The Toronto Maple Leafs pipeline into Russia may continue if the team&#8217;s front office has anything to say about it.
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Lamorello and Babcock were in Moscow recently to talk to CSKA d-man Igor Ozhiganov. 24 years old, contract expires in April <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Leafs?src=hash">#Leafs</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/KHL?src=hash">#KHL</a>
&mdash; Andrey Osadchenko (@AOsadchenko) <a href="https://twitter.com/AOsadchenko/status/900296480166223873">August 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock and general manager Lou Lamoriello found a diamond in the rough in Nikita Zaitsev. They&#8217;re hoping to strike gold twice with a player that hasn&#8217;t been on many people&#8217;s radars.
Igor Ozhiganov is a defenseman for CSKA Moskva in the KHL and has been with the team since the 2015-16 season. During the 2016-17 season, Ozhiganov played in 50 games and put in eight goals and helped out with 14 assists for a total of 22 points. A good clip for a defenseman in one of the best leagues in the world.
Since his contract with the team doesn&#8217;t expire until after the 2017-18 season, this is long-term planning from the Maple Leafs. Ozhiganov isn&#8217;t going to break any new records for the team but as a player that has shown constant growth, he is a good bet to contribute in the NHL.
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Igor Ozhiganov, who is being linked to the Toronto Maple Leafs for the 2018/19 season, is most famous in the KHL for this goal: <a href="https://t.co/KhdlK5tiVa">pic.twitter.com/KhdlK5tiVa</a>
&mdash; Jeff Veillette (@JeffVeillette) <a href="https://twitter.com/JeffVeillette/status/900371689803964417">August 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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It doesn&#8217;t hurt that he has silky smooth hands either.
For a player like Ozhiganov, the only contract that he would/should agree to is an NHL deal. With multiple prospects coming for the Maple Leafs, does he make sense? As a mostly finished product, he could allow for more percolation for Maple Leafs prospects and immediately jump in for the 2018-19 season. If reports are to be believed, this would be a stacked blueline with only more reinforcements coming.
Who said a glut of defenseman is a bad thing?
<h1 class="m_-2865485622751345524m_6317695511273236430gmail-p1"><a href="http://www.draftkings.com/gateway?s=423271601">Billion Dollar Lineup Contest</a></h1>
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Submit your NFL lineup in this FREE Draft Kings by September 10th for your chance to win $100,000 for the highest scoring player. If your roster matches up perfectly in Week 1 then you could walk away with $1,000,000,000 from Draft Kings! Enter your lineup today.

The Toronto Maple Leafs pipeline into Russia may continue if the team's front office has anything to say about it.

https://twitter.com/AOsadchenko/status/900296480166223873

Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock and general manager Lou Lamoriello found a diamond in the rough in Nikita Zaitsev. They're hoping to strike gold twice with a player that hasn't been on many people's radars.

Igor Ozhiganov is a defenseman for CSKA Moskva in the KHL and has been with the team since the 2015-16 season. During the 2016-17 season, Ozhiganov played in 50 games and put in eight goals and helped out with 14 assists for a total of 22 points. A good clip for a defenseman in one of the best leagues in the world.

Since his contract with the team doesn't expire until after the 2017-18 season, this is long-term planning from the Maple Leafs. Ozhiganov isn't going to break any new records for the team but as a player that has shown constant growth, he is a good bet to contribute in the NHL.

https://twitter.com/JeffVeillette/status/900371689803964417

It doesn't hurt that he has silky smooth hands either.

For a player like Ozhiganov, the only contract that he would/should agree to is an NHL deal. With multiple prospects coming for the Maple Leafs, does he make sense? As a mostly finished product, he could allow for more percolation for Maple Leafs prospects and immediately jump in for the 2018-19 season. If reports are to be believed, this would be a stacked blueline with only more reinforcements coming.

Who said a glut of defenseman is a bad thing?
<h1 class="m_-2865485622751345524m_6317695511273236430gmail-p1"><a href="http://www.draftkings.com/gateway?s=423271601">Billion Dollar Lineup Contest</a></h1>
<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-43032" src="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/728x90_billionlineup-1.png" alt="" width="728" height="90" />
Submit your NFL lineup in this FREE Draft Kings by September 10th for your chance to win $100,000 for the highest scoring player. If your roster matches up perfectly in Week 1 then you could walk away with $1,000,000,000 from Draft Kings! Enter your lineup today.

Maple Leafs brass show interest in Russian defenseman Igor Ozhiganov

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