As the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, arguably the biggest day for the new Leafs management to make their point, was finishing, the Leafs had one pick left, at 185th overall, and the name that the Leafs announced pleasantly surprised Leafs fans everywhere. They had selected forward Nikita Korostelev from the Sarnia Sting of the OHL. This pick was easily the Leafs' biggest steal of the draft. Most analysts and draft rankings had Korostelev projected to go in the 3rd round, and the Leafs picked him up in the 7th. He oozes skill and has a large chance at becoming a solid offensive force in the NHL. But for those of you that aren't overly familiar with him, let's look in depth and figure out who Korostelev is and what he can bring to the table.
A native of Moskva, Russia, Korostelev grew up in Canada playing for the Vaughan Kings Bantam AAA team, and then played Minor Midget for the Toronto Jr. Canadiens AAA team. He then, after being drafted by the Sarnia Sting, recorded 60 points in 38 games for the Sting in his first year of competition in 2013-14. In his most recent year, he tallied 53 points in 55 games. Again, recording at almost a point per game pace and being taken in the 7th round is a huge steal for the Leafs, and he'll hopefully carry his production to the NHL, but what makes Korostelev the player that he is?
The first thing you'll notice about Korostelev's game is that he is a strict all offense player. He has a very hard wrist shot and a very nifty set of hands, he has a quick release and has great awareness in the offensive zone. He can be used on the powerplay and is a strong skater. His only downside is that he doesn't play much of a defensive game and doesn't use his body in a physical way despite his size, but aside from that he'll be a goal-scoring asset to a team that needs scoring.
NHL ETA: 2018-19
Unlike the big, defensive defensemen that the Leafs had taken earlier in the draft, such as Stephen Desrocher and Andrew Nielsen, Korostelev might not take as long to earn himself an NHL job. It's entirely possible that Korostelev plays out his final two years in junior and plays one year with the Toronto Marlies before being given a crack at the NHL team.
Player Comparable: Cody Hodgson
Given that both are strict offensive players that don't play too much defense, Korostelev being compared to a player by the likes of Cody Hodgson seems reasonable. It's hard to determine now whether Korostelev will be as good as Hodgson, better, or worse, but either way, this is a reasonable comparison.
: Top Six Sniper
Korostelev has all the tools to become an effective sniper in the NHL and utilized on the powerplay. As stated before, it's hard to comprehend whether he will reach this ceiling, but given his playing style, there is still a large chance that he develops properly and reaches this potential.
What do you think of the selection of Korostelev, Leafs fans? Weigh in below.
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