Welcome back to my top 32 Russian rankings! In parts 1 and 2, I went through the first 25 players on my list.
You can find this list full of 32 Russians (in English and Russian) down below and on my Twitter:
Without a second to waste, let’s jump back into these final few names.
7th Rounders/Possible Picks
26- Yegor Solovyov – Krasnaya Armia Moskva / MHL
Yegor Solvyov is a player I started to come around on quite late into the year, and he’s the only p[layer from the CSKA system that I have ranked in the 2023 draft class. Solovyov isn’t a player that scores every game and tears it up every game. He’s a player that CSKA hasn’t been using too much at all. In the games in that he did get ice time, he shined.
With every shift came a strong puck movement sense through the transition. His best aspect is picking up pucks off passes and starting a rush using creativity, deceptiveness, and sharp movement ability. In the games that I watched, Solovyov looked relatively still in most areas, but once he started moving with the puck through transition, I got hit with a wave of finesse and glitter. Solovyov loves to pull off deceptive and creative moves to get to where he needs to be.
I will say, even though he knows how to pull off those sorts of moves, he has no clue what to do with the puck after he enters the offensive zone. Often he’ll dump the puck or simply take a blind shot at the net that doesn’t get anywhere. Too many min-miscalculations for my liking. He has all the tools to finish it off, but he simply forgets/freezes and whiffs on any plan he ever had.
He mostly plays without a plan, which isn’t great. He attacks the zone looking to undress opponents, and that’s what he always sticks to. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him scan that well for oncoming teammates which puts him into vulnerable spots rather than having a plan B. I do like what he’s able to possess in terms of exploding into a flash out of nothing. These dekes and these flashy moves make him look so dominant come out of nowhere. He can explode in such a flash, and that finds opponents off-guard giving him in an open lane to rush into. I don’t think a lot of full-time MHL players know how to draw up such creative and dominant puck movements at such a deceptive level. That’s what makes him such a prominent player at the MHL level. While I do think Solovyov has a ton of flaws and his game isn’t nearly as rounded out as it has to be, his ability to look this good out of nowhere makes me believe he’s got time to figure it out and find a way to bring it consistently.
27- Alexander Matveyev – SKA-1946 St. Petersburg / MHL
I’m still angry that Alexander Matveyev got hurt and we never got a chance to see him play a full season in his DY. I’m sure a smart NHL team will notice his dominance in the short window he played in, though.
Matevyev is a big-body defender who’s learned how to completely contain the defensive zone using an organized yet physical style of hockey. Standing at 6’3, Matveyev only appeared in 12 MHL games in the 2022-23 season. But in those games, I found myself in shock at how well he moved for a player his size.
That was only the tip of the iceberg.
Matveyev plays a fast-paced physical style of defensive hockey that lets him box out opponents in the tightest areas of the ice. He’s managed to figure out opponents coming down the ice at extreme speeds and dangerous positions. He’s figured out the game and it’s impressive to see.
The way he moves so fluidly around the ice has been a joy in the only games he’s played. If he would’ve been able to stay healthy and have a progressive draft season, I would’ve ranked him higher. Unfortunately, he isn’t defined enough because of his injuries, and I can’t rank him much higher. Maybe some team takes a risk, and maybe some team hits big with a really fun player.
28- Denis Utenkov – Chaika Nizhny Novgorod / MHL
The first and only goalie I have ranked in my top 32 hails out of the Nizhny Novgorod system. I’ve loved how Denis Utenkov has been able to showcase himself, and I think he’s deserved a spot on this list.
He’s a flashy stand-out goalie who often likes to chip in by playing the puck or stepping a few good feet out of his net to retrieve the puck. He plays like he wants to be noticeable and it’s shown when he makes sharp movements to make little saves look like so much. He has a Jonathan Quick-esque to him, and even though his handles onto pucks need a lot of work, his high awareness and his constant effort to gain possession make him a fun goalie to watch.
With that in mind, he’s showing a high ceiling as a modernized goaltender. Genuinely believe he’s the best Russian goalie in 2023. Doubt he gets drafted, but a player worth a watch. Plus, Nizhny Novgorod has a growing team with trustworthy development staff. I’d be willing to keep a close tab on Utenkov going forward.
29- Nikita Nedopyokin – SKA-1946 St. Petersburg / MHL
Nikita Nedopyokin is a player who I think gets a lot of attention because of his highly-respected production. Although the scoring pace is viable and he shows a decent amount of promise when it comes to scoring paces, I think he hasn’t been able to show off his abilities to the max quite yet.
