believe yesterday was his last regular season game. really, really enjoyed the viewing. rather than outlining good and bad again, i think a couple points on his year-long progression would be more interesting:
-his early season offensive zone assertiveness was on display again, with the same fakes, slipperiness, and power drives to the net, only this time with smarter decisions and a better respect for attacking the space he has rather than trying to power through defenders
-his playmaking game, particularly off the rush, seems expanded. while ive generally always liked his breakout passing and manipulation at the point, his play off the rush had previously felt a little simple i.e. every attempt was either a one and done stretch pass or a forced entry attempt. now, i see cutbacks, i see give and go's, i see a player who's harder to read
-really like his neutral zone defense. his timing is usually great and hes excellent at using his reach and mobility to take away space. physicality is still a key part of his game here, but hes using it to squeeze attackers off the puck once hes taken away a lane instead of outright relying on it to box them out
-defensive position is improving. better gap control, not getting crossed up with his partner as much. overall more purposeful positional game with him starting to shed the need to chase hits all the time. i had mentioned months ago that i generally saw this whenever he was on the pk and i think its more consistently showing up even strength
-a couple stat updates: finishes 2-9-11 through 49gp (8pt in 30gp since i last posted). hard to call it a jump but a step in production. he also shot 2.2% compared to 9.4% with avto last year. hes better offensively than his stats indicate, and ill say that confidently. up to 1st on his team and 7th in league wide corsi (incl F/D). he got a bit more pp time down the stretch (i dont think i ever saw any lol) and a continued heavy pk load
-while this is pretty overtly positive, hes obviously not a perfect player. he botches pass attempts, his backskating/pivots have some quirks to them, i still think hes prone to playing too high at times (even if hes better at sticking to his man), and theres plenty of good ideas im calling out that hes not perfectly executing in game. but im happy with how his game is progressing
-dont know when playoffs start yet but ill keep watch. he captained the belarus u20 team to a tournament win in the future cup a couple weeks ago (not to pretend its anything that significant), so we'll see if he can replicate that success
finally, just a couple clips i wanted to call out. first up, some great moves at the point and the same power drive to the net he loves to make. like the vision and cuts on display here. these types of plays pop up semi-regularly
9 seconds · Clipped by Evnted · Original video "ÐеÑаллÑÑг - Ðеман | 26.02.2024 | Betera-ÐкÑÑÑалига | ÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐ ÐÐЯ пÑÑÐ¼Ð°Ñ ÑÑанÑлÑÑиÑ" by Хоккей ÐелаÑÑÑи | Ðк...
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next, a little bit of a subtle play here, but i really like this clip because it shows how he can use physicality to his advantage without having to rely on it. a clean stick check, he boxes out the forechecker along the boards, and one hands the puck to safety
6 seconds · Clipped by Evnted · Original video "ÐеÑаллÑÑг - Ðеман | 26.02.2024 | Betera-ÐкÑÑÑалига | ÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐ ÐÐЯ пÑÑÐ¼Ð°Ñ ÑÑанÑлÑÑиÑ" by Хоккей ÐелаÑÑÑи | Ðк...
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and to wrap up, this isnt a perfect sequence by any means, but i think it showcases a lot of what hes been improving and is worth sharing. smart defensive stick and positioning to start, a good read to quickly jump up in transition, lots of scanning on the puck, a bit of a poorly executed drop pass, probably too lax dropping back at first, but he quickly powers back in position, gets a stick on the puck behind the net to slow the pass attempt, and then shows off just sublime poise on the puck to bait two attackers and free up space for his teammate. this clip is honestly a great representation of his full year to me, tons of good ideas and largely positive overall even with some flaws
33 seconds · Clipped by Evnted · Original video "ÐеÑаллÑÑг - Ðеман | 26.02.2024 | Betera-ÐкÑÑÑалига | ÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐÐ ÐÐЯ пÑÑÐ¼Ð°Ñ ÑÑанÑлÑÑиÑ" by Хоккей ÐелаÑÑÑи | Ð...
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excited to see what the future holds for him. from his interviews, he still seems quite interested in an NA jump next season. i saw a video from a belarus outlet interviewing one of our russian scouts and (assuming the translation conveyed the message clearly) it sounded like the team might also consider a KHL gig for him next year(?) so perhaps something to watch if they think utica is still too logjammed on the back end