How acquired: Selected with No. 31 pick in 2023 NHL Draft
2024-25 season: Omsk (KHL): 67 GP, 7-8-15
The Avalanche are excited by the progress the 20-year-old (5-foot-10, 172 pounds) has made entering his fourth season in the Kontinental Hockey League.
“When you draft him young like that, at 18, you just wait for them to get stronger and sturdy over pucks, and we’ve seen that,” director of player development Brian Willsie said. “His skating, believe it or not, has kept improving. So that has made him a more dynamic player. Playing against men in that league the way he has and getting the ice he has is great for him and a great precursor to coming to North America. Watching him improve his puck game, his skating and inserting his strength has been great for us.”
Willsie said there’s no timetable for Gulyayev to come to North America. The hope is he’ll be ready for the NHL when he does.
“When the time is right to get him here and when he’s ready to come, then we’ll have him,” he said. “We had him over for our development camp a couple years ago, so he’s familiar with us and our facilities and Colorado and everything we have going on. … But knowing he’s on a top-tier team in that league, and being well coached, is reassuring for us.”
Projected NHL arrival: 2026-27