At the 2013 NHL Draft in Newark, NJ, new Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill used the 10th overall selection of the first-round to select Russian forward Valeri Nichushkin. Considered to be a player with first-line caliber physical upside and two-way potential, there were some question marks about consistency and attitude.
While the player has committed to play in North America next season, he rubbed some teams the wrong way with his declaration that he'd play only in the NHL or KHL (no AHL or CHL, in other words). There were others who were not happy about the fact that he did not train for the pre-Draft NHL Combine. As a result, after many predicted he could go as high as fifth in the first round, he fell to the Stars at number 10.
Nichushkin did everything that was asked of him in training camp and showed numerous flashes of brilliance both in camp scrimmages and in preseason action. He finished the exhibition slate with three goals in six games.
The 18-year-old will open the 2013-14 regular season on the Stars' third line. His opening night linemates are likely to be veteran Shawn Horcoff and Vernon Fiddler but the hope is that Nichushkin can work his way up into the team's top six. For now, head coach Lindy Ruff is trying to keep the pressure down on the youngster and let him acclimate himself to the NHL's smaller rink and faster pacing, as well as the cultural adjustments of moving to North America.
Nichushkin already has NHL-caliber physical maturity and skating ability, so he is a step ahead of many other teenage players in that regard. However, there are still age-typical rough spots in his game; many of which have to do with play away from the puck.
The cultural adjustments and language barrier are often bigger initial factor with Russian players than it is for those from Sweden or Finland. Hopefully, having someone like veteran Sergei Gonchar in the same locker room will help Nichushkin get acclimated sooner than if he had to go at it alone.
For all of his undeniable talents, it is probably wise to keep full-season offensive expectations for Nichushkin modest in his first NHL campaign. I expect we will continue to see some shifts where he dominates and ones where he scores spectacular goals, particularly early in the season before other teams have a scouting "book" on him.
However, I also fully expect he will "hit the wall" at some point and there will be some significant dry spells in his point production. I would also think that it will take time before Ruff entrusts Nichushkin with significant power play time, which will also hold down his scoring chances and corresponding stat totals.
If Nichushkin is a better young NHL player at the end of the year than at the beginning, his rookie year will have a success no matter what his stat line looks like. Bigger scoring numbers will come in time if he fulfills his considerable potential.
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