Hurricanes’ Prospect Limatov Ready to Prove Himself After Draft

Last season, he made his KHL debut on March 1, when he had two shifts in Dynamo Moscow’s 6-3 win over Kunlun Red Star. “During the season, I had already been called up a few times for practices and was told that I might get a chance with the main team,” Limatov explains. “After a couple of sessions, the nerves went away. By the time of my debut, everything felt fine — the coaches and players supported me on the ice. I only had two shifts. One went fine, the other was messy. Our opponent took a penalty, but I didn’t get a chance to play on the power play. I was sitting with Nikita Buruyanov, he also only got two or three shifts in that game, so we sat and talked on the bench together.”

Recently, he had a conversation with Dynamo’s head coach, Alexei Kudashov, who played three seasons in North America in the 90s, about his future prospects with the main team. “He said: ‘We’ll give you chances. Prove yourself — it all depends on you.’ I was told that if someone got injured or if anything happened with the lineup, they’d call me up.”

The NHL Draft

Before the draft, Limatov traveled around North America with his agent. It was a busy period for the blueliner. “It wasn’t exactly a trip for fun,” he admitted. “First, we flew to New York, stayed there for a couple of days before the Combine, then we spent a week in Buffalo. After that, we had a break, and instead of flying back to Moscow, we stayed in Colorado with my agent. There we had a mini-camp. We went up into the mountains, where we got to enjoy the scenery. After that, we flew to Los Angeles for the draft, and from there to Carolina, who picked me.”

Despite some setbacks, he had a good time in North America. “I missed Russian food,” Limatov admits. “It’s really hard to find there. But in terms of the training process, there were no real differences. We had 10 practices on the ice,” he says about his draft preparation. “All the other work was off-ice. Since we were in the mountains, it was harder to breathe. We did a lot of running — no weights. We hiked up mountains with backpacks filled with stones. That was the only form of weight training. They really roasted us. It was tough climbing uphill for two hours. We weren’t running, just walking, but it was pretty monotonous work.”

Limatov was also busy before the draft, meeting several teams. “I spoke with almost all of them — it turned out to be 25 teams,” he says. “The interviews were fairly simple: about 20 minutes with each team. You need to talk about yourself, your style of play, and how you conduct yourself both on and off the ice.” Of course, there were also some interesting questions. “I don’t remember exactly which team asked it, but they said: ‘What animal are you on the ice? And what animal are you off the ice?'”

The most interesting question came from one club that said: “’Let’s imagine you’re stuck in the desert with your friend Ivan Ryabkin. You’re both dying of exhaustion, and Ivan finds a bottle. It says that if you drink it, you’ll survive another day and reach the wells filled with water. You can’t share the water — if you split it, you’ll both die. Only one of you can drink. Next to the bottle, there’s a bat. The bottle is by Ivan, and the bat is by you. What do you do?’ That was the strangest question. Of course, I said I would take the water. I think that was the right answer.” It was different for Ryabkin, however. “As far as I know, it was a bit different for him,” he explains. “He told me they even yelled at him, testing his stress tolerance — so they really set up very different scenarios. They prepared separately for each player.”

However, among the 25 NHL teams Limatov spoke with, there wasn’t Carolina. “The strange thing is, during the season we did talk with Carolina,” Limatov explains. “[Canes’ scout] Oleg Smirnov came to almost every game, and we spoke often. But in America, I didn’t even have an interview with Carolina.”

The defenseman didn’t expect to be picked by the Hurricanes. “After those interviews I thought it would be Ottawa or Nashville. Ottawa called me several times after the interview. Philadelphia was also very interested, but because of my injury they pushed me back to a later round.”

Limatov had first-round hopes. “It might sound like I’m lying now, but on the draft day, Ottawa actually called my agent, asking in detail about my surgery. Maybe we were hoping that if not for the injury, they would’ve taken me in the first round — they had the 21st or 22nd pick. Pyotr Andreyanov was picked 20th overall, but still, I think the first round is much more prestigious. I believe the team would’ve given me more opportunities if I had gone that high. But we also know plenty of cases where players were drafted in the seventh or eighth round and still played at the very highest level.”

