| Igor Nechayev | Stalnye Lisy Magnitogorsk | MHL | L | C | 6’1″ | 154 | Orsk. RUS | 2006 | Not yet rated |
Game Grade: Limited Viewing
Comments: Nechayev has incredibly skilled hands and used them to escape from many tight situations that most would not be able to solve. He did not get much ice time tonight so I do not have many notes on him but his hands and speed were more than enough for me to take notice. He picked up a secondary assist in the second period. I will keep an eye out for him in future viewings.
| Matvei Onishchenko | Stalnye Lisy Magnitogorsk | MHL | L | LW | 5’11” | 154 | Chelyabinsk, RUS | 2005 | Not yet rated |
Game Grade: C+
Comments: Onishenko has been hit or miss every time I have seen him this season. He is a skilled player but his small stature definitely holds him back. He shows off quick hands and is able to set up nice passing plays with them. He skates at angles that draw defenseman to him then he drops the puck back or takes advantage of the lane he just opened up. The problem is that he cannot do this very consistently. His timing is a bit off and often over handles the puck resulting in an easy poke by the opposition. He also misreads his teammates’ cuts and misses them entirely with his passes. One impressive play from his game tonight was on a pass reception early in the first. He was up ice towards the OZBL and a stretch pass was coming towards him but was about to miss him entirely. In one fluid motion, he reached back and caught the pass while spinning towards the boards and entered the zone with control. I also liked the fact that he supported his teammates without the puck. He circled around the OZ towards teammates when they were stuck in a battle. He either joined in and dug the puck out or got to a spot where they could slip him the puck. He needs to pick up his motor a lot. He often slowed down in situations where he could have won a race but slacked off and gave it away. He is also very easily knocked to the ice and a bit afraid of contact. This is where his size is a real negative. He is likely done growing and is incredibly skinny. I have a hard time believing he will improve his skill or speed enough to become a pro player.
| Andrei Kuryanov | Omskie Yastreby | MHL | L | LW | 5’9″ | 153 | Orekhovo-Zuyevo, RUS | 2007 | 2024-2025: B |
Game Grade: B+
Comments: Another good performance from Kuryanov. A lot of the young stars have not been in the lineup for Omskie recently and Kuryanov has been able to fill the holes left behind quite well. He has the puck on his stick often and is able to find teammates with well placed passes due to active scanning and east-west play that creates openings. He is very patient with the puck and keeps his head up to avoid pressure and exploit defensive movements using quick cuts and some skilled mitts. He also showed off a technically sound wrist shot in today’s game. He kept his chest up and was able to rip a couple of shots on goal. Good effort from Kuryanov tonight.
| Maxim Moiseyev | Omskie Yastreby | MHL | R | D | 6’0″ | 165 | Novosibirsk, RUS | 2007 | 2024-2025: B |
Game Grade: C+
Comments: 16 year old Omskie defenseman, Maxim Moiseyev has the potential to become a great two way player with high offensive upside. He showed off some great mobility today and was not afraid to go deep into the zone to attempt to create some offense. He needs to learn to pick his spots better when joining the rush or going deep because he often jumped at bad times and left himself in terrible spots when the puck began going the other way. There were a couple of times though where he made good reads and was able to sneak into the high slot and open up to become a target. Defensively he is a bit of a mess. He cannot clear the crease very well and has no concept of zone defense. He was drawn out of position incredibly easily and often put himself so far away from where he should have been that there was no chance he could even try to get back in time. He is a huge work in progress but has a good base of skating and puck handling that will allow for an easy time learning the basics of decision making. He has only played 4 MHL games so I will cut him some slack.
Logo Courtesy of Omsk Yastreby
Player Evaluations: Henry Lawrence