WJC - Russia - 2015

[ozo]

Who is the last Russian small guy that made it? And not just as a pro, as a legit national team candidate?

 

[cska78]

Who is the last Russian small guy that made it? And not just as a pro, as a legit national team candidate?

Panarin, by STAYING in Russia.

Anisin if not for his character could have too.

Gusev may make it, he's gradually progressing.

 

[Yakushev72]

beyond that - these guys take a lot longer to mature, since they not only need to bulk up, but also manage not to loose the speed and the skill, while doing it. And where's a better place to do that, than in the MHL???

Tolchinskiy
Alexeyev
Nikolishin

will most likely all evaporate from the map of hockey. There's one St. Louis example for 1000 Dikushins

Very true, which is why these kids should ask themselves "Am I scoring so many goals in the CHL that the NHL scouts that I want to impress will ignore the fact that I can't match up physically with most of my opponents?" Tolchinsky may come the closest, but he is no Martin St. Louis, who piles up lots of goals in the NHL every year despite his size. Obviously, these kids know absolutely nothing about the NHL and its demands before making the decision to trek over there, and the people that they depend on for advice aren't really helping them.

 

[kp61c]

i'd be nice to see okulov make the team. the guy was nothing less than impressive when i saw him, on the mhl level, but nonetheless.

 

[Alessandro Seren Rosso]

I believe that the novelty will eventually wear off, and kids will realize that they have a much better chance of fully developing at home. The NHL will still be there, if that's their personal goal after fully developing in youth hockey.

Frankly and unfortunately, I can't see this happening. There are too many things involved. First of all, pretty much any non american kid aged 15-16-17 would just jump on the first plane to play/work/study in America, it's another country, it's fascinating, it's an adventure, and at that age is hard to resist. They don't know what is America, they just watched it on the TV. They don't know that going there will most likely hurt their career, if they hear about Kabanov or the other 100s of similar stories, they think "but I'm different". Add to this the pressure of their agents, who will most likely push for them to go there for economical/political reasons (players with a reputable agent like Dementiev for example most times take the correct decisions). There is a lot of a grey area here, and it's hard to understand everything if you are 15 or 16. And then, unfortunately, the usual "Russian pessimism" about the country that hits many people makes the rest.
I seriously think that we shouldn't let any player under the age of 18 to go (to the far) abroad to play hockey.

 

[vorky]

Frankly and unfortunately, I can't see this happening. There are too many things involved. First of all, pretty much any non american kid aged 15-16-17 would just jump on the first plane to play/work/study in America, it's another country, it's fascinating, it's an adventure, and at that age is hard to resist. They don't know what is America, they just watched it on the TV. They don't know that going there will most likely hurt their career, if they hear about Kabanov or the other 100s of similar stories, they think "but I'm different". Add to this the pressure of their agents, who will most likely push for them to go there for economical/political reasons (players with a reputable agent like Dementiev for example most times take the correct decisions). There is a lot of a grey area here, and it's hard to understand everything if you are 15 or 16. And then, unfortunately, the usual "Russian pessimism" about the country that hits many people makes the rest.
I seriously think that we shouldn't let any player under the age of 18 to go (to the far) abroad to play hockey.

Agree, soccer works something like that....

 

[cska78]

The number of juniors in the chl and ushl is astounding, unfort.

 

[malkinfan]

Yes I counted 60+ give or take a few transfers. Not to mention even more younger players who are playing tier 2 junior A in the US and a handful of guys playing in junior B in Canada. If all of these guys stayed in the MHL, the league would be better than any one of the CHL leagues.

BTW Goldobin reassigned to HIFK? weird, wonder if that's a jab at the KHL, why wouldn't he go to Vityaz, Im sure they would have taken him with open arms.

 

[malkinfan]

Ive attached a preliminary roster of WJC hopefuls and their current status'. What do you guys think, any ommissions?