I do like his energy and I believe he’s been able to adapt to his given role, but he’s a product of a high-scoring team that purely relies on the offensive side of things. Playing with star talent like Ivan Demidov has helped him out with production, but I think he lacks so much to the point where he just isn’t quite the player he should be. A lot of that comes from his unplanned and rushed game. A lot of what he does consists of simply following the flow of what Demidov does and getting into the right position.
Switching up sides and moving around in transition is a big working area for Nikita. He fails to quickly shift paces and it makes me worried about how he’ll be able to continue progressing. Fluid movement on a full 200-foot scale of ice like that is needed for a centerman, and that fluidity is something that has been lacking. I do wonder how he’ll produce playing with players who aren’t as good as Demidov.
30- Nikita Ishimnikov – Avto Yekaterinburg / MHL
Nikita Ishimnikov is a defender who’s been able to seriously express himself in an offensive style this past year. Playing in almost all levels of Russian hockey, with every shift we’ve seen him join the rush and even arguably jump the gun to help out the forwards. Not often do we see a defender leave his defensive spot in an awkward moment to crash the net.
While I do think he has a pretty funky offensive ability, I don’t believe he’s defined enough to be considered a top Russian player. His skating seriously worries me, as his mechanics look rusty and his quickness lacks. He often tangles himself up and fails to pivot from forward to backward. Because of that, he’s been burnt way too many times coming back the other way.
He reminds me a lot of Sean Durzi, in the sense that he explodes offensively and his puck movement on the power play is a sight to behold, but he often makes a dumb mistakes that could easily be fixed. A lot of those mistakes include getting beaten on the outside because of how little effort is put into properly closing down the gaps. Whether that’s speed or physicality, Ishimnikov has lacked that and it makes me very iffy about putting him any higher.
31- Ivan Remezovsky – SKA-1946 St. Petersburg / MHL
I was so, so, SO excited to watch Ivan Remezovsky heading into this season. In years prior, he’s been able to showcase his defensive ability and he even showed off his skills closer to the regular season when he got into some KHL pre-season action with SKA. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
Remezovsky hasn’t developed at all. His skills haven’t skyrocketed like I was led to believe, and his weaknesses remained his weaknesses. Remezovsky did get multiple chances to prove himself as a defensive defenseman, and while he did fill that role, he didn’t take my breath away.
A lot of what he did on a game-to-game basis was just positional play that could be taught overnight. He was never really closing down lanes and he never really made himself like an octopus where his stick could swat away any possible puck. A lot of what I saw from him was little tidbits of good defensive hockey, but he failed to make himself stand out. He did what he had to do at the MHL level, but he never really showed me that he could take it to the next level. I do think an NHL team ends up taking him because of what he could be if he resumes that development, but I believe that at this stage, it’s seriously halted and it’ll be years before I think even a KHL team can consistently use him in a defensive role.
32- Dmitri Utkin – Loko-76 / MHL
Finally. The last player. Before I continue with Utkin, I want to thank you if you’ve read along. Realistically, most of these players won’t be picked. And if they do, they’ll be drafted pretty late. I find so much enjoyment in watching and writing about Russian hockey, I want you all to experience some of that joy I’ve had with watching these guys. A huge thank you to Gavin Chiasson, Gabe Foley, and the rest of the crew at Recruit Scouting for always supporting me and I can’t wait for an upcoming eventful season next year.
Dmitri Utkin is an interesting player who just hasn’t found his scoring touch in the slightest. The late 2004-born forward is a guy who I believe has enough tools to eventually translate onto North American ice, and that makes him worthy of a spot on this list.
He’s managed to properly learn how to attack the offensive zone using speed and force. He plays with cautiousness but he’s not afraid of pushing his way into open space and getting open. Whenever the puck lands in his general direction., he’ll battle for it like he’s got nothing left to lose. I’ve also loved his basic defensive instincts. He’s a winger so his defensive duties aren’t as serious, but he does the basic functions of scanning, following the play with his stick, and simply being ready to transit to cover any one of his teammates.
But obviously, the chances that he makes it is incredibly low. He hasn’t taken a step up from last season and he’s had struggles with scoring. He’s got the tools to be a high-scoring MHL player (which I’m sure he will be next year), but he hasn’t pieced it all together quite yet. I do think he’ll be an interesting player to watch next season, but right now, he’s a slow work-in-progress and I do hope all the best for his development.
With Utkin being my final player, that concludes my top 32 Russian rankings from the 2023 NHL draft class. I would like to thank you all for reading and recruit scouting for giving me a platform to write and discuss these players.
Thanks for reading, and I truly hope you enjoyed it!
-Pavel M.