From 40 goals to '$14 million to go away': A look back at Alex Semin's NHL career

Alex Semin very likely played his final NHL game on Nov. 25.

The Montreal Canadiens placed Semin on waivers Monday. With all 29 other teams passing on the opportunity to snag the 31-year-old forward, he was left with two options: report to the AHL's St. John's IceCaps, or terminate his contract and continue his professional hockey career overseas. It appears he has chosen the latter:

In the offseason, Semin refused to entertain the notion of leaving North America and going back to Russia to play in the KHL. Now, it appears as though he has no other choice. Even if he did report to St. John's, his chances of finding himself back with the Canadiens - or any team, for that matter - were slim to nil.

Canadiens head coach Michel Therrien told reporters Tuesday that Semin was a risk worth taking, especially considering it allowed young players to patiently develop their game in the minors. Those are the words of a coach who never intended to bring Semin back, particularly after the likes of Sven Andrighetto and Charles Hudon earned assignments in his place.

The Washington Capitals, Carolina Hurricanes, and now Canadiens have given up on Semin, and it's nearly impossible to imagine any situation where he finds himself back in the league. Just over two years removed from playing at an impressive point-per-game pace, the former superstar's downfall is rather stunning. Allow us to examine how he went from a coveted 40-goal scorer to a player absolutely nobody wanted.

The rise

Semin burst into the NHL as a highly touted 13th overall pick by the Capitals. He tallied 22 points in 52 games as a 19-year-old rookie while recording four points at the world juniors that same year. The youngster went back to Russia for two seasons - one as part of the 2004-05 lockout - before finally breaking out in the NHL with 38 goals and 35 assists in 77 games in 2006-07.

Under head coach Bruce Boudreau, Semin played alongside Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom and quickly became a critical part of the league's most potent offense. From that 2006-07 breakout campaign through 2010-11, he scored 166 goals in 340 games - an average of 40 goals per 82-game season.

Goal-scoring was a natural component of Semin's game for almost a decade. He played an exciting brand of skillful hockey, equipped with a wicked release that allowed him to come out on top of several one-on-one battles even if his work ethic wasn't necessarily always there. It's difficult to find a one-shot game-changer in the NHL, but he was definitely one of them.

The Capitals fired Boudreau midway through the 2011-12 season, and eventually elected to change their roster as well. Following more playoff disappointment, the team parted ways with Semin, who became an unrestricted free agent after 408 points in 469 games with Washington.

The peak

Semin signed his third consecutive one-year deal, a $7-million contract with the Hurricanes, for the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign. He played at an impressive point-per-game pace with 44 points in 44 contests.

Then, for basically the first time in his career, a team finally chose to make a long-term commitment: The Hurricanes signed Semin to a five-year, $35-million deal, justifiable considering his production and ability to score some pretty amazing goals.

After putting up a decent 22 goals and 42 points in 65 games the following year, Semin's dip in production had many questioning if he had peaked as a player. Those questions were answered affirmatively at an alarming rate.

The fall

The Hurricanes bought him out at the end of 2014-15 following career lows of six goals and 13 assists in 57 games. The slow and steady decline suddenly because an accelerated disaster.

"Semin was a very top-end player in the league when the game was played at a slower pace," Hurricanes president Don Waddell said. "It's now played at such a high level, if you can't skate, it's hard to compete. Alex lost a step and he tried to play on the outside too much because he didn't have the speed."

"In simple terms, we paid him $14 million to go away," he added.

The Canadiens made a low-risk, high-reward move and signed Semin to a one-year, $1.1-million deal. Either he'd be totally exposed if he had truly lost a step, as Waddell suggested, or his skill set would make him the dangerous player we once knew, leaving Marc Bergevin looking like a genius.

It took no more than 15 games for Montreal to abandon the experiment. Semin scored one goal and three assists, and was in Therrien's doghouse almost immediately, often a healthy scratch (as he was last season in Carolina). Nothing had changed. Waddell's assessment was spot on: The game is just too quick for him today, especially with a Montreal team that relies predominantly on its speed to create scoring chances.

Semin's career is definitely at a difficult crossroad, one that's forced him to make a decision he refused to examine in the summer. Whatever he chooses, in all likelihood, he's already scored his last NHL goal.

Semin departs with 239 goals and 517 points in 650 career NHL games.