Been a few days but we're back with the countdown. Before I jump back in, here is a quick recap of where we are on our list.





20. Sasha Mutala

19. Matthew Stienburg

18. Alex Beaucage

17. Tyler Weiss

16. Brandon Saigeon

15. Adam Werner





And coming in at 14, obviously is the Russian Center, Igor Shvyryov (I've seen his last name spelt about 14 different ways but this was the most common way I've found, so I'm going with it.) The skilled Russian Center is in his second season with the Avs organization. He joined the organization after being selected 125th overall in the 5th round of the 2017 NHL entry draft. Some scouting reports had given him a 3rd round draft grade, some ranging even as high as a 2nd round grade but a lot of reports stating that is would be unlikely he makes the transition over to North America hurt his draft stock.





Prior to playing in the AHL last season with the Eagles, Igor spent the previous three years in Russia playing primarily in the MHL, although he did have a couple stints in the KHL. He made his KHL debut at the age of just 17 years old. Unfortunately he never really quite found a permanent role with Metallurg in the KHL. Over those 3 seasons he played a grand total of just 46 games, including playoffs. However, the real issue with this is his playing time when he was in the K. He was primarily used in the bottom of the lineup, getting ridiculously low amounts of ice time. We're talking less than 3 minutes in some games. The KHL is a really hard league for developing prospects to get into, especially for a highly skilled player like him who's game isn't suited for those bottom line minutes and situations. It showed, as in his entire KHL career he had a single goal, being his lone KHL point. Skill wise, you knew he could play and hang in the league though, during his 133 MHL games (the MHL is essentially the top Junior League in Russia) he posted 43 goals and 145 points. He was a dominant player, especially in his latter two years in the league where he was consistently picking up multiple points in every game he steps foot on the ice. One full season after being drafted by the Avalanche he was offered and signed a contract in what was a minor surprise for some.





As Shvyryov made the transition to North America and the AHL last season there were a bunch of question marks on how that transition would go. Everyone knew he would be playing against a lot higher level of competition than he was use to competing against in the MHL. How would his finesse and playmaking abilities adjust to the smaller ice he would be playing on? Also, would he be running into similar situations as he saw in the KHL, regarding having to fight for top 6 minutes in a young talented lineup. Not shockingly, it turned out the answer these questions would be an unanimous "yes". It took him the better part of the opening two months to find his game and style in North America. It didn't help he was playing with linemates like Cody Bass and Scott Kosmachuk, but he had to earn his way on the team with Coach Cronin. He took his bumps and bruises and made leaps and bounds progress by the seasons end. It was exactly what you wanted to see out of him as far as progression goes.





While he officially finished the season 6 goals and 13 points in 57 contests with the Eagles, this does not include 3 assists from a single game that were left off the scoresheet because the AHL stat tracking is amateur hour. Point being, the stats don't tell the story here, he progressed as he should have and finished the regular season strong and with a great attitude most importantly. Sometimes you grow weary of players coming from overseas being stuck in the AHL in a potential role that they don't enjoy or isn't best suited for him. That wasn't the case here and was great to see. Coming into this season he looks to continue his progress and earn a role much bigger than the bottom 6 center role he played last season. You would love to see him try and earn his way on some more power play minutes this season as well as play with some line mates who have a little bit better finishing ability around the net. It was a bit surprising to see him not get a preseason game with the Avs, he was part of the initial cuts following training camp, but with Eagles camp set to start up tomorrow, he will look to have a strong camp and force Coach Cronin's hand right from the start as far as playing him in a bigger role.





So if you haven't had the ability to watch Shvyryov play, what should you expect? He's a playmaker and a very high energy guy. Perhaps the first thing you notice when you watch him play, is the energy in which he plays with. The kid always seems to have some extra juice in his skates and his buzzing around. Never afraid to celebrate with his teammates, he really just looks like a kid that just loves every opportunity to play hockey. He's a shifty skater, not a huge body but at 6'1" 190lbs his size will certainly do at the pro level. He's a pass first type of player, like I said he is a play maker. He wants to set up others and really excels at creating for others. He see's the ice really well and can see plays develop with the puck on his stick. When he is on his game and feeling it, he possess excellent vision with the puck. He isn't afraid to make a flashy pass and take risks with the puck. Which makes for some great highlights but also probably doesn't always sit well with a Coach like Greg Cronin. While he is a playmaker and a pass first player, his snapshot is a very nice compliment to his game. It's very accurate and is a hard read for many AHL level goalies when he is coming down the wing with a full head of steam. However, where he really succeeded and scored the majority of his goals and created the most chances was when he used his speed and crashed the net hard. Once he figured this out you really started to see him gain more trust from Cronin. When he is crashing the net hard, good things tend to happen for the Eagles last season and that was just one of the few parts of his game you really saw grow over the course of last season.

I think his early demotion was somewhat telling, mainly because they didn't even give him a look in 1 of 7 preseason games. He wasn't ever going to be in serious consideration for a spot on this loaded Avs squad, but he still has plenty of time. He certainly should not be in any rush to make the jump, it's not realistic and I don't think he is. I really want to see how he handles himself in Eagles camp this year. Having a year in the North America, the AHL as well as playing under Cronin under his belt. I would expect some pretty big leaps and bounds in his development. Somewhat similar to a Martin Kaut or a Nick Henry. The Eagles are going to be deep as well so I'm still expecting him to start on the third line probably but I certainly think he can work his way up the lineup including power play time as well. A guy in his situation is going to have to do that to succeed and I think he is up for the challenge. As far as total production I a not sure what to expect. I think it'd be fair to want to see him increase his goals totals to the 10+ mark is he can stay healthy for an entire season. I'd also like to see him notch another 20-25 assists and be above the 30 point mark. While it doesn't seem huge I think steady progress with a player like Shvyryov will be important for his standing with the team and continued development.