Canadiens Lose Prospect Valentenko to the KHL

According to the Moscow Dynamo website, Montreal Canadiens defensive prospect Pavel Valentenko has signed a three-year contract with the KHL team. The Canadiens' AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, had just granted Valentenko a leave of absence to deal with family matters in Russia when the signing was announced. Valentenko is the second prospect the Canadiens have seen return to Russia in the past few years. Forward Alexander Perezhogin left the Canadiens two years ago to sign with Ufa Salavat after disputes over ice time and contract terms. While it is always hard for a team to lose a top prospect, the Canadiens still have plenty of quality prospect defensemen, including Ryan McDonagh, Yannick Weber, P.K. Subban, David Fisher, Mathieu Carle, and Alexei Yemelin. The loss of Valentenko won't hurt the Canadiens in the long run.