Limatov attended the ceremony. “The first round is the most spectacular. The NHL really knows how to put on a show. There were a lot of fans, everything was very well organized. The announcements, though, took a long time — the first round lasted three or four hours. We waited, watched, and then went home.” However, he was expecting to go higher. “I was expecting to go late in the first round or early in the second,” he admits. “So for me personally it was a bit low.” Also, he didn’t have any team in mind. “Honestly, I would’ve been happy with any team still on the board. Thanks to Carolina for believing in me and giving me a chance. Yes, there’s big competition there, but I’m not afraid of it and I’m ready.” He also admits another aspect. “I didn’t want to go to Canada. No particular reasons, I just preferred to join an American team.”

Going Up

Some players make it and establish themselves in the NHL at 20, some at 18. Others, like Pyotr Andreyanov, extended his contract until 2030 and will go over as a ready-made player. Limatov has his plans. “Everything depends on the next two seasons. I still have two years left on my contract with Dynamo. How those go will determine things, and after the contract ends we’ll make decisions.”

He has a good connection with another Russian prospect within the Carolina Hurricanes organization: Ivan Ryabkin. “Back when we both played for CSKA, we often stayed over at each other’s houses,” he recalls. “We always played together, traveled together. Then we both moved to Dynamo — also together. We played three seasons there, and now he’s gone to America. At that point we kept in touch online.”

Last season, Ryabkin started with Dynamo Moscow, but failed to make an impression there. “Maybe he wasn’t given the same freedom he had the season before, under a different coach,” Limatov explains. “Ivan could allow two or three goals against, but then score just as many or even more. He always made up for it and helped the team. But under our coach, we didn’t have the luxury of conceding so much and making a lot of mistakes. So Ivan was given less freedom, and as a result he spent most games on the bench.”

Then, in December, he left Dynamo to join the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the United States Hockey League (USHL). “I don’t think it’s a strange decision at all. If things aren’t working out here, maybe he isn’t getting enough chances — then why not leave and test himself in another league? Absolutely normal. We didn’t really have a serious talk about it. He just mentioned that maybe he’d leave. No one was going to stop him. And I think he did pretty well — averaged a point per game in the season, and won the cup.”

Playing with Ovechkin in Dynamo and Becoming the Best in the NHL

In an interview right after the draft, Limatov was asked: “Who do you think is the best defenseman in the NHL?” He promptly answered: “Me, in five years.” That was a bold reply by the young defenseman. “I just didn’t want to overthink it. If I had to name someone I like in the NHL, it would be Rasmus Dahlin, but I decided to name myself. Why not? We’ll see. I think in five years that prediction will come true.” That answer reflects his future plans. “My goal for the future is to establish myself and become the best.”

Carolina is known for having a fairly conservative style of play. But Limatov is ready. “My job is to earn a spot in the lineup,” he cuts it short. “I can easily adapt to any scheme, any system — that’s not a problem for me. And once the trust comes, I don’t think there will be any issues with joining the attack. That part will be fine.”

He’s ready to sacrifice the offensive part of the game for the good of the team, too. “Absolutely no problem. Even if they tell me to play in the AHL — no problem. If I need to prove something, I’m ready for any conditions. If they tell me to go play there, then of course, no problem. Give me ice time and I’ll show what I can do.” He attended the Hurricanes’ rookie camp, but with a limited involvement due to his recent injury. “There were a couple of tests there. I didn’t do everything — only what my arm and shoulder allowed. I wanted to get on the ice, but they didn’t let me because they were afraid of the consequences.”

Limatov plays within the Dynamo Moscow’s system — Alexander Ovechkin’s home club. The defenseman has obviously followed the hunt for the NHL scoring record. “Ovechkin had been working toward that his whole life, just like the Stanley Cup. He waited a long time, stayed patient. I’m proud of that achievement.”

Limatov’s contract runs until 2027. Maybe he can get a chance to play with Ovechkin, should he return to Russia and to Dynamo Moscow. “That would be amazing. It would be interesting to see how he plays here again — both as a teammate and as a player.” Many players are afraid of Ovechkin’s shot, but Limatov said that he’s ready to block them. “The first time, yes, I’d block it. After that, I’m not so sure — because it’s not guaranteed I’d still be alive,” he laughs. It will be interesting to see that matchup — now it just remains to be seen in what league it will happen.