Observations:

October 2017 – Shipachyov's situation is a confusing one, scratched from the first 5 games. It was unknown where he would play, or if he would play at all in North America. GM McPhee denied all rumours, saying Vadim and his agent are aware of the situation and are staying in North America. If you dropped Vadim earlier, he has been recalled with injuries to Erik Haula and Jonathan Marchessault. "Ship" started on a line tonight (Sunday) with (recent call-up) Alex Tuch and Brendan Leipsic on the second line against the Bruins. This isn't what fantasy owners were hoping for from Shipachyov early on. I think he is showing he is here to stay, Vadim scored his first NHL goal of his career in his first game, time to go pick him up in most leagues. Paul Zwambag

May 2017 – Shipachyov has signed a two-year contract with the Vegas Golden Knights worth $4.5 million per year. Shipachyov will be a first or second line center for the Golden Knights and will get PP1 minutes right away. He is a prolific goal scorer, but also has the ability to set up linemates with his spectacular vision.

Shipachyov's past five years in the KHL have been with SKA St. Petersburg, playing on a line with top calibre talent; Ilya Kovalchuk, Evgeni Dadonov and Pavel Datsyuk last year, Kovalchuk and Panarin two prior years and Kovalchuk his first year in SKA.  Over the past four years he has improved his scoring output; 32, 54, 60, 76 points. The same trend could happen when he debuts in the NHL. Shipachyov won't head nearly as good of linemates as he has in SKA those four years. Don't give up on him too quickly if he is slow out of the gate next year, he has the potential and talent to be a 60-70 point player in the NHL and a ceiling of 80+ points. It all depends on what kind of linemates GM McPhee can give him the first year of Expansion.

Fantasy Outlook: A+

Shipachyov is a proven KHL scoring threat, his game should translate to the NHL.

Footage:

Shipachyov's first NHL goal in his debut.

{youtube}t814Uf38uv8{/youtube}

Shipachyov has a "spot" in the lower right hand circle, and can nail one-timers from any angle:

{youtube}qK_HFeJl6-g{/youtube}

{youtube}HyeUmddawi4{/youtube}

Buy the latest Fantasy Prospects Report here.