Ilya
Lyubushkin
D · NSH · Balanced · Very poor
- PAL
- 14
- WAR
- -0.7
- Value
- 11
- PTS
- 9
2025-26№ 309 / 325
Ilya Lyubushkin (Nashville Predators) stats and profile: offensive production, ice time, advanced stats, WAR and PAL rating.
Ilya Lyubushkin
HEIGHT : 188 cm · WEIGHT : 93 kg · SHOOTS : R
Born : April 5, 1994 · Moscow, Russia
Contract : $3,250,000 · 2024-25 → 2026-27 · Standard Contract · UFA
NHL record
| Year | Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | Nashville Predators | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025-26 | Dallas Stars | 53 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 40 |
| 2024-25 | Dallas Stars | 80 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 32 |
| 2023-24 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 19 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
| 2023-24 | Anaheim Ducks | 55 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 51 |
| 2022-23 | Buffalo Sabres | 68 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 38 |
| 2021-22 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 31 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 25 |
| 2021-22 | Arizona Coyotes | 46 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 26 |
| 2020-21 | Arizona Coyotes | 42 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| 2019-20 | Arizona Coyotes | 51 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 18 |
| 2018-19 | Arizona Coyotes | 41 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 13 |
| NHL totals | 487 | 7 | 63 | 70 | 259 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | Dallas Stars | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024-25 | Dallas Stars | 14 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 2023-24 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 2021-22 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 18 |
| Playoff totals | 30 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 24 | |
Ilya Lyubushkin: our analysis
2025-26 season: 53 GP, 1 G, 8 A, 9 PTS, +1 +/-, 15:44 TOI. WAR -0.7 (309th of 325) · PAL 14, very poor.
In 2025-26, Ilya Lyubushkin, 32, posts a PAL Rating of 14 out of 100 (very poor), and his WAR of -0.7 ranks 309th among 325 regulars, in the bottom quarter.
On the other hand, penalty kill (4, among the weakest in the league) and discipline (8, among the weakest in the league) hold him back.
Breaking down his WAR (goals above average), his biggest contribution: EV defense (+0.3); his biggest cost: EV offense (-2.4).
A clear step forward: his PAL went from 4 in 2024-25 to 14; his WAR went from -1.1 to -0.7.
Contract-wise, his Value score of 11 (very poor return) weighs his output against what he costs: 50 is what that salary should buy.
Ilya Lyubushkin's story
Growing up in Moscow, Lyubushkin moved through the Russian junior system and earned his way into Lokomotiv Yaroslavl after time with Metallurg Novokuznetsk’s organization. He made his professional debut in 2012–13 and stayed with Lokomotiv for five seasons before choosing free agency after 2017–18.
His North American opportunity arrived on 23 May 2018 when he signed a one-year deal with the Arizona Coyotes. In his first NHL season he became known for his physical defending: 4 assists in 41 games and 150 hits, placing him among the league rookies in that category. He re-signed with Arizona for short-term deals, spent a brief loan back with Lokomotiv before the 2020–21 camp and scored his first NHL goal on 8 April 2021 against the Los Angeles Kings.
On 19 February 2022 he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. He debuted for Toronto on 22 February and netted his first Maple Leafs goal on 14 April 2022. He made his Stanley Cup playoff debut on 2 May 2022 — a game in which he fought Corey Perry — and Toronto exited the first round in seven games.
As an unrestricted free agent he agreed to a two-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres on 13 July 2022. He recorded his first point with the club in the season opener and set a career high with 14 points and 2 goals that season. One highlight came 23 February 2023, when he scored a shorthanded overtime winner against Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Tampa Bay Lightning — the first shorthanded overtime goal in Sabres history. On 18 August 2023 he was traded to the Anaheim Ducks, where he played 55 games and was frequently paired with rookie Pavel Mintyukov.
Lyubushkin returned to Toronto on 29 February 2024 via a three-team deal; he played 19 regular-season games, registered 4 points and added 3 points in 7 playoff games before signing a three-year, $9.75 million contract with the Dallas Stars on 1 July 2024. On 1 July 2026 he was traded to the Nashville Predators. His game is straightforward: a defensive, physical presence who piles up hits and takes responsibility for defending his zone.
Facts drawn from Wikipédia, told in our own words.
