Prospect Info: 186th overall: Vancouver selects Artyom Manukyan (RW, Avangard Omsk)

RobertKron

Registered User
Sep 1, 2007
15,413
8,500
It's a really weird/interesting pick.

I'm probably the biggest supporter around of taking high-skill smallish overage players with mid-late round picks. But there's '5-9 170 small' and then there's '5-7 139 small'.

I feel like there's a 1% chance we've done something genius and drafted a Russian Johnny Gaudreau and a 99% chance that in 10 years we'll be laughing about the time our scouts took a 139 lb Russian in the same way we laugh about that guy we picked from the Q about 15 years ago who had 1 goal and 653 PIMs.

HE SCORED 2 GOALS LEAVE ROY ALONE
 

NiceGuyDrP

Registered User
Nov 15, 2013
159
4
So, this little guy is actually filthy. He has such silky mitts and a quick, deceptive release to go with it. You can tell he has high-twitch muscle fibre that jets him around the rink, and with some extra muscle mass, he could be an even better project than Palmu. Palmu is like Arvidsson-lite, but this Armenian kid is like Kucherov-lite. Unrealistic comparison obviously, but I think this might have been Jimbo's best late-round pick of this draft.
 

Canucks5551

Registered User
Jun 1, 2005
8,806
389
I remeber the last time I laughed at a team that selected such a diminutive player... that player turned out to be Paul Byron. So I'll reserve my judgement
I had no clue Byron had such unimpressive stats in his draft year. He really beat out the odds because that’s not the profile of an NHL regular.
 

ziploc

Registered User
Aug 29, 2003
6,293
4,371
Vancouver
I just picture him getting up onto a step stool and looking in the mirror each morning, going through his motivational routine:

"Hey you, can you one day make it into the NHL?"

"Yes! Yes Man! Yes Man - u - kyan!"
 
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biturbo19

Registered User
Jul 13, 2010
25,156
10,136
Odd pick. There's obviously some skill there, and some vinegar and piss or whatever...but a double-overager playing in Russia...what are the chances we ever actually get him over here? While we still own his rights? Particularly odd when he hasn't really seemed to catch on with the scoring at the KHL level. Though maybe that's part of it somehow? Thinking maybe he'll get frustrated with lack of progress in the KHL and come over to try his luck in North America?
 

F A N

Registered User
Aug 12, 2005
18,629
5,893
Thanks for the video links. If he's like 140 pounds, he looks more like a professional light wealterweight boxer than say Quinn Hughes.
 
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Melvin

21/12/05
Sep 29, 2017
15,198
28,055
Montreal, QC
In the 70's there was a baseball player named Jimmy Wynn who hit some long homeruns despite being quite small; his nickname was "Toy Cannon." That was what came into my head when I watched some of those clips, ha.
 

Get North

Registered User
Aug 25, 2013
8,472
1,364
B.C.
I like this pick. He is a little small, but this guy can play good hockey. He was playing for Russia at the World Juniors and it didn't matter if other players were bigger, he battled hard and he could push them back with his speed. He has good skill, sees the ice well and he's good a stealthy shot. Manukyan has speed, grit, skill, and heart. He lacks size, but I think he can overcome it.

He could surprise like Palmu, hopefully gets a full season in the KHL and puts up some decent numbers.
 

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