What’s in a (nick)name? How rookie Alexander Nikishin helped Hurricanes survive
Somewhere it is written that to play hockey, you have to have a nickname.
Own skates, own a stick and you soon own a nickname. It’s a rite of passage
On the Carolina Hurricanes, there’s “Fishy” (Sebastian Aho), “Ghost (Shayne Gostisbehere), “Chatty” (Jalen Chatield) and “Kooch” (Pyotr Kochetov), to name a few.
Now comes a new one: Niki.
Niki?
That would be defenseman Alexander Nikishin. While playing in the KHL, he was called “Boom” that that’s self explanatory once you see him and see him on the ice.
But you know you’re a part of a new group when you’ve been in the battle with your guys and won a game – something like an Eastern Conference final game – and your head coach starts rolling out a new nickname when talking about you to the media.
Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour has done that of late as the big man from Russia has jumped into the Stanley Cup playoffs and shown flashes of improved play in each game.
In the Canes’ 3-0 victory Monday over the Florida Panthers in Game 4 of the conference final, it was Nikishin’s backhanded pass to Logan Stankoven that set up Stankoven for a shot and score. It gave Carolina the first goal of the game and its first lead of the Panthers series, displaying the talents of both the passer and shooter.
In his third game in an NHL uniform, Nikishin had his first point in the NHL and in a win that kept the Canes’ season going. For the second straight game against the Panthers, he played almost 19 minutes, and used his big frame – he’s listed at 6-4 and 216 pounds but looks bigger – to keep things honest in front of goaltender Frederik Andersen.
“Despite the language and the barrier there, he’s picked up most of the stuff that he has to,” Brind’Amour said Wednesday before Game 5. “I think there’s still a huge learning curve. But at this time, against this team, at this time of year, he’s done very, very well.”
Nikishin appeared a bit unsure of himself on the ice in his first game, against the Washington Capitals in the second-round playoff series. It could have been that Nikishin was a little unnerved playing against Russia’s biggest hockey luminary – the Caps’ Alexander Ovechkin – or making his debut in a playoff game on the road, with hostile fans chirping you.
There was a slightly comedic moment in the game when Ovechkin jutted out his stick at Nikishin as he headed to the Caps bench, only to have Nikishin yank it out of his hands like a kid making off with a souvenir. That went viral quickly.
Nikishin has been paired the past two games with Dmitry Orlov, allowing the two to speak Russian on the ice and at the bench.
“You could tell right away he had a high hockey IQ,” Orlov said Wednesday. “It’s not easy here in this league, against this team. There’s a lot of stress, a lot of pressure. But he has handled it well as a young player. “
Nikishin looked the part of a more seasoned pro by Monday and his third game, and he should. At 23, he played parts of six seasons in Russia’s KHL – the last three with St. Petersburg SKA – before the former Carolina draft pick (third round, 2020) was freed up to leave and come to North America.
“After being in the KHL, he already knew what he had on the table as a pro and what he could bring to a game,” Orlov said. “I just try to help him out. It’s easy for him to communicate. He tells me what he sees and I help him with that. Then he just goes out and plays hockey.”
Nikishin, after settling some visa issues, joined the Canes April 19 and began practicing with the team, trying to quick learn and absorb the nuances of the Brind’Amour system.
“It was a rough first outing for him,” Brind’Amour said of Nikishin’s debut. “But he’s obviously seizing the moment right now.”
What Nikishin has yet to do is score a goal. Some on the team say he has one of the heaviest shots, certainly among the D-men, and he had 17 goals in each of his last two seasons with SKA.
“He’s a big boy, you know,” Orlov said, smiling. “For sure, he can shoot hard and in time he’s going to find it.”
Nikishin passed up a shot Monday in Game 4 with Taylor Hall open across ice and tapping his stick, calling for the puck. Hall got off a shot that was easily stopped by goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. Next time, Nikishin may not defer to the veteran forward and let one rip.
“He’s a big body, skates well, shoots the puck well,” defenseman Sean Walker said.
That pretty much checks the boxes. And with Chatfield and Walker remaining sidelined by injuries for Game 5 on Wednesday, Nikishin will again back in the Canes’ lineup.
Or is that Niki?
This story was originally published May 28, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
