James Nichols
The New Jersey Devils signed defenseman Anton Silayev to a three-year entry-level contract on June 1, 2026. It’s general manager Sunny Mehta’s first player signing since taking over as GM.
Silayev will be attending Devils training camp in September.
Silayev, 20, was selected 10th overall by the Devils in the 2024 NHL Draft. The 6-foot-7, 210-pound left-shot defenseman has played the past three seasons in the KHL with Nizhny Novgorod.
The hulking defenseman fell to the Devils despite being viewed as a top-three selection in the 2024 NHL Draft.
In the 2025-26 season, he appeared in 61 regular-season games. He added two assists in 10 playoff games with Nizhny Novgorod. He also played four games in the MHL playoffs, recording two assists. Silayev was selected to the KHL All-Star Game for the first time.
Over his KHL career, Silayev has 26 points (6 goals, 20 assists) in 187 regular-season games. He has four assists in 19 playoff games. He played in the postseason each of his three KHL seasons.
His best KHL season came in 2024-25 with 12 points (2 goals, 10 assists). In 2023-24, as a teenager, he led all U-18 players in KHL scoring with 11 points (3 goals, 8 assists). He spent the full 2024-25 regular season in the KHL before joining the organization’s VHL team for the playoffs, where he had two points (1 goal, 1 assist) in 17 games and won the VHL Championship.
In 2022-23, Silayev played junior hockey in the MHL with Chaika Nizhny Novgorod. He had eight points (2 goals, 6 assists) in 41 regular-season games and two assists in 29 playoff games. That team won the MHL championship.
Silayev attended his first Devils development camp in the same summer after he was taken by New Jersey in 2024. He explained then he planned to finish his KHL contract and make the leap to North America to play in the Devils’ system.
