Poltapov started the 2024-2025 KHL season as though he had been shot out of a cannon. With 11 points in his first nine games, he was one of the most added players throughout the first month of the fantasy season as managers hoped the streak continued, and his travel to North America was certain. Things predictably cooled off for him, as he finished the season with four points in 11 games, finishing with a line of 17 goals, 23 assists and 18 penalty minutes in 68 games.

Poltapov has completed his second full KHL season with CSKA Moskva, scoring five goals and 13 points in 56 regular season games in 2023-2024. He contributed just one point in five postseason appearances this past spring. The 21-year-old forward has struggled to translate his offensive skill set to the KHL. The pace of the league has been too quick for him at times. He has been slow to make decisions with the puck and is prone to forcing unavailable plays. His tendency to hold on to the puck for too long has been exacerbated at this level thus far. He has one more year remaining on his current contract with CSKA Moskva and will be expected to increase his offensive output to a significant degree next season if he is to remain on the Sabres’ radar.

Following a year in which he split time between the KHL, VHL, and MHL, 20-year-old Poltapov played his first full-time KHL season in 2022-2023. He scored five goals and 10 points in 55 games, albeit in a small role with CSKA Moskva. He plays with high energy at both ends of the rink, skates with enough agility and quickness to make smooth transitions up the ice, and can be dynamic with the puck. He at times holds on to the puck for too long. Additionally, he sometimes commits to unsuccessful plays such as ill-timed shots when lanes are blocked or imprecise pass attempts when other options might be available. Poltapov is under contract in the KHL through 2024-2025. –

Poltapov began his 2021-2022 campaign in the VHL, Russia’s second-highest professional league, scoring two goals and six points in eight games. He was subsequently promoted to the KHL for three matches, where he averaged approximately nine minutes of TOI. Between October 16, 2021 and February 1, 2022 he bounced back and forth between short stints in the KHL, MHL, and VHL with CSKA Moscow, Zvezda Moscow, and Krasnaya Armiya Moscow, respectively, before finally being assigned to the VHL for a lengthier, two-week period in early February. With his junior squad Krasnaya Armiya, he played a major first-line role, averaging over 16 minutes of TOI as well as scoring five goals and 15 points in 13 regular season games. In the KHL, however, he was relegated to a mere 5:15 of ice time on average. As a contributor with Zvezda Moscow in the VHL, Poltapov received an average of 13:12 of TOI, although he did not score at all in his eight-game February stint. His time with Zvezda ended on February 17. On March 3, he returned to the MHL, where he would continue to play for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs. Krasnaya Armiya, the MHL’s top-seeded team, began their postseason campaign on March 11. With seven goals and 18 points in 19 games, Poltapov led his team in postseason scoring. They reached the MHL Finals against SKA-1946 but were defeated in six games. Poltapov finished sixth in MHL playoff scoring.

Poltapov was selected in the second round, 33rd overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2021 NHL Draft.

Poltapov had a big season in the MHL, racking up 25 goals and 27 assists in 61 games with Krasnaya Armiya. He capped off his strong campaign with seven points in seven games for Russia at the U18 World Championships.

Poltapov is just 22, and currently finds himself without an NHL contract, and will likely remain in the KHL for two more seasons until there is a chance of him coming over to North America. He is more available in leagues now, as managers placed him back in the free agent pool as the season wore on, and you can choose to stash him if you have the room to wait on a player who has several years before coming to North America to be a complimentary middle-six winger- if he comes over at all.

Though he doesn’t possess outstanding size or strength, Poltapov plays a game that combines power and skill. He plays an energetic style and pushes the pace as he works to get pucks into dangerous areas in the offensive zone with quick hands and good puck protection abilities. Poltapov doesn’t hesitate to engage physically but he needs to do a better job of picking his spots as he climbs the ranks. He is still a raw prospect, but there are some translatable qualities in his game.