The uncomfortable reason that 23-goal scorer Vladimir Tarasenko remains unsigned is revealed

Training camps are less than a month away, and one of the more productive wingers still available is sitting at home waiting for the phone to ring.

Tarasenko put up 47 points last year, tied for third on the Wild in goals and eighth in points.

He's 34 now, but he still looked like a guy who could drive a line, scoring 16 of his goals at even strength, not exactly empty calories padded by a stacked power play or riding shotgun with a superstar center all season.

So why hasn't anyone signed him.

On a recent episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goalie Carter Hutton dug into it, and Hutton floated an uncomfortable theory that's been whispered around the league for years.

Some teams still treat Russian players as a bit of a buyer beware, even when the resume says otherwise.

It's a strange label to stick on a guy who has played in more than 900 games and scored over 300 goals.

Hutton pointed out that conditioning used to be the real question mark with Tarasenko, but he's cleaned that up in a serious way, training in Florida and showing up to camp in noticeably better shape the last few seasons.

Half the league is sitting on more than $4 million in cap space right now.

For a team willing to look past whatever hesitation still lingers, Hutton called this about as low risk as a signing gets, especially on a short term deal.

A one year prove it contract feels like the most realistic path back into the league for Tarasenko, and it might not take long once one team decides to make the move.

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