Advanced stats
- TOI/GP
- 16:11
- PP TOI/GP
- 0:04
- SH TOI/GP
- 1:20
- Pts/GP
- 0.00
- EV points
- 0
- Hits
- 1
- Blocks
- 1
- Takeaways
- 0
- Corsi % (SAT)
- 30.4 %
- Off. zone starts
- 35.7 %
Stats and photos: NHL (NHL.com)
2026-27 projection
Projected points
8between 0 and 15 (80% range)
- Goals
- 2
- Assists
- 6
- Games
- 48
So far: 0 pts in 1 games. The team has played 17 of 84 games. Projected pace: 0.16 pts per game (last season: 0.17).
The projection follows last season's pace. Tested on 2,265 player seasons (2022-23 to 2025-26): average miss of 9 points over 82 games; for players at 0.9 points per game and up, it ran 5 points high on average.
Trend
Slightly up
- Points per game: 0.11 in 23-24, 0.17 in 25-26
- PAL Rating: 4 → 14
Outlook, age included
→ StableAge 32: the age when production usually declines
This is only a projection. It knows nothing about injuries, trades or role changes; one player in five finishes outside the range.
Player ratings, 2025-26
All ratings →Fourteen ratings from 0 to 100 drawn from data, never by hand: 75 = established NHL player, 95+ = elite.
OV · OverallConfidence 81 %
52
Replacement or prospect
- SK
- Skating
- 58
- Confidence 73 %
- ST
- Strength
- 82
- Confidence 84 %
- EN
- Endurance
- 62
- Confidence 80 %
- DU
- Durability
- 73
- Confidence 77 %
- CK
- Checking
- 83
- Confidence 84 %
- FG
- Fighting
- 81
- Confidence 63 %
- DI
- Discipline
- 59
- Confidence 84 %
- FO
- Faceoffs
- —
- PA
- Passing
- 64
- Confidence 81 %
- SC
- Scoring
- 52
- Confidence 81 %
- DF
- Defense
- 70
- Confidence 78 %
- PS
- Penalty shot
- 76
- Confidence 0 %
- EX
- Experience
- 80
- Confidence 100 %
Why these ratings?Hide details
SK — Skating58
- Top speed (35 %)34.2 · 58
- Bursts > 20 mph /60 (30 %)0.952 · 58
- Distance /60 (20 %)14.1 · 73
- Speed consistency (15 %)33.6 · 62
ST — Strength82
- Contact absorbed /60 (50 %)6.44 · 86
- Body mass (50 %)0.294 · 75
EN — Endurance62
- Ice time per game (45 %)16.8 · 62
- Total ice time (20 %)820 · 64
- Shift length (15 %)45.3 · 66
- Lowest recent ice time per game (15 %)15.4 · 64
- Special-teams time per game (5 %)2.132 · 72
DU — Durability73
- Share of games played (100 %)0.806 · 73
CK — Checking83
- Hits /60 (70 %)4.918 · 84
- Lowest seasonal rate (20 %)3.67 · 80
- Season volume (10 %)4.234 · 78
FG — Fighting81
- Fights per 82 games (100 %)1.019 · 81
DI — Discipline59
- Net penalty value /60 (50 %)-0.085 · 59
- Penalties taken /60 (30 %)0.879 · 63
- Penalties drawn /60 (20 %)0.377 · 74
PA — Passing64
- Primary assists /60 (40 %)0.287 · 65
- Secondary assists /60 (20 %)0.355 · 68
- Offensive creation (RAPM) (20 %)-0.104 · 62
- Power-play points /60 (10 %)4.265 · 79
- Assist consistency (10 %)0.202 · 71
SC — Scoring52
- Goals /60 (25 %)0.101 · 49
- Individual xG /60 (20 %)0.141 · 56
- Finishing (goals − xG per shot) (20 %)-0.07 · 61
- High-danger chances /60 (15 %)0.076 · 70
- xG per shot (10 %)0.034 · 75
- Shot attempts /60 (10 %)6.619 · 37
DF — Defense70
- RAPM defense /60 (35 %)0.001 · 72
- Relative xG against (20 %)-0.031 · 76
- On-ice xG against /60 (15 %)2.644 · 73
- Penalty kill /60 (10 %)-0.611 · 39
- Takeaways − giveaways /60 (10 %)-2.326 · 64
- Shot attempts against /60 (5 %)56.2 · 83
- Blocked shots /60 (5 %)6.228 · 94
PS — Penalty shot76
- Shootouts (60 %)32.7 · 76
- Penalty shots (40 %)26.7 · 76
EX — Experience80
- Career regular-season games (65 %)87
- Career playoff games (25 %)65
- NHL seasons (10 %)75
OV — Overall52
- DF · Defense (30 %)70
- PA · Passing (22 %)64
- SK · Skating (12 %)58
- SC · Scoring (12 %)52
- EN · Endurance (9 %)62
- ST · Strength (6 %)82
- DI · Discipline (5 %)59
- CK · Checking (4 %)83
| Season | OV | SK | SC | DF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 52 | 58 | 52 | 70 |
| 2024-25 | 50 | 62 | 45 | 65 |
| 2023-24 | 51 | 63 | 45 | 67 |
| 2022-23 | 61 | 63 | 62 | 67 |
The bars show confidence (sample size), not player quality. — : not enough data, not a zero. Engine version 1.0.
