LATEST | Former NHLer has KHL contract terminated for off-ice issues

SKA St. Petersburg head coach Roman Rotenberg announced over the weekend that the team has decided to terminate the contract of forward Nikita Gusev, who will now become a free agent in Russia on Monday.

It's unclear at this time if it's related to Gusev being scratched earlier this month by the club during their playoff series against CSKA Moscow for alcohol-issues, which he's reportedly been dealing with dating back to the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Gusev, 30, was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2012, but never signed and didn't come over to North America until 2019. He spent the 2019-20 and part of the 2020-21 season with the New Jersey Devils, before being released in April 2021 and signing with the Florida Panthers for the remainder of the year.

In 37 games this season, the Moscow native had 49 points (23 goals, 26 assists), 34 penalty minutes and was a plus-ten. Gusev added 12 points in 13 playoff games.