LD Shakir Mukhamadullin (2020, 20th, NJD; traded to SJS)

[ColonialsHockey10]

Rangers fan here. I can definitely see why Devils fans are excited for this guy. He made the odd sloppy play, and has the appearance of looking a bit clueless from time to time (whether he actually is is a different story), but I was very intrigued by the total package. The upside is very very apparent.

Rangers fans have been crapping on him, which I find a bit ironic because we have a very similar player in K’Andre Miller that we shower with praise. Both guys have the unique ability to make your jaw drop and look like a complete moron on the same shift. You’re paying for what you eventually may get, not what you’re getting now.

 

[pgfan66]

Very interesting article on EP Rinkside, including a tidbit on Mukhamadullin: 10 final thoughts on the World Juniors using manually tracked data - EP Rinkside

"At the World Juniors, Mukhamadullin led Russia in ice-time, although his role as their No. 1 became muddier throughout the tournament.

At face value, Mukhamadullin’s tournament was fine. He broke up plays in transition, looked the part of a potential puck-mover with the occasional deceptive breakout pass, and activated off the point when other Russian players migrated to it.
But there were also memorable gaffes and subtle mistakes of the sort that plagued Mukhamadullin’s game last season. He still struggles to pivot and over-extends to contest rushes, getting beaten spectacularly just as often as he stops the rush. Random point shots with space and open teammates hindered his team’s ability to generate offence. And then, there’s the core of his issues: his inability to skate, make decisions, and handle the puck simultaneously. When he’s making decisions, he enters a glide and stops handling the puck; when he’s handling the puck, he stops skating and looking for options, and so on. That conundrum led directly to many of his turnovers against U20 competition. Even with the occasional craftiness, he’ll need to do all three to find success in the NHL."

 

[TGWL]

Very interesting article on EP Rinkside, including a tidbit on Mukhamadullin: 10 final thoughts on the World Juniors using manually tracked data - EP Rinkside

"At the World Juniors, Mukhamadullin led Russia in ice-time, although his role as their No. 1 became muddier throughout the tournament.

At face value, Mukhamadullin’s tournament was fine. He broke up plays in transition, looked the part of a potential puck-mover with the occasional deceptive breakout pass, and activated off the point when other Russian players migrated to it.
But there were also memorable gaffes and subtle mistakes of the sort that plagued Mukhamadullin’s game last season. He still struggles to pivot and over-extends to contest rushes, getting beaten spectacularly just as often as he stops the rush. Random point shots with space and open teammates hindered his team’s ability to generate offence. And then, there’s the core of his issues: his inability to skate, make decisions, and handle the puck simultaneously. When he’s making decisions, he enters a glide and stops handling the puck; when he’s handling the puck, he stops skating and looking for options, and so on. That conundrum led directly to many of his turnovers against U20 competition. Even with the occasional craftiness, he’ll need to do all three to find success in the NHL."

Sounds like the Sean Day Syndrome. Hopefully that changes with more development.

 

[Wierzbowski426]

Sounds like the Sean Day Syndrome. Hopefully that changes with more development.

What an awful awful comparison. Just sheer lazyness.

 

[dedutchhockey]

Very interesting article on EP Rinkside, including a tidbit on Mukhamadullin: 10 final thoughts on the World Juniors using manually tracked data - EP Rinkside

"At the World Juniors, Mukhamadullin led Russia in ice-time, although his role as their No. 1 became muddier throughout the tournament.

At face value, Mukhamadullin’s tournament was fine. He broke up plays in transition, looked the part of a potential puck-mover with the occasional deceptive breakout pass, and activated off the point when other Russian players migrated to it.
But there were also memorable gaffes and subtle mistakes of the sort that plagued Mukhamadullin’s game last season. He still struggles to pivot and over-extends to contest rushes, getting beaten spectacularly just as often as he stops the rush. Random point shots with space and open teammates hindered his team’s ability to generate offence. And then, there’s the core of his issues: his inability to skate, make decisions, and handle the puck simultaneously. When he’s making decisions, he enters a glide and stops handling the puck; when he’s handling the puck, he stops skating and looking for options, and so on. That conundrum led directly to many of his turnovers against U20 competition. Even with the occasional craftiness, he’ll need to do all three to find success in the NHL."

