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Alex Galchenyuk has likely played his last NHL game despite being just 29 years old.
Galchenyuk, an American born to Belarusian players, was the No. 3 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft by the Montreal Canadiens.
But he never really lived up to the billing.
He put 27 points in 48 games at a teenager in his rookie season, getting Montreal fans excited. But he never surpassed 56 points in his time with the team and was traded to the Arizona Coyotes in 2018.
The Coyotes then traded him to the Pittsburgh Penguins just a year later and Pittsburgh did the same to Minnesota Wild shortly thereafter.
He made stops in Ottowa and Toronto before return to Arizona in 2021 and joining the Colorado Avalanche the following year.
On June 24, the Avs traded Galchenyuk. He went to the Nashville Predators in exchange for center Ryan Johansen.But the Predators did not sign Galchenyuk and he became unrestricted free agent.
He signed back in Arizona July 1 on a one-year, two-way deal. But like most Coyotes decisions, this was a bad one.
On July 9, Galchenyuk was arrested on multiple charges following a car crash. Galchenyuk allegedly showed signs of impairment and told officers “I’m gonna chop you, your wife, your daughter,” according to a police report obtained by the Arizona Republic.
“He also made threats to call his connections in Moscow and have the officer’s wife and daughter’s kidneys cut out,” the report states. “Two hours after he made the threats, Galchenyuk told the officer he was making the call and then laughed and said he was “joking.”
One officer also accused Galchenyuk of making a racial slur toward an African American officer during the incident.
If true, it’s hard to imagine him ever stepping foot on an NHL rink again. Instead, it appears that Galchenyuk might be headed to prison instead.