The San Jose Sharks announced that they have signed prospect Maxim Letunov to a three-year, entry-level contract.
“Max is a talented scorer and playmaker who has high speed and incredible game sense,” Sharks general manager Doug Wilson said in a statement – “We see Maxim being ready to play at a professional level. He will help us a lot in power play or in shorthanded situations.”
Maxim Letunov – a two-way threat
The 22-year-old centre has spent the past three seasons with the University of Connecticut, where he has tallied 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points in 36 games this year. During his three years in Storrs, Letunov played in 105 career games. He recorded 95 points on 35 goals and 60 assists. In just three seasons, Letunov finishes ninth in UConn Division I scoring. He also tied for fifth on the UConn Division I list with 60 career assists.
Huskies top scorer
During 2017-18 season, Letunov became the Huskies top scorer with 28 points (12g/16a) and helped UConn to achieve a program’s best 11 Hockey East wins. This put them in fifth place in the league. It also earned Letunov a spot on the Hockey East All-Star Second Team.
With 40 points on 16 goals and 24 assists during his freshman season, Letunov earned the Hockey East All-Rookie honour and Second Team All-Star accolades. He set new UConn Division I rookie records for points, goals and assists. With that amount of points, Maxim reached the fourth rank in the season’s Division I record book.
Two years – three teams
Originally, Maxim Letunov was a second-round draft pick (52nd overall) of the St. Louis Blues in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Then, in March 2015, his rights were traded by the Blues to the Arizona Coyotes. As a result, St. Louis Blues received NHL defenseman Zbynek Michalek and a conditional third-round pick in the 2015 draft. The San Jose Sharks acquired his rights along with a 2017 sixth-round draft pick from the Coyotes in June 2016. In exchange, they gave a 2017 third-round draft pick and a 2016 fourth-round pick.
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