RW/LW Vasili Podkolzin - SKA-Neva St.Petersburg, VHL (2019, 10th, VAN)

[CLW]

Here's my scouting report on Vasili Podkolzin if anyone is interested. He's a very polarizing prospect, so I would love to hear your opinion.

Thx for the compilation Andy

I have him in my top 3 as well. I find it difficult to rank J.Hughes, Kakko and Podkolzin because they have such different styles. Podkolzin stands out to me for his compete and drive in all three zones , he is tough and physical in 1 vs 1 battles for the puck, the puck seems to follow him and he gets something positive going with it, using teammates rather than transporting it. Jack Hughes, in contrast, is more about pouncing on a loose puck and take it over the offensive blue line himself. Podkolzin has skills, vision and an offensive edge. I asked Russian speakers on here earlier about his personality and he seems to have a good head.

 

[Atas2000]

Thx for the compilation Andy

I have him in my top 3 as well. I find it difficult to rank J.Hughes, Kakko and Podkolzin because they have such different styles. Podkolzin stands out to me for his compete and drive in all three zones , he is tough and physical in 1 vs 1 battles for the puck, the puck seems to follow him and he gets something positive going with it, using teammates rather than transporting it. Jack Hughes, in contrast, is more about pouncing on a loose puck and take it over the offensive blue line himself. Podkolzin has skills, vision and an offensive edge. I asked Russian speakers on here earlier about his personality and he seems to have a good head.

He has one of the best attitudes among young Russians in ages. Maybe Kaprizov is the same level headed type of guy. Dare I say Podkolzin is more skilled and can be more physical due to his size.

 

[Outlaw Samurai]

Here's my scouting report on Vasili Podkolzin if anyone is interested. He's a very polarizing prospect, so I would love to hear your opinion.

Great job Andy. Would love him on the Flyers. I posted your video on our draft page.

 

[Andy Lehoux]

Thx for the compilation Andy

I have him in my top 3 as well. I find it difficult to rank J.Hughes, Kakko and Podkolzin because they have such different styles. Podkolzin stands out to me for his compete and drive in all three zones , he is tough and physical in 1 vs 1 battles for the puck, the puck seems to follow him and he gets something positive going with it, using teammates rather than transporting it. Jack Hughes, in contrast, is more about pouncing on a loose puck and take it over the offensive blue line himself. Podkolzin has skills, vision and an offensive edge. I asked Russian speakers on here earlier about his personality and he seems to have a good head.

Thanks ! Yeah, there is a lot of positives in Podkolzin's game.

 

[Andy Lehoux]

Great job Andy. Would love him on the Flyers. I posted your video on our draft page.

Thanks a lot !

 

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[KirkAlbuquerque]

that game has the intensity and atmosphere as my D-League beer team games

 

[tigervixxxen]

that game has the intensity and atmosphere as my D-League beer team games

That's why it's the VHL!

 

[Kshahdoo]

that game has the intensity and atmosphere as my D-League beer team games

It always looks like this untill you meet these guys on the ice. And then you'll get twenty unanswered goals...

 

[cgf]

It always looks like this untill you meet these guys on the ice. And then you'll get twenty unanswered goals...

"atmosphere" typically refers to the crowd

 

[Kshahdoo]

"atmosphere" typically refers to the crowd

Ah oh, my bad, didn't pay attention to the word... Yeah, VHL doesn't usually have the best crowd.

 

[KopitarFAN]

Is there any concern about him wanting to play in the NHL? I have yet to read anything from a verified source saying so, but people on the Kings board have this phobia of Russians for this exact reason.

 

[wings5]

Is there any concern about him wanting to play in the NHL? I have yet to read anything from a verified source saying so, but people on the Kings board have this phobia of Russians for this exact reason.

Kings board is scared because of what happened/is happening with Prokhorkin , usually the top young Russian forward talent unless they are of small stature , will come over at a young enough age to give the NHL a shot.

 

[King'sPawn]

Kings board is scared because of what happened/is happening with Prokhorkin , usually the top young Russian forward talent unless they are of small stature , will come over at a young enough age to give the NHL a shot.

Dergachyov as well as Prokhorkin. Though there are rumors Prokhorkin is going to come over after all these years.

 

[Atas2000]

Is there any concern about him wanting to play in the NHL? I have yet to read anything from a verified source saying so, but people on the Kings board have this phobia of Russians for this exact reason.

Good! The more phobias the better.

 

[KopitarFAN]

Dergachyov as well as Prokhorkin. Though there are rumors Prokhorkin is going to come over after all these years.

Because a 4th round pick 7 years ago (Prokhorkin) and a likely Top 5 pick are the same thing.

And Dergachyov isn't exactly setting the world on fire in the KHL (14 goals in 130 games), maybe there is a feeling that he can't play in NHL?