Ding ding ding we have a winner.

exactly what I saw in SMs game over the WJC.

 

[TGWL]

What an awful awful comparison. Just sheer lazyness.

It was a joke because Sean Day can't chew gum and skate at the same time. It wasn't a comparison between Mukhamadullin and Sean Day as players. It's ok, the player NJ drafted can still become a valuable player. I didn't say he was going to bust...

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Ding ding ding we have a winner.

exactly what I saw in SMs game over the WJC.

Funny, the Athletic article provides a difference stance from actual members of the hockey community and not armchair writers posing as scouts. Did you really expect EP led by J.D. Burke (he who deletes tweets after I proved him wrong) to write anything positive about Shakir?

 

[HBK27]

 

[NJ DevLolz]

Yeah but he didn’t score any points against 18 year olds

 

[ReginKarlssonLehner]

He has a swagger and confidence about him that are real infectious and imposing on the ice--in all three zones. Great pick up by devils.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Funny, the Athletic article provides a difference stance from actual members of the hockey community and not armchair writers posing as scouts. Did you really expect EP led by J.D. Burke (he who deletes tweets after I proved him wrong) to write anything positive about Shakir?

What stance is that?

He didn't get any write up or anything beyond him being listed as a disappointment from one scout in the one story linked above. The one Devil prospect centric write up on the Athletic where they focused on him was pretty much a mixed bag, which pretty much mirrors what the EP write up said.
Not to mention that pretty much all of his praise came from an announcer and Craig Button, who has never met a prospect he didn't love.

Also, you calling out someone for arm chair scouting is hilarious. Like what the f*** do you think you (and the rest of us) are?

 

[AlternateSideParking]

I can explain it.

After the WJAC he was a strong first-round candidate. He wasn’t a super stud but had a strong enough first half to warrant consideration. He was too good for the MHL but saw limited KHL time. His U18 5 Nations in February was nondescript but he definitely was dropped because others performed better (for myself it was a spike in viewing others and law of averages rather than Mulhamadullin’s play).

Then several prospect writers around February started dinging him for little stuff. It’s fair and I also used to do it to prove a point as to why I was low on a kid, but it was odd how raucous and frequent their attacks on him were.

Anyway, Elite Prospects put him on a “Do Not Draft” list. Now, I don’t read them and the stopped using the site altogether (the league sites are more accurate with no annoying popups), but they went for shock value over substance and younger, less experienced fans and analysts jumped on board to what became a bit of a smear campaign.

I don’t think race/religion has anything to do with it. It’s just a bunch of people hoping a kid fails to one day spike the football if their assessments are validated.

My advice? When you see an analyst crush a kid, ask them for their game notes and specific dates that helped them come to their conclusion. I went back and checked all mine on Shakir from August ‘19 to Feb ‘20 and they were overwhelmingly positive, and I had notes on nearly 1000 kids from the 2000-2002 year groups.

I had him ranked in the 60s and I liked the pick for the Devils.

 

[DistantThunderRep]

It was a joke because Sean Day can't chew gum and skate at the same time. It wasn't a comparison between Mukhamadullin and Sean Day as players. It's ok, the player NJ drafted can still become a valuable player. I didn't say he was going to bust...

Day looked pretty good at Tampa's camp and scrimmage. His skating vastly improved. Was actually pretty impressed seeing him play. Small sample size though.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

What stance is that?

He didn't get any write up or anything beyond him being listed as a disappointment from one scout in the one story linked above. The one Devil prospect centric write up on the Athletic where they focused on him was pretty much a mixed bag, which pretty much mirrors what the EP write up said.
Not to mention that pretty much all of his praise came from an announcer and Craig Button, who has never met a prospect he didn't love.

