Daniil Davydov

Ian Moran’s Thoughts: Davydov is a slight left shot forward who to me plays like a real hockey player. He may not get the fanfare of some of his teammates, but every time I watch him play I am always commenting about how often he’s around the puck. And I’m not just talking about offensively either. Davydov competes on the backcheck as well as any player I’ve watched this year. He understands back pressure and when to attack a puck carrier who’s on his backhand. He may still be light, but in defensive zone coverage he reads switches very well and I’m not sure if I’ve seen him get caught on the wrong side of the puck or trapped along the wall. Offensively he plays with pace on excellent edges and to me he shows deception when he enters the zone and he understands that by attacking an opposing defender he is making the defender make a decision. He has a very quick stick with ability to one-touch passes with authority or into space. As with most young players he will need to continue gaining strength, power and some meat to his bones, but I feel his brain processes the game at a very high two-way level.