 

[wings5]

Yes I counted 60+ give or take a few transfers. Not to mention even more younger players who are playing tier 2 junior A in the US and a handful of guys playing in junior B in Canada. If all of these guys stayed in the MHL, the league would be better than any one of the CHL leagues.

BTW Goldobin reassigned to HIFK? weird, wonder if that's a jab at the KHL, why wouldn't he go to Vityaz, Im sure they would have taken him with open arms.

Goldobin was assigned by San Jose, it was their decision. Btw the MHL being better than CHL statement is laughable. The unheralded players that made NHL opening rosters who played in the CHL last year shows its depth and strength. MHL goalies and defence are faaaaaar away from the caliber of the forwards.

 

[kp61c]

Ive attached a preliminary roster of WJC hopefuls and their current status'. What do you guys think, any ommissions?

as for the forward group i'd go with that:

tkachev - barbashev - buchnevich
tolchinskiy - okulov - goldobin
svechnikov - kamenev - scherbak
zykov - pilipenko - penkovskiy

 

[Alessandro Seren Rosso]

Goldobin was assigned by San Jose, it was their decision.

It was theirs and Larionov decision. I have to say that I never liked his acts after he stopped playing.

 

[Alessandro Seren Rosso]

Goldobin was assigned by San Jose, it was their decision. Btw the MHL being better than CHL statement is laughable. The unheralded players that made NHL opening rosters who played in the CHL last year shows its depth and strength. MHL goalies and defence are faaaaaar away from the caliber of the forwards.

Well, maybe he wrote too fast, but have a look at the junior world cup results, MHL teams won most games against CHL ones, at the WJC in the latest few years Russia has had better results than Canada and most of the better players for Russia were the guys playing in Russia, not the CHL ones, therefore, while probably the CHL guys remain the top leagues, especially considering their depth, the difference is IMHO very subtle.

 

[wings5]

Well, maybe he wrote too fast, but have a look at the junior world cup results, MHL teams won most games against CHL ones, at the WJC in the latest few years Russia has had better results than Canada and most of the better players for Russia were the guys playing in Russia, not the CHL ones, therefore, while probably the CHL guys remain the top leagues, especially considering their depth, the difference is IMHO very subtle.

Yes well the games have been close forsure, Canadian recent failures have alot to do with the kids being unable to handle the pressure and stress driven by the media which seems to care for this tournament more than any other country and terrible goaltending. I've seen players for Canada be a huge liability in the WJC then see them months later in a top prospects game or NHL camp and wonder if its the same player because they are playing unbelievable. I think for sure the MHL beats the Q in terms of quality but in terms of the other two leagues depth wise between all the teams in the league it is lower due to low availability of quality defenceman and goaltenders. Tough to compare based on tournaments as in the world cup for example the teams have been below average CHL teams.

 

[Caser]

Ive attached a preliminary roster of WJC hopefuls and their current status'. What do you guys think, any ommissions?

Imo, Leschenko is very close to a lock after his performance in those summer games (at the moment I would say that Buchnevich-Barbashev-Leschenko looks like a legit first line to me). Mamin and Sharov also looked good and are strong candidates. Strange to see Tkachev and Svechnikov listed as centers, Kamenev and Fazleyev would fit into C positions better. Also if Zadorov is available (which might actually happen), he is a lock (same for Nichushkin, but he is 100% unavailable). Glukhov looks like also very close to a lock, knowing that D is rather poor this year. Also because of that at this point I wouldn't write off Rafikov and Cherepanov.

I seriously think that we shouldn't let any player under the age of 18 to go (to the far) abroad to play hockey.

Honestly, I'm not sure if it would be good for guys like Scherbak, Svechnikov and Tkachev to stay in MHL. Imo, if the MHL level will raise and if (probably the most important part) there will be a clear transition route from MHL to KHL (for example, via VHL), the issue will dissapear itself. A lot of work has to be invested long term for this to happen though.

BTW Goldobin reassigned to HIFK? weird, wonder if that's a jab at the KHL, why wouldn't he go to Vityaz, Im sure they would have taken him with open arms.

