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NHL Prospect Roundup: Edmonton Oilers’ Matvei Petrov continues to dominate

Steven Ellis
Steven Ellis
NHL Prospect Roundup: Edmonton Oilers’ Matvei Petrov continues to dominate

With the playoffs in full swing just about everywhere, players turning pro early, and the upcoming U-18s and senior men’s World Hockey Championship, there’s so much to watch in the prospect world.

Connor Bedard is dominating the WHL. Quinnipiac just closed out the NCAA men’s national championship. We’ve got championship series ready to go in Europe. We’ve seen some of the NHL’s top college prospects – including Luke Hughes (NJD), Brock Faber (Minnesota) and Matthew Knies (TOR) – turn pro in recent days, too. Add in the exciting ends to some of the major junior playoff rounds this week, and there’s good hockey every single night. So, hold on, Stanley Cup playoffs.

Let’s take a look at some standouts from the past week:

OHL

– I don’t love the Edmonton Oilers‘ prospect pool by any means, but I do love what I’ve seen from Matvei Petrov over the past two years with the Brampton Batallion. After breaking the 90-point barrier for the second consecutive season, Petrov finished the first-round series with no goals, but 10 assists to lead the team in the first round against the Mississauga Steelheads. The dynamic winger blends good speed, skill and offensive zone awareness that have allowed him to look quite dangerous everywhere he goes. He’s already signed to the Oilers and could end up being a solid piece of the Bakersfield Condors next year.

– It was also a great weekend for Petrov’s teammate, Dallas Stars prospect Kyle McDonald. The 21-year-old overager has seven goals and nine points through six playoff games, with his hat-trick on Sunday being a big reason why Mississauga’s season is over. He has 16 shots over his past two games, which is absurd. The fifth-year forward didn’t put up explosive numbers during his career by any means, but he’s a talented goal-scorer and has a big 6-foot-4, 207-pound frame that he tends to use to his advantage. It’s still a longshot for him to make the NHL, but if he does, it’s as a bottom-six forward that can intimidate opponents and jam in the odd goal.

QMJHL

– There’s been quite a few standout drafted prospects during the QMJHL playoffs, but Montreal Canadiens prospect Joshua Roy has arguably been the most valuable. He leads his team with five goals and 10 points in just four games, seven more than Cole Huckins (Calgary), the next highest-scoring prospect on the team. Sherbrooke swept its first-round series but now have a determined Drummondville team that upset Victoria 4-1 last week. Roy, 19, will need to keep that momentum flowing if Sherbrooke is going far this year.

WHL

– Jayden Grubbe had a good fourth season in the WHL, potting 18 goals and 67 points in 64 games with Red Deer. The playoffs have been an enitrely different animal. He’s tied with Moose Jaw’s Jagger Firkus for the most points by a player outside of Regina (10) in the first round, with his nine assists tying Stanislav Svozil for the playoff lead. Red Deer moved on after a five-game series with Calgary and are still awaiting their opponent for the second round. The New York Rangers took Grubbe with the 65th pick in 2021, and he has since evolved his playmaking game to new heights. He has a big 6-foot-3, 203-pound frame, and he’s as good as they get defensively. The Rangers have a good one here.

NCAA

– After months of waiting and waiting, the Toronto Maple Leafs have finally signed Matthew Knies from the University of Minnesota. He had a quiet final few weeks of college action, recording just one assist in the Frozen Four and no points in the regional championship two weeks before that. The top line was shut down outside of Logan Cooley’s play in the regional, so it’s not all on Knies. But after a heartbreaking loss to Quinnipiac in overtime of the national title game, Knies is ready to make his mark with the Leafs. He’ll be with the team in Florida this week and it seems likely that he’ll get into a few games to get comfortable. While I’d bet against him being a regular contributor in the playoffs, it’ll be good to see how Knies adjusts to the next level – and hopefully with a chip on his shoulder.

– I wasn’t surprised to hear that the Philadelphia Flyers and forward Jay O’Brien weren’t going to come to terms on a new deal. O’Brien was a surprise first-round pick in 2018. and had about as rocky of a college start as possible. He showed solid progress at BU over the past few years, but not enough to be worth more than the second-round pick the Flyers will get as compensation. He’s a hard-working player who could give another team some depth, but I’m not sure he’s anything more than an AAAA forward that’ll bounce between the NHL and AHL for the next few years. I still think he’ll sign in the NHL somewhere, though.

AHL

– Ty Glover isn’t high on the Pittsburgh Penguins depth chart, especially with seven points in 45 games heading into Saturday. But a four-point effort against Bridgeport on Saturday was his best game of the season, by far, and helped end a seven-game losing streak. Glover’s overall game has come a long way in recent months, and he’s looking more confident as a shooter these days. Mix in his 6-foot-3, 201-pound frame, and there could be a spot for the British-born forward in the bottom-six one day.

– It’s looking like Connor Zary will finish the season as the AHL’s top U-22 scorer. Drafted 24th overall by the Calgary Flames in 2020, Zary has been a massive success for the Wranglers, currently sitting at 21 goals and 58 points through 69 games. Compare that to his 25-point rookie campaign last year; the dynamic center clearly means business. Zary will be 22 once next season kicks off, and, assuming coach Darryl Sutter is willing to give young guys a chance next year, Zary should factor into Calgary’s opening-night plans in October.

– Matthew Maggio was unstoppable this season, with the New York Islanders draft pick putting up 111 points with Windsor this year. He, and the rest of the team, fell flat during the OHL playoffs, but now he’s expected to begin his pro career with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders. Drafted 142nd overall as an overager last year, Maggio is a confident shooter, as evidenced by his 92 goals over 132 regular season games the past two years. Some scouts are split on his NHL future, but he was found money that late in the draft last year, regardless. Assuming he goes to the AHL full-time next year, it’ll be interesting to see how he adjusts to the speed and physicality of the pro game.

KHL

– Ak Bars Kazan is off to the KHL championship, which means big things are ahead for 21-year-old Chicago Blackhawks prospect Ilya Safonov. Already Kazan’s captain at a young age, he had a 19-goal, 37-point regular season and has another five points in 16 post-season games. The KHL is a veterans league where U-22 players rarely thrive. Still, he’s fourth in scoring in that age group and a solid reason while Kazan is still playing. He’s signed until 2024-25, so the Hawks must wait a bit longer for Safonov to come over. But by then, he should have his game rounded well enough – and Chicago might be a bit more competitive by then.

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