WAR and PAL ratings, 2025-26
How we rate →PAL Rating scores performance from 0 to 100 against players at the same position (50 = average player), starting from the player's strength, offensive or defensive. Value Rating compares that performance with what the player costs: 50 means paid what the play is worth.
WAR
-0.7
wins above replacement
309 of 325
PAL Rating
14/ 100
Performance · Very poor
214 of 250 at the position
Value Rating
11/ 100
Very poor return
3.25 M$ · expected PAL 57
ProfileBalancedNeither end dominates
- Offense
- 15
- Defense
- 36
See full detailsHide details
- Offense
- 24
- Creation
- 18
- Shooting
- 14
- Possession
- 15
- Defense
- 60
- Discipline
- 8
- Power play
- 60
- Penalty kill
- 4
From 0 to 100; 50 is the average player at the same position, adjusted for ice time.
| Season | Team | WAR | PAL | Value | Cap hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | DAL | -0.7 | 14 | 11 | 3.25 M$ |
| 2024-25 | DAL | -1.1 | 4 | 2 | 3.25 M$ |
| 2023-24 | TOR | -1.2 | 5 | 4 | 2.75 M$ |
| 2022-23 | BUF | -0.7 | 9 | 6 | 2.75 M$ |
Hockey IQ, 2025-26
Rankings and method →The quality of the player's decisions with and against the puck at 5-on-5, against regulars at the same position (50 = average). PAL measures output; IQ measures how the player plays.
Overall IQ
7/ 100
Low
better than 7% of defensemen, offense and defense combined
Offensive IQ
60/ 100
Average
passing, shots, puck
Defensive IQ
2/ 100
Low
takeaways, discipline, own zone
Overall IQ isn't an average of the two scores: it's the player's rank with offense and defense combined, 209 of 225 defensemen.
See full detailsHide details
Offense
- Playmaking passes
- 55
- Shot selection
- 54
- Penalties drawn
- 48
- Puck management
- 73
Defense
- Takeaways
- 28
- Discipline
- 23
- Safe zone exits
- 0
Percentiles: 80 means better than 80% of regulars at the same position. Play without the puck (positioning, coverage) isn't measured: the NHL doesn't publish that data.
| Season | Team | IQ | Off. | Def. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | DAL | 7 | 60 | 2 |
| 2024-25 | DAL | 4 | 15 | 5 |
| 2023-24 | TOR | 8 | 29 | 8 |
| 2022-23 | BUF | 21 | 38 | 18 |
WAR, 2025-26
How it's calculated →Wins added to the team, compared with a replacement-level player called up from the AHL.
-0.7
wins above replacement
-1.1 to -0.2 — 90% interval
309 of 325 defensemen
-3.9 goals above replacement
Full leaderboard →See full detailsHide details
- EV offense
- -2.4
- EV defense
- +0.3
- Power play
- 0.0
- Penalty kill
- -1.2
- Shooting
- -0.6
- Penalties
- -1.9
- Average → replacement
- +1.7
In goals.
| Season | Team | GP | WAR | 90% interval | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | DAL | 53 | -0.7 | -1.1 to -0.2 | 309/325 |
| 2024-25 | DAL | 76 | -1.1 | -1.7 to -0.2 | 306/314 |
| 2023-24 | TOR | 74 | -1.2 | -1.8 to -0.4 | 312/316 |
| 2022-23 | BUF | 68 | -0.7 | -1.6 to 0.0 | 309/334 |
Player tracking (NHL EDGE)
League EDGE leaderboards →Speed, shot power, distance covered, time by zone: measured by chips in the puck and shoulder pads. 90th percentile = better than 90% of players.