His rights don't belong to Vityaz (as they couldn't defend him at the draft), I think CSKA holds his rights now after they got it from Novokuznetsk.

It was theirs and Larionov decision. I have to say that I never liked his acts after he stopped playing.

Yeah, but actually I can't see anything wrong with Goldobin playing in a pro league in Europe, of course, Sarnia fans would disagree with that.

 

[Yakushev72]

Frankly and unfortunately, I can't see this happening. There are too many things involved. First of all, pretty much any non american kid aged 15-16-17 would just jump on the first plane to play/work/study in America, it's another country, it's fascinating, it's an adventure, and at that age is hard to resist. They don't know what is America, they just watched it on the TV. They don't know that going there will most likely hurt their career, if they hear about Kabanov or the other 100s of similar stories, they think "but I'm different". Add to this the pressure of their agents, who will most likely push for them to go there for economical/political reasons (players with a reputable agent like Dementiev for example most times take the correct decisions). There is a lot of a grey area here, and it's hard to understand everything if you are 15 or 16. And then, unfortunately, the usual "Russian pessimism" about the country that hits many people makes the rest.
I seriously think that we shouldn't let any player under the age of 18 to go (to the far) abroad to play hockey.

Unfortunately, you're probably right, and its not just the small guys. Look at Grigorenko. He got "reassigned"by Buffalo to the AHL yesterday. True, he still hasn't reached 21 yet, but he was once considered a prodigy, gifted with size, strength, magnificent hands and a vision of the ice that made him a potential star. He was viewed as a future national team mainstay. Now, he has to wonder whether he will ever make the roster of the worst team in the NHL? He bet everything that the NA route was his ticket to fame and fortune in the NHL, and now he has to wonder whether he will be forced to limp back to the KHL to have a shot at making a decent salary. I'm not saying he's out of the NHL yet, but he has to be asking himself those questions, as there is no reason why he shouldn't be playing for the Sabres this year.

 

[Alessandro Seren Rosso]

Honestly, I'm not sure if it would be good for guys like Scherbak, Svechnikov and Tkachev to stay in MHL.

3 out of 70

 

[Caser]

3 out of 70

You know I can name more, but that's not about the numbers. It's about the fact that if, for some reason, young player have some issues with developing in Russia, there would always be a CHL path in reserve. With that being said, I still think that the 'Tarasenko path' is the best possible, but, unfortunately, currently there are too much cases when it just isn't possible.

 

[malkinfan]

as for the forward group i'd go with that:

tkachev - barbashev - buchnevich
tolchinskiy - okulov - goldobin
svechnikov - kamenev - scherbak
zykov - pilipenko - penkovskiy

Looks good. Im not a fan of Penkovsky from what Ive seen, but if he ends up on the team, likely wont see much ice. I think an underated guy is Rudenkov, he looked great at the previous 2 super series I think this will be his year. Wouldn't mind seeing Lazarev line up next to Svechnikov either.

 

[malkinfan]

Imo, Leschenko is very close to a lock after his performance in those summer games (at the moment I would say that Buchnevich-Barbashev-Leschenko looks like a legit first line to me). Mamin and Sharov also looked good and are strong candidates. Strange to see Tkachev and Svechnikov listed as centers, Kamenev and Fazleyev would fit into C positions better. Also if Zadorov is available (which might actually happen), he is a lock (same for Nichushkin, but he is 100% unavailable). Glukhov looks like also very close to a lock, knowing that D is rather poor this year. Also because of that at this point I wouldn't write off Rafikov and Cherepanov.

Oops, forgot about Rafikov, he is likely a lock as well. I liked Sharov but despise Mamin. I think Mamin is very poor, looks poor in his KHL outings (falls at strange times, looses pucks, unsmart plays, I hope Bragin avoids him like the plague).

Some of the guys I just lumped into positions.

