Top Russian Prospects from the KHL: Who's Coming Over in 2019?

[Caser]

Love this Caser and your top UFA list great work. Do you happen to have a list of top KHL players that might come over in 1-2 more years? Thanks

Hard to predict how it is gonna be 2 years from now, but next year I think we are expecting the exodus of CSKA stars, as a lot of contracts there will be expiring (Kaprizov, Sorokin, Grigorenko, Vey, Shalunov, Svetlakov, Okulov, Nesterov, Romanov), also some interesting guys from other teams (Denisenko, Barabanov, Tryamkin, Zub).

 

[SnowblindNYR]

He should have been putting up more 6 years ago, 5 years ago and so on. When he was drafted he was expected to put up 100+pts by people with a brain and knowledge.

People aren't even expecting a solid #2 overall choice in Kakko to put up 100+ points much less a 2nd round pick. You're out to lunch.

 

[Atas2000]

People aren't even expecting a solid #2 overall choice in Kakko to put up 100+ points much less a 2nd round pick. You're out to lunch.

The pick is reeally meaningless, especially talking about Russians. Apparently 30 GMs were out to lunch. Or better to say their scouts. Kakko is your typical finnish pick. Well scouted so everybody knows in what range to place the expectations.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

The pick is reeally meaningless, especially talking about Russians. Apparently 30 GMs were out to lunch. Or better to say their scouts. Kakko is your typical finnish pick. Well scouted so everybody knows in what range to place the expectations.

Yeah because Russian picks never get drafted high. Off the top of my head Tarasenko was drafted just a year earlier in the middle of the first round. Notice how he hasn't had one 100 point season. Plenty of Russian players were drafted high that never sniffed 100 points. You're out of touch with reality.

Edit: Only a handful of players a decade are drafted with 100 point expectations. You really are out to lunch.

 

[EXTRAS]

Hard to predict how it is gonna be 2 years from now, but next year I think we are expecting the exodus of CSKA stars, as a lot of contracts there will be expiring (Kaprizov, Sorokin, Grigorenko, Vey, Shalunov, Svetlakov, Okulov, Nesterov, Romanov), also some interesting guys from other teams (Denisenko, Barabanov, Tryamkin, Zub).

What do you believe Zub could be at the NHL level? Has his game developed that much?

 

[Atas2000]

Yeah because Russian picks never get drafted high. Off the top of my head Tarasenko was drafted just a year earlier in the middle of the first round. Notice how he hasn't had one 100 point season. Plenty of Russian players were drafted high that never sniffed 100 points. You're out of touch with reality.

Edit: Only a handful of players a decade are drafted with 100 point expectations. You really are out to lunch.

Yeah, I am out of touch with reality because I predict the performance of russian prospects well. This is not NHL scout reaity.

Kucherov is one out of that handful and the fact that so many people who are payed to know didn't is telling.

Again what is Tarasenko's pick doing here? He was also picked lower than he should have benn, due to the russian factor, but it is completely detached from the topic. Topic being NHL scouts are bad at evaluating russian players. That means they overvalue one guy and undervalue the other. Kucherov is just the most blatant example of sleeping on a future superstar. It doesn't mean other examples have to be that drastically obvious. But every single NHL draft has it. Players from Russia being picked even people who are experts on russian hockey have to look up. And then some blatant fallers.

 

[Atas2000]

What do you believe Zub could be at the NHL level? Has his game developed that much?

Same mold as Yakovlev for example and we do know how that panned out. Caser's point is probabaly that he will give it a try at some point. A valid one.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

Yeah, I am out of touch with reality because I predict the performance of russian prospects well. This is not NHL scout reaity.

Kucherov is one out of that handful and the fact that so many people who are payed to know didn't is telling.

Again what is Tarasenko's pick doing here? He was also picked lower than he should have benn, due to the russian factor, but it is completely detached from the topic. Topic being NHL scouts are bad at evaluating russian players. That means they overvalue one guy and undervalue the other. Kucherov is just the most blatant example of sleeping on a future superstar. It doesn't mean other examples have to be that drastically obvious. But every single NHL draft has it. Players from Russia being picked even people who are experts on russian hockey have to look up. And then some blatant fallers.

NHL scouts analyzing Russian prospects poorly is one thing but "anyone with a brain" knew he would be a 100 point scorer is preposterous. There are a handful of prospects every decade that people are comfortable predicting 100 point seasons for.

 

[Caser]

What do you believe Zub could be at the NHL level? Has his game developed that much?