Also, you calling out someone for arm chair scouting is hilarious. Like what the f*** do you think you (and the rest of us) are?

Almost all the writeups said he had a lot of good and some bad to his game, as one would expect from a project 1st rounder. Button was the GM of an NHL team. Regardless of your view towards him he reached the pinnacle for most in the hockey industry. On top of that the EP article has many fallacies that exist in how they view Mukhamadullin, the stats prove this.

I'm not writing for a living. Based on his comments on Twitter throughout the tournament, that's not how you scout. He focused on plays that Mukhamadullin was called out by Ferraro and assumed that the other 95% of the game could be assessed similarly. He and other staff from EP then used their platform to continually bash Mukhamadullin with very little basis. I will tell you just from watching the Devils Red and White games, you can't get an accurate report on a player without focusing on 2, max 3 players per game. If they are on the ice for the same shift you might as well watch the game again. Not to mention these "writers" protect their previous rankings at all costs. I dealt with this for the full WJC, nobody could have a legit discussion on what Mukhamadullin was doing wrong outside, he was horrible defensively and his decision making was non existent. I watched every minute of him throughout the WJC (yes I ignored the rest of the game while he was on the ice) and feel I have a very good assessment of what he is doing well and what he is doing poorly. The projection part takes a little forward thinking and imagination of a heavier/stronger Mukhamadullin.

 

[TGWL]

Day looked pretty good at Tampa's camp and scrimmage. His skating vastly improved. Was actually pretty impressed seeing him play. Small sample size though.

He was always a great skater. I think he was ranked best skater in his draft class. If even improving that a little, dude skates like a monster. It was more about skating and doing anything else that requires thinking at the same time which held him back from making the NHL. He's had a rough path after being drafted, having his idol (Brother) getting a DUI involving death and being sent to prison. Hope things work out for him in Tampa.

 

[Fogelhund]

At this age, with limited viewings, he's a very high event type player. His plays really stand out, whether that is offensively, a hit, or some of his blunders, it's not the little things he does/or doesn't do, because there are so many big events. He's got a lot of potential for sure, it really is going to come down to his ability to learn from his mistakes.. well, and put on some weight. But, it's easy to watch this guy, and look only at the positives and thing... wow, this guy can be a player, or just watch the negatives, and come away with a warning sign.. but he's just a kid... with lot's of potential, and lot's to learn.

 

[DistantThunderRep]

He was always a great skater. I think he was ranked best skater in his draft class. If even improving that a little, dude skates like a monster. It was more about skating and doing anything else that requires thinking at the same time which held him back from making the NHL. He's had a rough path after being drafted, having his idol (Brother) getting a DUI involving death and being sent to prison. Hope things work out for him in Tampa.

I am one of the few on the Tampa boards that timidly roots for him to get it together. No idea why I root for him, maybe because yelling his name is funny to me.

 

[My3Sons]

At this age, with limited viewings, he's a very high event type player. His plays really stand out, whether that is offensively, a hit, or some of his blunders, it's not the little things he does/or doesn't do, because there are so many big events. He's got a lot of potential for sure, it really is going to come down to his ability to learn from his mistakes.. well, and put on some weight. But, it's easy to watch this guy, and look only at the positives and thing... wow, this guy can be a player, or just watch the negatives, and come away with a warning sign.. but he's just a kid... with lot's of potential, and lot's to learn.

I think that some view the criticism as unduly harsh and one sided as suggested by Mr. Kournianos. I expect most picks in the draft outside the top 10 carry an ever increasing element of uncertainty and NJ took a bit of a gamble on upside. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn't, but he was a third pick in the first round for them and if you are going to take a calculated risk the lowest pick of multiple picks would seem to be the time to take that chance. Given he's playing in the KHL and given his age he likely isn't headed to NJ for several years so he should have ample time to iron out the wrinkles in his game.