No one yet speaks of the goaltending, but IMO the starter very well could be Shestyorkin. This guy is a real talent from what I have seen. Sorokin gets more fanfare because he has been in the KHL for some time now, but lets not forget Shestyorkin had some good KHL performances last season and his MHL playoff run was exceptional.

 

[malkinfan]

Btw the MHL being better than CHL statement is laughable. The unheralded players that made NHL opening rosters who played in the CHL last year shows its depth and strength. MHL goalies and defence are faaaaaar away from the caliber of the forwards.

What is your basis? Look at Tolpar and a bewildered Spartak line up ran a train on a Cape Breton team which is now a powerhouse in the Q. MHL forwards were significantly more skilled than the CHL ones, and the 2 best forwards on CB were Russians to boot.

You take Bars Kazan for ex. Add Fazleyev, Nasybulin, Lazarev, Svechnikov, Valeyev and Tyanulin back to their current line up and there isn't a team in the CHL to touch them. CSKA would be even more impressive.

 

[Atas2000]

Goldobin was assigned by San Jose, it was their decision. Btw the MHL being better than CHL statement is laughable. The unheralded players that made NHL opening rosters who played in the CHL last year shows its depth and strength. MHL goalies and defence are faaaaaar away from the caliber of the forwards.

to put it short, MHL is not clearly better, it's comaparble and it is by a mile a better option for russian players to develop their hockey skills.

you ppl completely forget major factors. the KHL is also there you know. so players jumping form the MHL to KHL are there too. the NHL is not the one and only measuring stick.

also the assumption the D and the G in the MHL are far worse is at least strange. on international level MHL D-men and goalies are doing pretty well against the CHL opposition.

 

[Atas2000]

Oops, forgot about Rafikov, he is likely a lock as well. I liked Sharov but despise Mamin. I think Mamin is very poor, looks poor in his KHL outings (falls at strange times, looses pucks, unsmart plays, I hope Bragin avoids him like the plague).

Some of the guys I just lumped into positions.

No one yet speaks of the goaltending, but IMO the starter very well could be Shestyorkin. This guy is a real talent from what I have seen. Sorokin gets more fanfare because he has been in the KHL for some time now, but lets not forget Shestyorkin had some good KHL performances last season and his MHL playoff run was exceptional.

Mamin - Sharov ia a lock. you forget it's again U20 they will play. poor KHL showing means nothing there. of course he's ovewhelmed a bit. it takes time. against U20 guys he'll be fine and Bragin won't be stupid not to take him.

Only way Shesterkin takes the starter role from Sorokin now is Sorokin might be gassed by the end of December playing exhausting minutes for MNk right now.

 

[Emerz]

What is your basis? Look at Tolpar and a bewildered Spartak line up ran a train on a Cape Breton team which is now a powerhouse in the Q. MHL forwards were significantly more skilled than the CHL ones, and the 2 best forwards on CB were Russians to boot.

You take Bars Kazan for ex. Add Fazleyev, Nasybulin, Lazarev, Svechnikov, Valeyev and Tyanulin back to their current line up and there isn't a team in the CHL to touch them. CSKA would be even more impressive.

Most of your first paragraph is wrong.

CB is 5-3-1 right now and is a very young team, definitely not a power house (though they might be now with the return of 20 year old Darcy) with most of their D core being 17 years old. At the tournament, Legare was also our best player, then a toss up between Lazarev and Bishop.

I guess Tolpar winning 3-2 in overtime is "running a train" on Cape Breton, and unless there is a different "Spartak" team, they weren't even in the same division and never played.

That's all I've got to say, don't know much about the MHL at all.

Svechnikov is real fun to watch this year, hope he has a great WJC for you guys! Lazarev is also much more confident this year it seems.

 

[cska78]

as for the forward group i'd go with that:

tkachev - barbashev - buchnevich
tolchinskiy - okulov - goldobin
svechnikov - kamenev - scherbak
zykov - pilipenko - penkovskiy

Lol, only midget world championship)))).