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Russian Draft Eligible's at the U18's |
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The Russian squad fell on home ice to the Fins to finish fourth in the tournament and out of a bronze slot. There were a few reasons for this, though in my opinion it’s a growing concern about Russia’s ability to develop defensemen. There are a few who squeak out and become solid or great performers, but depth is becoming a major issue. This tournament was no exception, if you can play a trap, you can beat the Russians.
This was a surprisingly young squad for Russia to bring; usually they love to bring older players even if it means the sitting of some young star. There were several big names that had major performances that will see their stars rise in the 2014 draft, Ivan Barbashev (Expected top-10), Vladimir Tkachyov (Wildcard with top-5 skill but 5’8 height), Igor Shestyorkin (Extremely talented goalie) and Nikolai Demidov (A two-way defenseman with elite skating). Compared to the draft eligible guys on the squad for this year, they kind of were stealing the show.
Pavel Buchnevich – Outside of Connor McDavid he was probably the best forward in my mind. An injury has turned a promising start in the KHL to playing some painful to watch hockey as he recovered in the MHL (until the playoffs where he was dynamite), it has hurt his draft status a lot. This was his last chance to show that his amazing year last season that gave him a lot of hype was real. Boy was he nasty. He has that amazing wrist shot you typically expect from a Russian trained player and that quick deceptive speed down the wing. What really stood out to me was his board work which I didn’t expect seeing his play in the MHL, that injury (undisclosed even now) must have been troubling the last time I saw him. I liked his willingness to take the puck to the net and he had that drive to score goals regardless of the odds which makes him dangerous. He tied for the team lead in goals and points with 5 and 11, he and Tkachyov were the only forwards playing in the Bronze Medal Game it seemed. With the Russian factor he could go as far as the last pick in the draft, I mean hell, Slepyshev didn’t even get picked and he was slated by every draft/scout list as a late first/early second pick.
Valeri Nichushkin – I’m still not getting it, Nichushkin as the number 2 pick? That incredible mix of size and speed is extremely tempting, but inconsistency is really the key with Nichushkin. He doesn’t use that size nearly enough and it’s hard to see him at 6’4 210 being less gritty than 5’8 165 Tkachyov. When he does use his size he is a beast and nobody can take that puck off him whether it is at full stride, on the boards or around the net. When he wants to hit (every third bloodmoon on a red dawn) he has the explosiveness to crush players. He has some of the best raw tools in this draft but he needs to do more than sprint down the wing and shoot a wrist shot or go wide and jam on the side of the net once every two games. Maybe I’m nitpicking, but that’s probably because he disappeared against any real opponent and scored 3 of his 4 goals against Germany in a rout. I still think he goes top-15, but he’s not on the same level as either Tarasenko or even Kuznetsov at the same age and both fell far in the draft.
Nikolai Glukhov – Glukhov was one of the top Russian defenders in the tournament and was given plenty of ice-time especially on the PP. He has some offensive flair to his game to go with good size (6’2) and he brings some physical play to that mix. Defensively he can be shoddy and makes some pretty poor turnovers when he’s rushed. He’s definitely more of a playmaking defenseman than a shooter and he was given the task as set-up man to a PP consisting of 4 forwards who want to shoot the puck all day long. He tied for the tournament lead in assists with 6 which led all defensemen. He could be a solid pick in the 5thish round because he does have some solid upside, especially because his game to me looks like it could fit with the NA game.
Sergei Tolchinsky – Oh how the mighty have fallen. Tolchinsky was expected going into this year to be a first round pick easily, especially after moving to the OHL. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn’t. The 5’7 speedster took a long time to adjust to the NA ice and his perimeter play was not a good fit. He shies away from conflict and I think that really hurts his effectiveness. He’s a very one dimensional player who uses his speed to burst down the wing and pull a wrist shot; he reminds me a lot of Jason Blake without the willingness to get in the shit. He has been freefalling since the start of the year and while he wasn’t terrible in the tournament, he didn’t use the big ice to his advantage as much as he should have. No idea where he goes, but the late rounds would be my guess if at all.
Vladislav Lysenko – Lysenko who plays for the Sherbrooke Phoenix in the QMJHL played as the primary shutdown defenseman for the team and logged the most PK minutes for Team Russia. He’s a solidly built physical defenseman who reads the play well and is pretty good at clearing the net. In the Q he showed some signs of offensive upside, but his projection lends him more towards being a two-way defender or a defensive one, depending on how he develops. He was very solid in the tournament and brought that edge to the team that really needed more grit. I’ve seen him as high as the 4th round, so he’ll probably go around there.
Thanks for reading. There are a few unmentioned...okay a lot, but they have very little to no chance of being drafted anyways.
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