The St. Louis Blues, parent club of the AHL’s Peoria Rivermen, announced Saturday the club has acquired forward Evgeny Grachev from the New York Rangers in exchange for a third round draft choice in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
Grachev, 21, has primarily spent his first two professional seasons with the Rangers’ AHL affiliate in Hartford, Conn. Last year, Grachev recorded 38 points (16-22-38) and a team-best plus-21 rating in 73 regular-season contests for the Connecticut Whale.
In two seasons in Hartford, the 6-foot-4, 224-pound forward played in 153 games, accumulating 66 points (28-38-66) along with 38 penalty minutes. He improved in every offensive category from 2009-10 to 2010-11 while posting a plus-34 uptick in his plus/minus rating.
The Khabarovsk, Russia native was originally drafted by the Rangers in the third round, 75th overall, in the 2008 NHL Draft. He made his NHL debut for New York last season, appearing in eight contests.
