The Vancouver Canucks have signed defence prospect and 2022 7th round pick Kirill Kudryavtsev to a three-year entry-level contract. General manager Patrik Allvin announced the signing at 12 PM on Friday.
The 19-year-old, left-shot defenceman is in his second year with the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds. Through 60 games played this season, Kudryavtsev has tallied six goals and 39 assists. Last season, he scored five goals while adding 34 assists through 68 games played.
Kudryavtsev is fourth in defenceman scoring from teenagers in the OHL this season and is projected to be a top-five scoring defenceman in the OHL next season.
He skates extremely well and does a good job moving the puck through the neutral zone with passes or by skating it up on his own. He has been the power play quarterback on the Greyhounds’ power play all season long and his future looks bright — especially for a seventh-round pick.
We talked with his agent Dan Milstein about Kudryavtsev.
“Great personality kid. He came all the way from Russia by himself to play in the OHL in hopes of getting drafted into the NHL,” said Milstein. “He slipped in the rankings we expected him to be gone in 2nd or 3rd round but he went over in the seventh round, a great pickup by Vancouver and he is one of the top defencemen in the OHL and has huge NHL potential.”
Expect to see Kudryavtsev play in the OHL next season and then join the Abbotsford Canucks on an ATO at the conclusion of his year. He should be able to skate with the team for their playoff run during the 2023-24 season and our expectation is that Kudryavtsev is in the AHL with Abbotsford for the 2024-25 season.
From there, it will be about how he adjusts to pro hockey. This is a driven kid, as Milsteain mentioned. Kudryavtsev can move the puck at a high level and we will be excited to see his point totals next season in the OHL.
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