NHL Prospect Roundup: Top five players thriving in Europe

Nov 24, 2025, 11:30 ESTUpdated: Nov 24, 2025, 10:46 EST

NHL Prospect Roundup: Top five players thriving in Europe

Credit: Shmakov Maxim

We’ve spent the past few weeks touring North America. Now, it’s time for a Euro Trip.

It’s always so fascinating watching prospects develop in Europe. For the most part, the top names are battling it out against pro-level players. It can be very valuable to go up against players who have done the NHL grind before.

But in other cases, you’ll see players earn a lot less ice time than they need to truly develop correctly. In the cases of these five players, their younger ages haven’t been an issue so far. In fact, there are a couple of potential award winners in this group, despite everyone being 22 or under.

Today, we’re going to look at five prospects thriving in one of the top leagues in Europe. To keep it simple, we’re including just one prospect per NHL team – that’s why Chicago’s Anton Lundell is just an honorable mention here:

Roman Kantserov, C/RW, 21, KHL (Chicago Blackhawks)

Katenserov has been the most impressive prospect abroad this year, with the 21-year-old tracking for over 40 goals and 75 points. He was excellent a year ago with 38 points in 47 games, but he has taken things up a notch this year. There’s a legit chance Kantserov could finish as the KHL’s MVP – and given he’s eligible for an NHL contract this spring, the timing couldn’t be better.

The knock against Kantserov has always been his 5-foot-9 frame. While that hasn’t bothered him in Russia, it’s often a different story in the NHL. He was more of a playmaker a year ago, but has worked on putting more muscle behind his wrist shot – and it’s working. Still, he’ll need to bulk up to make it work in the NHL, but there’s some top-six potential here if he can make that happen.

Filip Eriksson, C, 21, SHL (Montreal Canadiens)

Alexander Zharovsky is the one gaining all the attention in Habs-land, and for good reason. But Eriksson deserves some love as Lulea’s top scorer in the Swedish league, where he’s playing at a 40-point pace. The team is in a rebuild after winning the SHL title, so Eriksson’s success is even more impressive, given he’s beating out some notable veterans on the scoresheet.

A sixth-round pick in 2023, Eriksson had never been high on Montreal’s depth chart. He never played for Sweden in any meaningful competitions and was a depth player for Vaxjo last year. Now, at 21 years old, Eriksson is playing about 20 minutes a night while showing his hard-working nature and playmaking chops. He won’t blow you away with skill, but he rarely gives up on a play and is reliable at both ends of the ice. Eriksson is the top U-22 scorer in the league, and as long as he continues chugging along, he could become a legit future bottom-six option for the Habs.

Egor Surin, C, 19, KHL (Nashville Predators)

Surin’s career has been so fascinating. He was an absolute maniac in his draft year, registering 52 points and 108 penalty minutes in the Russian junior league. He played decently well in the KHL last year, but still put up most of his production in the MHL. Now, he’s tracking for a 50-point season in the KHL while leading all U-20 players by a healthy margin. And for those who love chaos, his game is much more controlled now – he isn’t trying to put every player he sees through the glass.

The offense is good, and I like how relentless he is on the forecheck. I’m not sure he has the hockey sense to become a top-six player, but he’ll be an absolute force deeper in the lineup. The Predators already have Zachary L’Heureux, who is known for being a menace. If Surin can embrace that in the NHL, while still working his tail off to generate scoring chances, he’ll be totally fine.

Dmitri Gamzin, G, 22, KHL (New York Islanders)

Stats can be deceiving for a young Russian goaltender, especially when a .920 save percentage is around league average. But Gamzin has all but secured the starting role with CSKA Moskva, outplaying NHL veteran Spencer Martin (who recently left to sign with the New York Rangers). Gamzin has been one of the better goaltenders this year, establishing himself as a legit starter after bouncing around the top two Russian leagues the past few years.

The 6-foot-3 goaltender has good size, does a good job of tracking pucks and rarely is too far out of position. Gamzin’s footwork still needs a bit of seasoning, but he’s a legit goaltending prospect at this point. The Isles have a solid pipeline as a whole, but long-term goaltending options behind Ilya Sorokin are limited. Marcus Gidlof looks to be legit, but Gamzin is further along in his development right now. He has another year left on his KHL deal, and could come over to the AHL in time for 2027-28.

Benjamin Rautiainen, LW, 20, Liiga (Tampa Bay Lightning)

The Bolts have never been afraid to take a chance on a player with obvious style flaws (fellow Finn Niko Huuhtanen is another big example). In Rautiainen’s case, he’s not a great skater and he’s not rounded enough to play outside of a scoring role. But given he’s on pace for 75 points this year in Liiga – a feat never accomplished by a U-21 in league history – it’s remarkable what we’re seeing.

Rautiainen was passed over twice before in the NHL Draft. But a huge showing at the World Juniors, as well as a 33-point campaign against men with Tappara last year, helped his draft stock in a big way. There’s a path forward for Rautiainen to become a top-six forward in Tampa. He’s always thinking about generating offense and does a good job of reading plays from highly skilled linemates. He’s definitely a boom-bust prospect, but with the Bolts boasting one of the worst pipelines around, he was definitely worth the gamble. So far, so good.

Other notables: Anton Frondell, C (Chicago Blackhawks); Eddie Genborg, RW (Detroit Red Wings), Alexander Zharovsky, RW (Montreal Canadiens); Daniil Orlov, LHD (New Jersey Devils); Roni Hirvonen, C (Toronto Maple Leafs)

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