If faced with an NHL lockout, Nail Yakupov plans on going overseas to continue playing professionally, according to his agent.
Yakupov’s agent, Igor Larionov, told the Edmonton Journal that the Edmonton Oilers No. 1 pick will either join the Kontinental Hockey League and play for his his hometown Russian team Niznekamsk, or join a team in Sweden or Finland if NHL players get locked out this fall.
Despite the fact that Yakupov still has junior eligibility left, Larinov says he won’t return to Sarnia to play at the junior level.
The KHL is an ideal lockout destination for many NHLers, as 25 of the league’s games are played in the first two months of the season.
However, sending a handful of locked out players over to Russia to keep them occupied isn’t a foolproof plan.
"KHL teams can only have five imports, although I guess (KHL president Alexander) Medeved could change that. And in Sweden and Finland, there’s only two imports a team," Larionov told the paper.
If the league does lock out the players on Sept. 15, the athletes can start looking for work abroad immediately.
