Top 4 European Goaltenders Prospects NHL Draft 2022 (Mid-Season)
Frank Longo, Goaltending Scout, Recruit Scouting
Niklas Kokko
Karpat U20/Liiga
DOB: March 14th, 2004 Birthplace: Oulu, Finland
Height: 6’3 Weight: 185 lbs Shoots/Catches: L
Stats to date: GP: 12 Record: N/A GAA: 2.33 Sv %: 897 SO: N/A
Niklas Kokko is a big goaltender, who noticeably has a good tactical and mechanical skill set. Kokko has a calm presence in the crease, competes to stay visually attached to the puck, and is efficient with his crease movements. Kokko is a strong skater for his size, with great edgework and effortless post play. He beats a lot of plays on his feet, and I like his positional framework while exhibiting decent rebound control. All while being able to have that elasticity/flexibility when he needs to make unstructured saves. He shows strong situational awareness, while performing head checks for potential scoring threats at appropriate moments. Because of this, he anticipates plays well and gets to his spots quickly and effectively with his lateral mobility/quickness. He does a great job sealing the bottom of the net, and showing coverage intelligence with his rotational compass and length. He showed moments of being flustered after allowing a goal, but nothing too noticeable.
Kokko does struggle, however, with traffic and finding sightlines. He loses his visual attachment easily, and plays deep when this happens. This correlates with his struggles on the PK, as it seems he lets a lot of his goals against while a man down. He tends to get beat when there is a shot to his hands (especially blocker), with either congestion in front, or if the shot comes from a high danger scoring area. Obviously just a theory, but maybe he struggles on the PK a lot due to poor conditioning? Gets tired quickly, and then his positional framework starts to break down. Kokko could also use a better save selection at times, as he got caught getting beat while in RVH when there was no real reason to be in that sort of position in the situation that was presented in front of him.
NHL Comparison: Jacob Markstrom, Calgary Flames
Topias Leinonen #34
JYP Jyvaskyla U20, Team Finland
DOB: July 19th 2004 Birth Place: Jyväskylä, FIN
Height: 6’5 Weight: 216 lbs Shoots/Catches: L
Stats to date (with JYP U20): GP: 12 Record: N/A GAA: 2.17 Sv %: 921 SO: N/A
Topias Leinonen is young, but a goalie with raw talent and loads of potential long-term. Leinonen’s size immediately stands out, standing at 6’5. He possesses strong edge work, and moves laterally pretty well for his size. Leinonen takes away open net quickly, as he maximizes coverage with his frame and efficiently seals the bottom of the net.
He communicates with teammates often, and demonstrates strong ice awareness through scanning for threats at appropriate opportunities. Leninonen shows good depth control, as he works to get to the top of the crease, while understanding when to play a little deeper during specific situations presented in front of him. He shows flashes of athleticism, but plays more of a positional, blocking style.
Leinonen does however, need to compete more for loose pucks in-tight (69% around the crease). He often lets out multiple rebounds in front, which have resulted in a few goals against. He also struggles to find sightlines/visual attachment when there is traffic or congestion in front. As well, he tends to have “busy feet” as Leinonen doesn’t consistently set his feet when the puck is released. As a result, he is slow to beat plays on his feet, and is caught playing behind on lateral plays (especially passes east to west, or through the Royal Road). Leinonen also struggles with keeping active hands…as he gets exposed on shots to his hands, especially on lateral plays towards the slot and pucks in-tight around the crease (isn’t static, caught reaching and creating holes). As a result, he struggles with rebound control immensely…giving up multiple quality secondary or third scoring opportunities. Leinonen needs to continue to work on his puck handling.
NHL Comparison: Mikko Koskinen, Edmonton Oilers
Sergei Ivanov #1
SKA-Varyagi im. Morozova MHL
DOB: April 3rd, 2004 Birth Place: Chernushka, RUS Height: 5”11 Weight: 165 lbs Shoots/Catches: L
Stats to date: GP: 14 Record: 8-4-1 GAA: 2.05 Sv %: 931 SO: 3
After winning gold medals in 2020 at the Youth Olympic Games and in 2021 at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, Ivanov continues to catch the eye of many scouts heading into the 2022 NHL Draft. Slightly undersized at 5’11, Ivanov makes up for it with his lateral quickness, and decent tracking capabilities. He competes for every puck, while relying on his edges and athleticism to make timely & routine saves.
Ivanov plays his angles well, and shows good stance mechanics. His post play is great, efficiently integrating and exiting his posts to be in proper position. He can change direction with ease, while recovering to his spots quickly. He is an average puck handler, making pretty consistent smart decisions to break the zone. Rarely see Ivanov get beat cleanly on a shot, usually it takes a rebound or a smart play from the opposition to beat him.
Ivanov does however, need better ice awareness as he fails to scan for threats consistently. As a result, he tends to resort to sliding a lot… instead of beating more plays on his feet. Ivanov’s major downfall is his struggles with rebound control, especially on low shots. He has difficulties visually attaching to pucks through traffic/congestion in front.
He tends to play situations overly aggressive with his depth, and puts himself in poor positions to recover effectively for rebound opportunities. Ivanov also evidently struggles with in-tight lateral plays, as he seems to be a step behind the majority of the time. This has to do with not recognizing the threat earlier, and moving out of reaction.
NHL Comparison: Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida Panthers
Ivan Zhigalov
Sherbrooke Phoenix QMJHL
DOB: April 30th, 2003 Birthplace: Minsk, Belarus
Height: 6’3 Weight: 161 lbs Shoots/Catches: R
Stats to date: GP: 20 Record: 14-3-1 GAA: 2.88 Sv %: 883 SO: 0
Ivan Zhigalov is a 6’3 southpaw goaltender that I believe could be one of the top european goaltenders to be selected in the 2022 Entry Draft. Besides his size, it is quite evident how good of a skater Zhigalov is when you watch his crease movements. He is very strong with his edgework, and effortless post play tactics. He looks to stay patient on his edges for as long as possible, and even looks to beat as many plays as possible on his feet (which I love). He does a great job staying visually attached to the puck while tracking effectively, and leading with his eyes when moving to new locations around the crease. Zhigalov shows a great tactical and mechanical skill set, as he shows a really good positional framework that maximizes coverage effectively. I really like his stance mechanics, as he keeps a little more narrow approach with his feet while showing active hands (especially in-tight). He is a very athletic goaltender for his size, showing his compete level and elasticity while battling to make saves. He can be creative when needed to make unstructured saves, and is quick laterally for his size.
With his record so far this season, it is evident that he has the ability to win hockey games and make the big save when his team needs him the most. He demonstrates strong situational awareness through scanning for scoring threats at appropriate moments and communicating with his teammates. Because of this, he has the ability to anticipate and make smart decisions with his save selection based on the situation presented in front of him at that time. Showing pretty good depth majority of the time, I also like how he battles for sightlines through congestion in front, and competes for any loose pucks around the crease.
NHL Comparison: Elvis Merzlikins, Columbus Blue Jackets