Recap:

20. Sasha Mutala

19. Matthew Steinburg

18. Alex Beaucage

17. Tyler Weiss

16. Brandon Saigeon

15. Adam Werner

14. Igor Shyvyrov

13. Ty Lewis

12. Cam Morrison





Coming in a #11 is Nikoali Kovalenko. The first player on our list that is not currently playing in North America. The son of former NHLer Andrei Kovalenko is currently playing with Lokomotiv in the KHL. Interestingly enough, his father Andrei, played 653 career NHL games, including posting 22 points in 26 games in the first half of the inaugural season of the Colorado Avalanche. Andrei was teammates GM Joe Sakic for three and a half seasons between the Quebec Nordiques and Colorado Avalanche. He was part of the famous trade that brought Patrick Roy to the Avalanche. But enough about his old man.





Kovalenko was apart of the Avs 2018 draft class when he was taken 171st overall in the 6th round. Another one of those prospects that sort of slid down some draft boards due to the fact that there were rumors about him signing a KHL extension that summer. After the Avs drafted him, about two months later Kovalenko signed a three year extension with Lokomotiv through the 2020-2021 season. This extension would not allow him to leave for the NHL until the contract is up.





Leading up into his draft season, the 5'10" 185lb winger got his first taste of the KHL in which he suited up for 2 regular season games and 4 playoff games. Primarily playing in the MHL he posted 10 goals and 31 points in 33 games and added another goal and 11 assists in 13 games. That impressive performance helped drive up his draft stock a little bit. Following his contract extension, Kovalenko was used strictly in the KHL during the regular season. He was used in a pretty limited role, but managed to net 5 goals and add a single helper in 33 games. Not bad for an 18 year old, considering the league is not at all friendly to teenagers. After an additional two assists in 7 playoff games, Kovalenko finished off the season with 3 goals 9 points in 11 MHL playoff contests. Perhaps where Kovalenko was able to show off some of his best performances was during international play. Making the WJC team was expected for Kovalenko and after a slow start to the WJC's, he finished with a very solid showing, ultimately helping the Russians bring home a Bronze medal. He finished with a goal and three points in 6 games. In 5 more games with the U-20 Russian team, Kovalenko notched another 5 assists in impressive fashion.





Starting this season, it is expected for Kovalenko to be strictly a KHL player. Through 8 games this season he has a single goal and a single assist. It is important to note that he is a skill player and at still only 19 years old he isn't going to be given a ton of ice time, but he will certainly get more and more ice time this season. I would love to see him hover close to the double digit goal mark and around 15 points. If he can improve his totals around there I would be pretty optimistic about him taking off more so in his last year (fingers crossed) in the KHL next year.





Now to the stuff you will see on the ice when watching this kid. The first thing that jumps out to me, is this kid looks skinny. Maybe it's the potato that the KHL films their games with but he isn't looking 185lbs to me, especially for a shorter guy at 5'10". Moving on though, this kid is a "traditional Russian forward" when you think about a highly skilled forward. He's got a great set of silky mits on him and can stick handle in a phone booth. It's always fun to watch player highlight tapes and what not, but this kid is really fun to just watch play hockey in general. He's a very smooth skater, he looks pretty effortless on the ice gliding up and down. For a relatively smaller and more skilled guy he certainly does not shy away from contact. He isn't afraid to take a hit or dish one out. I find he succeeds in the dirty areas of the ice and along the boards which is very encouraging. He likes to mix it up a little bit and can play with a chippy attitude to his game. He can play on literally all parts of the ice and in any situation. He can play on the top penalty kill as well as the top power play unit. He is a high skilled and highly versatile player. This will help his transition over to North America if he decides to ever make the transition. A lot of foreign players with high skill struggle with this in particular. Outside of his fantastic puck handling my favorite thing about this kid is his hustle. Constantly buzzing around the ice at 100%, whether it be pushing the puck up the ice and attacking the net or with his suffocating back check. It really is a treat to watch.





As I mentioned early, I am excited to see his expanded role with Lokomitv this season. He's already off to a solid start and I would love to see him keep it up over the course of the next couple months. As a prospect I absolutely love this kid and will no doubt be keeping an eye on him. It'll be a long 20 or so months as he can't officially sign with the organization until the summer of 2021. If I am the Avs I will be trying to do everything in my power to get him to come over as soon as he is eligible. Obviously that is a little bit down the road and you need to continue to keep an eye on this guy over this season as well as the next. But I will not doubt have my eyes all over this kid. There is no doubt in my mind that this kid is a player, not whether or not he makes an NHL career out of it or develops into a KHL all star, I have a pretty good feeling that this kid will have a pretty good pro career.