Vladislav Namestnikov was born on November 22nd, 1992 in Voskresensk, Russia. He is a versatile forward who primarily plays centre. The left-shot centre is listed as 6-foot tall and weighs 181 pounds. Namestnikov is best known for being a depth forward throughout his 13-year professional hockey career. Namestnikov has played for the Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings, Dallas Stars, and Winnipeg Jets in the NHL. There is little documentation on Namestnikov’s early playing days, but he played and developed as an early hockey player through Khimik Voskresensk’s system. Namestnikov later moved to North America to pursue his professional hockey aspirations.
Drafted 27th Overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning
June 24th, 2011, the Tampa Bay Lightning owned the 27th overall draft selection and chose Vladislav Namestnikov. He later signed his entry-level contract (ELC) on March 13th, 2012 after his 2011-12 season with the London Knights came to a close. Although, Namestnikov won the 2012 OHL Championship with the Knights and later lost the championship game in the 2012 Memorial Cup.
Namestnikov played two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the London Knights. He accumulated 139 points (52G, 89A) in 131 games complimented by 99 PIMs and a plus-minus of plus-27. He would turn pro in the 2012-13 season, but wouldn’t play any NHL games due to the lockout that year. Namestnikov played for the Syracuse Crunch, the Lightning’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate during that time.
His debut AHL season saw him post 21 points (7G, 14A) in 44 games while also adding seven points (2G, 5A) in 18 postseason contests. Namestnikov helped the Syracuse Crunch reach the 2013 Calder Cup Final but ultimately lost in six games to the Grand Rapids Griffins.
He got his first NHL call-up on February 7th, 2014 and made his NHL debut on February 8th. However, his run was short-lived, limited to four games after he did not register a point. He made Tampa’s roster out of training camp to start the 2014-15 season and picked up his first assist and point on October 13th, 2014. He followed with his first career NHL goal against the Montreal Canadiens and demonstrated the necessary signs of development that he can score at the NHL level, but still found himself reassigned to the AHL for a brief stint.
Finally, Namestnikov found his footing in the NHL after playing his first full season with the Lightning in 2015-16. On July 26th, 2016, the Tampa Bay Lightning announced that they had signed Namestnikov to a two-year contract extension, but he wouldn’t finish the contract with the Lightning.
Early Career Trades, Hitting Free Agency
On February 26th, 2018, the Tampa Bay Lightning traded Vladislav Namestnikov along with Brett Howden, Libor Hajek, a 2018 first-round and conditional second-round draft pick to the New York Rangers in exchange for Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller. Namestnikov had his best season with the Lightning before the trade, posting 44 points (20G, 24A) in 62 games, numbers he hasn’t matched with a single team since.
He spent the 2018-19 season with the Rangers where he registered 31 points (11G, 20A) in 78 games and found himself traded two games into the 2019-20 season to the Ottawa Senators. On October 7th, 2019, the Rangers traded Namestnikov to the Senators in exchange for Nick Ebert and a 2021 fourth-round pick. That same season, the Senators traded Namestnikov on February 24th, 2020, to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for a 2021 fourth-round pick.
On October 11th, 2020, Namestnikov signed a two-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings. He played the full 2020-21 season before the Red Wings traded him to the Dallas Stars on March 21st, 2022 for a 2024 fourth-round pick.
His career came full circle when he signed a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning on July 13th, 2022. As the story goes in his lengthy NHL career, he didn’t finish the full season with the team that he started the year with.
Traded Twice in Three Days, Lands in Winnipeg
On March 1st, 2023, the Tampa Bay Lightning traded Namestnikov to the San Jose Sharks for Michael Eyssimont. Just a couple of days later, the Sharks flipped Namestnikov to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for a 2025 fourth-round pick.
Upon arriving in Winnipeg, Namestnikov immediately made an impact with the Jets, posting 10 points (2G, 8A) in 20 games. He hit free agency on July 1st, 2023, but signed a two-year contract to stay with the Winnipeg Jets. Proving his impact with the Jets, Namestnikov found a scoring touch in the 2023-24 season, posting 37 points (11G, 26A) in 78 games.
