Atas2000
Registered User
- Jan 18, 2011
- 13,601
- 3,269
Kirill Kaprizov may be the next superstar.
I trust Bragin. He is a man of his word.
Kirill Kaprizov may be the next superstar.
I trust Bragin. He is a man of his word.
We're a bit lacking of NA development success stories at D so far: Zadorov, Mikulovich, Sleptsov, Osipov, Lyamkin, Vladimirov, Baldayev, D. Sergeyev, A. Sergeyev, Sharipzyanov, Boikov, Pedan don't look too good so far. There are successfull examples of Provorov, Kulikov and possibly Valiyev though.
Is putting Zadorov in the same category with all the rest of these guys really fair? Sure, he's not been as good as Sergachev or Provorov especially offensively, but he is playing top four minutes for a good NHL club at 22 (turning 23). He kills penalties, leads the team in hits, is 3rd in blocked shots. Zads is not a world-beater, but he is miles better than the rest of the "failures" group, and I don't see how it's even close.
There are certainly instances where going to NA can be a very positive experience for a Russian player's profile, especially if they are not particularly highly touted in the first place. Oleg Sosunov is an example of such a player; he likely doesn't have much of a future in the pros, but he probably got way more offensive opportunities and exposure playing for Moose Jaw in the WHL than he would have playing for Lokomotiv's MHL squad. And he didn't even get that many power play chances after the Warriors acquired Kale Clague.
I would like to see a middle-ground where NHL clubs could loan Russian players back to the KHL. Zadorov, for instance, should have been loaned in 13-14 when the Sabres didn't want to burn his ELC. Instead they wasted half his season before they sent him back to London. Kostin could be signed for the Blues but playing KHL minutes. There seem like plenty of circumstances where this kind of agreement could be beneficial to all parties concerned.
About Zadorov, my quote is from January 2017, he wasn't good at all at that point, especially comparing with initial expectations (I hoped for a new Konstantinov).