I might be taking a terribly cynical position on this but I want to get him back in NA as soon as possible. What's the upside for his AHL team? He puts things back together with the ultimate upside being he returns to NA anyway?
Maybe I'm missing something here.
I think the upside in Russia is:
(1) He can get to train a lot.
(2) He can get to train well (which he obviously has done up to this point).
(3) He should get to play at a level where he can play to his strengths and hence develop those strengths more.
(4) Hopefully have less distractions off the ice. He has been going to that same rink for training since he was what young 10s (AK?).
Look, there will almost always be an adjustment period for Europeans, and maybe especially Russians, coming over to NA. But the key with any kid you develop is to NOT prevent them from building on their strengths. The problem Kravy had in NA was that he often coughed up the puck when he tried to buy himself time. That worried me. Hands down, you must afford mistakes from kids. But you can’t accept too many of those mistakes. And it was quite obvious that KK wherent going to.
Hence I think it was good that he went back. Get a little more time with he puck on the bigger ice and take another step next time he gets back to NA when he knows how fast the game is and how little time he will have.
Back in Russia he has faced another dilemma. I know the background Jurzinov Jr comes from, and I would be surprised if they didn’t play a very disciplined trap without the puck while being more creative with it. Think Finland in international tournaments. Jurzinov is a strict coach. The KHL is a professional league. Traktor is a new team for this coach — and he will require that everyone plays exactly like he wants them too. You can’t play a conservative style like that — and not be disciplined about it. It comes with the territory.
I’ve seen some comments like ‘great now he EVEN is getting disciplined by his coach in the KHL’, but I can guarantee you, coaches in the KHL/Europe can be tremendously strict. It’s more of a tactical game than in NA. It doesn’t have to be big things at all. Could be very detail oriented stuff. Things Kravy needs to learn.
So ultimately I think we just just wait and see. The VHL isn’t a bad league. It’s good that he gets to play there. These things also takes time. Things can look really different in 4-8 weeks. Or things might not work out with the new coach. Time will tell!