Same mold as Yakovlev for example and we do know how that panned out. Caser's point is probabaly that he will give it a try at some point. A valid one.

I never was a big fan of Yakovlev, so here it is more like Kiselevich as a comparison maybe, and I think Kiselevich has shown that purely in terms of the game he is NHL quality, shame he didn't get along with the coaches at Florida.

 

[EXTRAS]

Sorry to bother again, but what do you think okulov could be at the NHL level? Does he have a high upside, or will he just be a bottom 6 guy?...if he even pans out.

 

[Caser]

Sorry to bother again, but what do you think okulov could be at the NHL level? Does he have a high upside, or will he just be a bottom 6 guy?...if he even pans out.

Well, if we look at Okulov's asset, then it's about skill, sjot and skating, so doesn't sound like as a stereotypical bottom 6 guy. So if he will pan out, probably he will be like someone responsible for providing the scoring in the middle-six.

 

[P10p]

Whats your impression on Kaprizov?

 

[RipCityPuckers]

Which of these guys will make the biggest impact in the NHL next season, and in the future?

 

[Caser]

Whats your impression on Kaprizov?

I actually answered a similar question on the page 2, but in short I think that unless the Wild org will become a total ****, Kaprizov will be a ppg player around the 2022/23 season.

Which of these guys will make the biggest impact in the NHL next season, and in the future?

If we're talking about the next season then obviously there are special hopes for Gusev and Gavrikov to deliver the result immediately. If we're talking about the overall upside, then I guess it's Kravtsov, Gusev and Shestyorkin (in any order).

 

[johnnydrum]

Great thread, always a fan of the Russian players..
Has anyone seen the kid in the Finish League Vadim Pereskokov….wow.!
Saw some clips...litte, but my goodness, a lot of skill!
Any word on Kirill Kabanov….? Where is he at these days.?
I always hoped it would turn out for him.

 

[Caser]

Great thread, always a fan of the Russian players..
Has anyone seen the kid in the Finish League Vadim Pereskokov….wow.!
Saw some clips...litte, but my goodness, a lot of skill!
Any word on Kirill Kabanov….? Where is he at these days.?
I always hoped it would turn out for him.

Kabanov was playing in the German DEL league last time I checked.

 

[kallor]

Very informative thread, thanks for creating it OP.

As a Canucks fan, I'm trying to understand how KHL contract terminations usually go for players like Podkolzin.

I understand that he has publicly committed to SKA for the next 2 years but there was also some scuttlebutt from the talking heads that he might come over sooner.

If that were the case, what does that look like? Is there any examples of recently drafted Russians being released from contracts?

 

[Caser]

Very informative thread, thanks for creating it OP.

As a Canucks fan, I'm trying to understand how KHL contract terminations usually go for players like Podkolzin.

I understand that he has publicly committed to SKA for the next 2 years but there was also some scuttlebutt from the talking heads that he might come over sooner.

If that were the case, what does that look like? Is there any examples of recently drafted Russians being released from contracts?

A year ago Ruslan Iskhakov's contract with CSKA was terminated by a mutual agreement.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

There’s almost never a contract termination. This is talked about too much by fans.

 

[Atas2000]

There’s almost never a contract termination. This is talked about too much by fans.

Just that obsession with bringing prospects over no matter what without really thinking of the pros and cons. That's how I see those fans when talks about contract termination start:

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Just that obsession with bringing prospects over no matter what without really thinking of the pros and cons. That's how I see those fans when talks about contract termination start:

I can understand when it’s talked about with Sorokin or Kaprizov, but why talk about it with Podkolzin? The kid hasn’t yet scored a point in the KHL. For all we know, he’ll never be good enough to play in the NHL. Many first round picks aren’t. Let Podkolzin accomplish something and then it becomes a discussion.

I think it works to the detriment of these players that it’s discussed so early. My team is guilty of it, as well. They were talking about a contract termination for Kravtsov right after he was drafted, which inevitably leads to him staying no longer than one extra season. 21 points in 50 games. He probably needed 2-3 more seasons in the KHL, not 1. Now we have a player who isn’t NHL ready and the options are force him into an NHL role or AHL. Two bad options.

This isn’t only a problem with Russian players. The discussion surrounding Soderstrom right now is similar. Why rush his development? He’s not NHL ready and he got to where he is because of his play in the Brynas organization. Don’t mess with that. When you draft players out of Europe, you shouldn’t expect that they’ll be playing in NA before their D+3 season.