One of the top available talents in the 2027 NHL Draft is off to a hot start in his KHL career.
Sergei Skvortsov, a left winger for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, scored his first KHL goal in his debut game in the league at just age 17 on Saturday. Skvortsov is widely projected to be a top-five pick in next summer’s draft, despite concerns about his slight 6-foot, 154-pound frame.
Sergei Skvortsov’s first KHL goal
Skvortsov scored the milestone tally with 2:08 remaining in the first period of Torpedo’s 1-0 shutout victory over Spartak Moscow. After picking up the puck behind Spartak’s net, Skvortsov attempted a pass to a teammate in the crease and got a lucky bounce off a defender and into the net.
According to RG’s Daria Tuboltseva, Skvortsov, who is 17 years and 178 days old, is the second-youngest Torpedo player ever to score in the KHL. He sits behind just New Jersey Devils prospect Anton Silayev, who scored when he was 17 years and 158 days old.
Overall in KHL history, Skvortsov appears to be the thirteenth-youngest player to score a goal, joining a top 20 list that includes Matvei Michkov, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Dmitry Orlov. Alex Ovechkin did not make the list only because he first played in the Russian Superleague — not the KHL. He was 16 years and 115 days old when he scored his first goal for Dynamo Moscow.
Youngest goal scorers in KHL history
| Rank | Player | Team | Age | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maxim Kitsyn | Metallurg Novokuznetsk | 16 years, 254 days | Link |
| 2 | Vladimir Tarasenko | Sibir Novosibirsk | 16 years, 265 days | Link |
| 3 | Matvei Michkov | SKA Saint Petersburg | 16 years, 271 days | Link |
| 4 | Danila Yurov | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 16 years, 306 days | Link |
| 5 | Igor Chernyshov | Dynamo Moscow | 17 years, 34 days | Link |
| 6 | Zakhar Arzamastsev | Metallurg Novokuznetsk | 17 years, 36 days | Link |
| 7 | Vitali Kravtsov | Traktor Chelyabinsk | 17 years, 61 days | Link |
| 8 | Vladislav Kamenev | Metallurg Magnitogorsk | 17 years, 65 days | Link |
| 9 | Pavel Kraskovsky | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | 17 years, 91 days | Link |
| 10 | Dmitry Orlov | Metallurg Novokuznetsk | 17 years, 123 days | Link |
| 11 | Anton Slepyshev | Metallurg Novokuznetsk | 17 years, 124 days | Link |
| 12 | Anton Silayev | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod | 17 years, 158 days | Link |
| 13 | Sergei Skvortsov | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod | 17 years, 178 days | Link |
| 14 | Kirill Kaprizov | Metallurg Novokuznetsk | 17 years, 195 days | Link |
| 15 | Nikita Chibrikov | SKA Saint Petersburg | 17 years, 229 days | Link |
| 16 | Evgeny Kuznetsov | Traktor Chelyabinsk | 17 years, 238 days | Link |
| 17 | Viktor Fedorov | Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod | 17 years, 272 days | Goal / DOB |
| 18 | Kirill Polozov | Salavat Yulaev Ufa | 17 years, 278 days | Link |
| 19 | Daniil But | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl | 17 years, 286 days | Link |
| 20 | Nikita Susuyev | Spartak Moscow | 17 years, 294 days | Link |
Please note: The top 10 entries come from the KHL’s official 2026 record book. Because the league does not maintain a continuously updated public list of its youngest goal scorers, Nos. 11-20 were reconstructed from game records, player birth dates, and news reports. Minor discrepancies may exist, and sources for each entry are linked above.
Skvortsov played the 2025-26 season exclusively with Torpedo’s junior MHL team, where he was an alternate captain and led the club in scoring with 43 points (19g, 24a) in 52 games as a 16-year-old. He then added 18 points (9g, 9a) in 17 playoff games.
The Semyonov, Russia native has drawn comparisons to Ilya Kovalchuk for his already well-rounded offensive game, lethal shot, and explosive speed.
Throughout the season, Skvortsov will battle names like Landon DuPont, Nazar Privalov, Carter Meyer, and Alexis Joseph to be selected at the top of the 2027 NHL Draft. DuPont, an incredibly talented right-shot defenseman set to play for the University of Michigan this year, has long been penciled in as the consensus number-one overall selection.
