent two seasons with Dynamo Moscow (2021-23) after playing three years with the team's development club in Russia's Junior Hockey League.
The 22-year-old defenseman was a member of the Rochester Americans, the Sabres' AHL affiliate, for a vast majority of the last three seasons. He spent the final stages of the 2025-26 campaign on loan with the Ontario Reign, the Los Angeles Kings' AHL club.
Novikov, a 2021 sixth-round draft pick by Buffalo, has recorded 63 points (15 goals and 48 assists) across 197 AHL appearances. His lack of offensive development caused his rise up the Sabres' organizational depth chart to stall over the past few seasons.
His combination of size (6'4'', 205 pounds), physical edge and dependable nature in the defensive zone still gives him NHL upside as a third-pair or No. 7 defender, but he may prefer to serve as a full-time KHL player in his home country rather than sit on the Sabres-Amerks fringe.
It's unlikely he would have cracked Buffalo's active roster to open next season.
Updated look at the Buffalo Sabres' defensive depth chart for the 2026-27 campaign
The Sabres' memorable turnaround season, which resulted in their first playoff berth since 2011, was built on the foundation of their terrific top-four defense group.
Rasmus Dahlin was a Norris Trophy finalist. Mattias Samuelsson finally put it all together to emerge as a two-way force. Owen Power continued his steady development. And, while Bowen Byram still ran hot and cold, his strong play in December helped spark the team's surge.
All four of those players are expected to return next season, though there are some questions about Byram's future. Buffalo would like to sign him to a long-term contract extension, but a trade may be possible if he's not interested in staying for the long haul.
There are near-term questions beyond that quartet, however, and Novikov potentially heading back to Russia is another variable to consider for general manager Jarmo Kekalainen.
As things stand now, here's a look at the Sabres' depth chart on the blue line:
Left Defense | Right Defense |
|---|---|
Mattias Samuelsson | Rasmus Dahlin |
Owen Power | Bowen Byram |
Zach Metsa | Conor Timmins |
Ryan Johnson | Michael Kesselring (RFA) |
Jack Rathbone | Radim Mrtka |
Zac Jones (RFA) | Vsevolod Komarov |
Nikita Novikov (RFA) | Maxim Strbak |
Isaac Belliveau (RFA) | Gavin McCarthy |
This group only includes players under contract with Buffalo, not unsigned prospects like Adam Kleber, Luke Osburn and Noah Laberge.
One thing that stands out is the limited depth on the left side beyond that group of Dahlin, Samuelsson, Power and Byram, who are all left-shot blueliners but work interchangeably on the top two pairs.
Timmins, Metsa and Kesselring are all right-shot defensemen, and the prospects closest to NHL readiness, led by 2025 first-round pick Mrtka, are all righties, too.
The Sabres haven't shown much faith that Johnson, a 24-year-old former first-rounder who plays on the left, can serve as a full-time NHLer. Jones put together a terrific season with the Amerks (62 points in 60 games) but never received an NHL opportunity in Buffalo and may seek a fresh start as an RFA.
In turn, there may be a few things on Kekalainen's offseason to-do list defensively.
First, he'll likely want to bring in at least one (and perhaps two) veteran defenders on team-friendly contracts to compete for third-pair roles. His trade for Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn (both UFAs) at the deadline suggests he prefers physical, defense-first players for those spots.
Second, the Sabres may want to grab a few left-shot defensemen in the 2026 NHL Draft to restock their prospect pool, especially if Novikov returns to Russia with no imminent plans to return.
So, while the blue line figures to remain an area of strength for Buffalo next season, there's still work to do if that's going to remain the case for the extended future.
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