- Top skating speed
- 29.6 km/h1st percentileleague avg. 34.0 km/h
- Bursts over 20 mph, season
- 00th percentileleague avg. 8
- Offensive zone time
- 37.5 %6th percentileleague avg. 42.4 %
See full detailsHide details
- Total distance, season
- 3.7 km3rd percentileleague avg. 56.1 km
- Distance, single-game high
- 3.74 km12th percentileleague avg. 4.98 km
- Offensive zone at 5v5
- 38.4 %5th percentileleague avg. 42.8 %
- Neutral zone time
- 18.5 %69th percentileleague avg. 16.9 %
- Defensive zone time
- 44.0 %8th percentileleague avg. 40.8 %
Shooting
| Shots on goal | Goals | Shooting % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All | 03rd percentile | 049th percentile | 0.0 %0th percentile |
| High danger | 051st percentile | 084th percentile | 0.0 %0th percentile |
| Mid range | 020th percentile | 073rd percentile | 0.0 %0th percentile |
| Long range | 07th percentile | 077th percentile | 0.0 %0th percentile |
Shots on goal by zone
2026-2027 regular season. Measured by puck and player tracking chips; the percentile ranks the player within the league.
Game log, 2026-27
BOSIlya Lyubushkin: frequently asked questions
How many goals does Ilya Lyubushkin have in 2026-27?
Ilya Lyubushkin has 0 goals and 0 points (0 assists) in 1 game in 2026-27.
How old is Ilya Lyubushkin?
Ilya Lyubushkin is 32 years old: he was born on April 6, 1994.
How tall is Ilya Lyubushkin, and how much does he weigh?
Ilya Lyubushkin is 6'2" (188 cm) and weighs 205 lb (93 kg).
Where is Ilya Lyubushkin from?
Russia: Ilya Lyubushkin was born in Moscow, Russia.
What team does Ilya Lyubushkin play for?
Ilya Lyubushkin plays for the Nashville Predators in the NHL, at D, wearing number 46.
Is Ilya Lyubushkin injured?
No: Ilya Lyubushkin is not on the latest NHL injury report. This answer is updated throughout the season.
How good is Ilya Lyubushkin?
Ilya Lyubushkin produced -0.7 wins above replacement (WAR) in 2025-26, 309th of 325 players at his position in the NHL. His PAL rating is 14 out of 100: very poor for his position.
How much does Ilya Lyubushkin make?
Ilya Lyubushkin earns $3.3M for the 2025-26 season. His Value Rating is 11 out of 100 (very poor return): it measures the on-field return for that salary, compared with players at his position.
When does Ilya Lyubushkin's contract end?
Ilya Lyubushkin's contract runs through the 2026-27 season; he will then be an unrestricted free agent.
Is Ilya Lyubushkin overpaid?
Yes, his output falls short of what his salary should buy. His Value rating is 11 out of 100 (very poor return), where 50 is the output expected for his salary, compared with players at his position.
Is Ilya Lyubushkin a top-10 player at his position?
No: by WAR, he ranks 309th of 325 players at his position in the NHL in 2025-26. Our comparison tool puts him side by side with any other player.
Is Ilya Lyubushkin getting better?
Yes: his PAL rating went from 4 in 2024-25 to 14 in 2025-26 (out of 100, 50 = average player at his position).
What are Ilya Lyubushkin's career stats?
Over his NHL career, Ilya Lyubushkin has 487 games, 7 goals, 63 assists and 70 points. His best season: 2024-25, with 14 points in 80 games.
How does Ilya Lyubushkin perform in the playoffs?
In the playoffs, Ilya Lyubushkin has 30 games and 8 points in his career. His pace (0.27 points per game) is higher than his regular-season pace (0.14).
Which player is most similar to Ilya Lyubushkin?
Arber Xhekaj: he is the player at his position whose PAL profile (the 0-to-100 dimensions) is closest to his in 2025-26.
Arber Xhekaj's page →Is Ilya Lyubushkin a good fantasy pick?
Probably not, except in deep leagues: our projection has him at 8 points in 2026-27, or 0.17 points per game.
What is Ilya Lyubushkin's nationality?
Ilya Lyubushkin is Russian. Internationally: Russia: bronze medal at the 2014 World Junior Championships.
Where did Ilya Lyubushkin play before turning pro?
Began his career with Metallurg Novokuznetsk (VHL); made his KHL debut with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in 2012–13 and played his first five professional seasons with Lokomotiv through the 2017–18 season.
How many points is Ilya Lyubushkin projected to score in 2026-27?
Our projection has him at 8 points in 48 games in 2026-27 (0 to 15 points, 80% interval), based on his recent seasons, age and role.
See also: his Nashville Predators teammates
Full roster →
NHL.com ↗ · Stats and photos: NHL (NHL.com)