Vitalii Igorevich Abramov (Russian: Виталий Игоревич Абрамов; born May 8, 1998) is a Russian professional ice hockey forward. He is a member of HC CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Abramov has played five games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Ottawa Senators. Abramov was selected 65th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and later traded to Ottawa.

Vitalii Abramov
Abramov in 2018
Born (1998-05-08) May 8, 1998 (age 26)
Chelyabinsk, Russia
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight 171 lb (78 kg; 12 st 3 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shoots Left
KHL team
Former teams
CSKA Moscow
Ottawa Senators
Jukurit
Traktor Chelyabinsk
NHL draft 65th overall, 2016
Columbus Blue Jackets
Playing career 2017–present

Playing career

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In his rookie season with the Gatineau Olympiques of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), the 2015–16 season, Abramov recorded 93 points in 63 games. He was awarded the RDS Cup as QMJHL Rookie of the Year and the Michel Bergeron Trophy as Offensive Rookie of the Year. He was also named to the All-Rookie Team.[1] Leading up to the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Abramov was ranked 29th overall for North American skaters by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau.[2] He was eventually drafted 65th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets.

On December 24, 2016, Abramov was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets.[3] After recording 104 points in 66 games, Abramov was awarded the Jean Béliveau Trophy as the top regular season scorer of the 2016–17 season. He was also awarded the Michel Brière Memorial Trophy as the most valuable player (MVP) of the QMJHL and named to the First All-Star Team.[4] On April 7, 2017, Abramov began his professional career when he was assigned to the Blue Jackets American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters.[1]

The following season, Abramov returned to the Olympiques in the QMJHL. On November 17, Abramov was traded to the Victoriaville Tigres along with a 2018 sixth-round QMJHL draft pick in exchange for four future draft picks.[5] He still found success with his new team and was named to the Second All-Star Team after recording 78 points in 40 games.[6]

Abramov attended the Blue Jackets 2018–19 training camp but failed to make their final roster and was assigned to the AHL to join the Cleveland Monsters.[7] Abramov posted 12 goals and 22 points in 52 games with the Monsters before he was traded by the Blue Jackets, along with Jonathan Davidsson and two conditional first-round picks to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Matt Duchene and Julius Bergman on February 22, 2019. He scored his first NHL goal on October 10, 2019, against the St. Louis Blues.[8]

As an impending restricted free agent from the Senators, Abramov opted to pause his North American career by agreeing to a two-year contract with the Russian club, Traktor Chelyabinsk of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), on 26 May 2021.[9] In the 2021–22 season, Abramov made 41 appearances with his hometown club, Traktor, posting 8 goals and 17 points through the mid-point of the campaign. On 27 December 2021, Abramov was traded by Chelyabinsk to CSKA Moscow in exchange for Artyom Blazhiyevsky.[10]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014–15 Belye Medvedi MHL 20 8 6 14 8 2 0 0 0 4
2015–16 Gatineau Olympiques QMJHL 63 38 55 93 36 10 7 6 13 8
2016–17 Gatineau Olympiques QMJHL 66 46 58 104 76 7 1 6 7 12
2016–17 Cleveland Monsters AHL 4 1 3 4 2
2017–18 Gatineau Olympiques QMJHL 16 12 14 26 21
2017–18 Victoriaville Tigres QMJHL 40 33 45 78 46 13 9 7 16 21
2018–19 Cleveland Monsters AHL 52 12 10 22 28
2018–19 Belleville Senators AHL 18 4 3 7 8
2018–19 Ottawa Senators NHL 1 0 0 0 0
2019–20 Belleville Senators AHL 51 18 23 41 30
2019–20 Ottawa Senators NHL 2 1 0 1 2
2020–21 Jukurit Liiga 8 5 2 7 2
2020–21 Belleville Senators AHL 23 7 12 19 10
2020–21 Ottawa Senators NHL 2 0 0 0 0
2021–22 Traktor Chelyabinsk KHL 41 8 9 17 26
2021–22 CSKA Moscow KHL 4 0 0 0 2 22 5 4 9 6
2022–23 CSKA Moscow KHL 52 11 5 16 20 26 4 1 5 6
2023–24 CSKA Moscow KHL 59 13 19 32 22 5 1 0 1 2
NHL totals 5 1 0 1 2
KHL totals 156 32 33 65 70 53 10 5 15 14

International

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Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2014 Russia U17   6 3 6 9 2
2018 Russia WJC 5th 5 1 0 1 4
Junior totals 11 4 6 10 6

Awards and honours

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Award Year
QMJHL
CHL Top Prospects Game 2016
All-Rookie Team 2016
Michel Bergeron Trophy 2016
Rookie of the Year 2016
First All-Star Team 2017
Jean Béliveau Trophy 2017
Michel Brière Memorial Trophy 2017 [11]
Second All-Star Team 2018
KHL
Gagarin Cup (CSKA Moscow) 2022, 2023 [12][13]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Jackets assign Vitaly Abramov to Cleveland Monsters". NHL.com. April 7, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  2. ^ "2016 NHL Central Scouting Rankings - NA Skaters/Goaltenders". TSN.ca. April 12, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  3. ^ "Blue Jackets sign Vitalii Abramov to entry-level deal". Columbus Blue Jackets. December 24, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  4. ^ "The Golden Puck Awards: an unforgettable evening!". theqmjhl.ca. April 5, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  5. ^ "Abramov chez les Tigres". tigresvictoriaville.com (in French). November 17, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  6. ^ "The 2018 Golden Puck Awards: a night to remember!". theqmjhl.ca. April 5, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  7. ^ "Blue Jackets Assign 19 Players to Monsters". clevelandmonsters.com. September 24, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  8. ^ "Ottawa Senators continue rebuild in trade with Columbus Blue Jackets". Ottawa Senators. February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  9. ^ "Vitaly Abramov returns to Traktor" (in Russian). Traktor Chelyabinsk. May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  10. ^ "CSKA trades Blazhiyevsky for Abramov" (in Russian). CSKA Moscow. December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  11. ^ "Blue Jackets prospect Vitalii Abramov wins Michel Briere trophy as MVP of QMJHL". 1stohiobattery.com. April 21, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  12. ^ "CSKA wins Gagarin Cup". Kontinental Hockey League. April 30, 2022. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  13. ^ "CSKA wins back-to-back Gagarin Cups". Kontinental Hockey League. April 29, 2023. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
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