 

[CanuckCity]

Most polarizing guy in the draft IMO (other than maybe Kaliyev). Seems people are either super high on him or want no part. I personally really like him but he's tough to get a full grasp on.

He makes all these awesome individual plays/rushes but will it translate? Does he use his teammates well? Could he potentially be similar to Hossa?

 

[Maylo]

Is there any concern about him wanting to play in the NHL? I have yet to read anything from a verified source saying so, but people on the Kings board have this phobia of Russians for this exact reason.

Not planning to go to play in minors or Q.

- You could have been chosen by CHL , but did not, because you refused to go to Canada. Why?
- There is a type of people who simply do not have a desire to go there. I have friends who say: "Oh, America, Canada - this is very cool, I would like to live there all my life." I'm the opposite. I basically do not want to go there. Even more - play there. Because I understand that, most likely, I will lose more there than I'll acquire. Because I know very little language. And I know what kind of mentality there is, what kind of life. Because I was there in tournaments. And i don't have a desire to go there. To live alone in another country ... it's ok if you're in another city, as it's now, but at 17 years old in another country - I am not ready. I want to go there already as established hockey player and a man. With my family, probably. And now - it's too early for me.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Because a 4th round pick 7 years ago (Prokhorkin) and a likely Top 5 pick are the same thing.

And Dergachyov isn't exactly setting the world on fire in the KHL (14 goals in 130 games), maybe there is a feeling that he can't play in NHL?

Nevertheless, LA has ZERO luck with Russians, or at least very little. Maybe it's the picks themselves, maybe it's being halfway across the globe, maybe our org doesn't mesh attitudes, who knows. All I know is look at recent history:

Prokhorkin has used LA for leverage at every juncture.
Voynov is one of the biggest reasons LA is where they are now.
Dergachyov I love, but he's not coming over.
Jury is out on Shafigullin as of yet.
Zykov.
Kitsyn.

Loktionov wasn't good enough to stick but he had a good attitude and worked at least.
Frolov was probably the best of the bunch as far as luck and actually sticking go.

Yes, to be fair, some of them just flat out aren't good enough, but with our history with Russians, and with our most recent high pick in Vilardi being a wild card to even have a career at this point, LA can't afford a swing and a miss, particularly if there's ANY chance he isn't coming over. So I think it's absolutely a fair question what his intentions are because frankly as much as I love the player this pick would make me nervous as hell.

Edit: welp, see quote above, that's pretty damning for his chances here in LA.

 

[KopitarFAN]

Nevertheless, LA has ZERO luck with Russians, or at least very little. Maybe it's the picks themselves, maybe it's being halfway across the globe, maybe our org doesn't mesh attitudes, who knows. All I know is look at recent history:

Prokhorkin has used LA for leverage at every juncture.
Voynov is one of the biggest reasons LA is where they are now.
Dergachyov I love, but he's not coming over.
Jury is out on Shafigullin as of yet.
Zykov.
Kitsyn.

Loktionov wasn't good enough to stick but he had a good attitude and worked at least.
Frolov was probably the best of the bunch as far as luck and actually sticking go.

Yes, to be fair, some of them just flat out aren't good enough, but with our history with Russians, and with our most recent high pick in Vilardi being a wild card to even have a career at this point, LA can't afford a swing and a miss, particularly if there's ANY chance he isn't coming over. So I think it's absolutely a fair question what his intentions are because frankly as much as I love the player this pick would make me nervous as hell.

Edit: welp, see quote above, that's pretty damning for his chances here in LA.

I guess they'll have to weigh it (assuming they don't get a Top 2 selection), go with the lower upside, whether that's one of the non-Hughes NTDP guys or the WHL (Dach, Cozens, Krebs) guys.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I guess they'll have to weigh it (assuming they don't get a Top 2 selection), go with the lower upside, whether that's one of the non-Hughes NTDP guys or the WHL (Dach, Cozens, Krebs) guys.

And believe me, as a guy who loves the Russian style of hockey and the guys that play in the NHL, it kills me to see it play out this way.

 

[Atas2000]

Most polarizing guy in the draft IMO (other than maybe Kaliyev). Seems people are either super high on him or want no part. I personally really like him but he's tough to get a full grasp on.

He makes all these awesome individual plays/rushes but will it translate? Does he use his teammates well? Could he potentially be similar to Hossa?

LOL people with concerns never watched him play. I hope he trickles down in the draft for a proper team to draft him. If everything works out, he is a prospect after all, he will be much better than some Hossa.

 

[tigervixxxen]

LOL people with concerns never watched him play. I hope he trickles down in the draft for a proper team to draft him. If everything works out, he is a prospect after all, he will be much better than some Hossa.

I have yet to see a non-narrative driven criticism of his game. For me he's a bit raw because he wasn't playing at even the MHL level last year and he hasn't been able to settle in and get comfortable on one team consistently this year. But all aspects of his game I don't see holes in. Some team that lands Podkolzin is going to be very lucky.