 

[OiledUp]

I think I've mentioned it before in this thread but while I understand some of the concerns with the player as he is now I don't know how you can look at him and not see the high end player he could turn into with some seasoning. And I wouldn't even call it a boom bust scenario, I think it's quite likely he works out a lot of his wrinkles going forward, just let him simmer in the KHL for a couple of seasons. I think Devils did very well here.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Team Russia - EHT Winter 21

Goalkeepers: Alexander Samonov, Yaroslav Askarov (both SKA Saint Petersburg), Daniil Tarasov (Salavat Yulaev Ufa).

Defensemen: Shakir Mukhamadullin, Alexander Alexeev (both Salavat Yulaev Ufa), Daniil Zhuravlyov (Ak Bars Kazan), Daniil Misyul (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl), Daniil Pylenkov (Vityaz Podolsk), Artyom Minulin (Metallurg Magnitogorsk), Kirill Kirsanov (SKA Saint Petersburg), Sergei Zborovsky (Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg), Semyon Chistyakov (Avangard Omsk), Marsel Ibragimov (CSKA Moscow).

Forwards: Ivan Chekhovich, Damir Zhafyarov (both Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod), Artur Kayumov, Pavel Kraskovsky, Nikolai Kovalenko (all Lokomotiv Yaroslavl), Marat Khusnutdinov, Maxim Groshev, Vasily Podkolzin, Nikita Chibrikov (all SKA Saint Petersburg), Vitaly Kravtsov (Traktor Chelyabinsk), Artyom Galimov (Ak Bars Kazan), Sergei Shmelyov (HC Sochi), Zakhar Bardakov (Vityaz Podolsk), Vladimir Butuzov (Amur Khabarovsk), Maxim Sorkin (CSKA Moscow).

Management group:

General manager: Roman Rotenberg;
Interim head coach: Igor Larionov;
Coaches: Albert Leshchev, Vladimir Filatov;
Goalkeeping coach: Rashit Davydov;
Physical training coach: Kevin Chapman.

Match schedule:

February 11, Russia - Finland, 17:00*

February 13, Sweden - Russia, 18:00

February 14, Russia - Czech Republic, 14:00

*All start times in accordance with Moscow time

 

[Favin]

I can explain it.

After the WJAC he was a strong first-round candidate. He wasn’t a super stud but had a strong enough first half to warrant consideration. He was too good for the MHL but saw limited KHL time. His U18 5 Nations in February was nondescript but he definitely was dropped because others performed better (for myself it was a spike in viewing others and law of averages rather than Mulhamadullin’s play).

Then several prospect writers around February started dinging him for little stuff. It’s fair and I also used to do it to prove a point as to why I was low on a kid, but it was odd how raucous and frequent their attacks on him were.

Anyway, Elite Prospects put him on a “Do Not Draft” list. Now, I don’t read them and the stopped using the site altogether (the league sites are more accurate with no annoying popups), but they went for shock value over substance and younger, less experienced fans and analysts jumped on board to what became a bit of a smear campaign.

I don’t think race/religion has anything to do with it. It’s just a bunch of people hoping a kid fails to one day spike the football if their assessments are validated.

My advice? When you see an analyst crush a kid, ask them for their game notes and specific dates that helped them come to their conclusion. I went back and checked all mine on Shakir from August ‘19 to Feb ‘20 and they were overwhelmingly positive, and I had notes on nearly 1000 kids from the 2000-2002 year groups.

I had him ranked in the 60s and I liked the pick for the Devils.

This is wild. What was the reasoning Elite Prospects gave to put him on a Do Not Draft list?

I have found that EP is not the most accurate source for really anything (do not trust any of the height weights on EP).

 

[Monsieur Verdoux]

 

[PizzaAndPucks]

Another year in the KHL will do him well. Let's see how he looks after the year but my guess is a year in the AHL after to have him adapt to North American ice. He has potential to be a strong middle pairing guy IMO. Smtih , Muhk , one of Power/Hughes/Clarke and another one of our d prospects as a top 4 looks to be something good to build around.

 

[WylleM71]

Bahl looked good, down the stretch.

 

[MitchMurphy]

Bahl looked good, down the stretch.

I look good, when I stretch.