There are plenty of talented draft-eligible players that will be future stars in the SHL, but do not underestimate Darian Scherbluk in this season NWJHL draft.

At 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds, the Niagara Ice Dogs shutdown defenseman is easily one of the biggest players in this draft, as he would be in just about all others. While that alone has made scouts take notice, its unique athleticism and a better-than-expected skill set for his frame that makes him a candidate to become a potential star in the SHL.

“It’s pretty remarkable for him to be as physically developed as he is at this stage,” said Brain Burke the general manager of the historic Toronto maple leafs. “He is just about 240 pounds of pretty much muscle, so it’s all good weight.”
Scherbluk, whose father ran track in college and was a semi pro hockey player back in Ukraine, help solidify that the athleticism runs in the family.

“He had a very impressive showing at the SHL rookie combine,” said general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Steve Yezerman. “It was the kind of thing you’re used to seeing at the NFL combine rather than the NHL.”

Due to his size and position, Darian Scherbluk instantly draws a natural comparisons to Zdeno Chara, who just captained Boston to a Stanley Cup, and Tyler Myers, the 2010 NHL Rookie of the Year who was drafted. Those analogies are pretty perfect, as Darian is as naturally aggressive as Chara, can lay the body out at any time and is as good of a skater as Myers for their size. He is really raw and will need some time to develop his offensive skills as he competes with higher skilled players but his defensive abilities will greatly make up for it. There were the same concerns with Zedon Chara and Tyler Myers when they first got drafted but now have silenced the critics. Like Chara Darian Scherbluk is a shutdown defensemen who you can count on night in and night out to go against the top lines of the opposing teams and shut them down. Has similar size and weight as Tyler Myers and is not afraid to lay the body out many times throughout the game like Chara. He is known to bring that physical presence whenever he is on the ice. “He skates pretty well for a big man, and he’s aggressive enough to make his presence known,” said Tony MacDonald, the Vancouver Canucks head junior scout. Now with the recent off ice issues Darian Scherbluk has gotten himself into he could really be the steal of the draft.

Darian Scherbluk, a dual citizen who has yet to make an international
commitment to the country of Ukraine or Canada, enjoyed a strong a second strong season for the Niagara, as his stature allowed him to make more of an impact than most new comers to North America who is still adjusting to the different style of play. He scored forty three points (eight goals and thirty five assists) for the Niagara Ice Dogs and in addition to a team best plus 13 plus minus rating in sixty games. He was also a key part to the Ice Dogs main penalty kill unit helping contribute to the Ice Dogs third ranked penalty kill.
“It is also not easy being one of the younger players in the OHL because a lot of the young players coming into the OHL are just 18 year olds or younger. There’s a lot of twenty and twenty one year olds now,” said Patrick Murray, the Ice Dogs assistant coach. “He came into his second year of playing hockey in North America and had a pretty decent year. All of that ice time that Darian Scherbluk got this year will really help in getting him to develop into a more sound defenseman.”

Throw in good passing skill that this defenseman has and it is fair to wonder why Scherbluk is not a lock to be gone in the early rounds. While impressive, his season likely doesn’t match up to others at the very top of the draft. There are a lot of players in this draft with tons of upside which have developed their on-ice skills more than Scherbluk but only time will tell when it comes to Darian’s full potential. He is now thought of as more of mid round pick than an early draft pick after his suspension. Where he gets drafted will depend more on how teams view his enormous potential but to him all he wants to do is get drafted and have a chance to make a difference in the NWJHL.

“If you take Darian Scherbluk, you are hoping that his game continues to mature,” said Steven Karmanos, a scout for the SHL. “You would think just with his size and his skating ability alone that he will be a good player for your team, but I don’t think his offensive play has indicated that he is not a star projection as of yet.”
“You could say that he is a work in progress that could really grow into an elite player,” said former Avalanche defensemen Rob Blake.
Also with Darian Scherbluk having to sit in the press box to serve his suspension for forty percent of the season will make him a gamble pick. He could really have a big impact on whatever team he is playing on down the stretch of the season and into the playoffs. The big question is are teams willing to wait out his suspension and hope he can be that top minutes defensemen?

This should make Scherbluk one of the more intriguing players on draft day, as teams may either elect to go with safer picks or find it too difficult to pass on his upside and potential.
“Like most young defensemen he’s got some things to learn about the game, but he’s got a huge head start to getting to the elite shutdown defensemen status in the SHL just based on his physical stature and strength,” said Rob Blake

It is safe to say we certainly have not seen the best of Darian Scherbluk’s game yet and it will still be a few years till we can truly tell if this guy was worth that early round pick or not.