In this series every now and then I’ll be going through different SHL rookies and doing a break down of their skills, stats and projections with their new teams.

Rookie Profile:

For the first edition of my rookie profiles I’ll be taking a look at a young Russian making his move from the SMJHL to the SHL this season. Big surprise, right?

Luka Zaitsev is a right-winger who after 3 fairly successful seasons in the SMJHL with the Vancouver Whalers is finally ready to make his jump to the big leagues with the Toronto North Stars.

Let’s talk a look at his career to date:

HISTORY and STATS:

The Whalers signed Zaitsev, then Winston, as a latecomer who missed the S21 SMJHL Draft. Many believe scouting missed him due to the fact that he came from a small town in East Coast Canada. A sparsely populated region of Canada where hockey players don’t tend to flock from unless they’re upper echelon such as Nathan MacKinnon and of course Sidney Crosby. Luka Zaitsev wanted to add his name to that list, so he answered the call of the Vancouver Whalers.

As a late joiner, Luka only suited up for 17 regular season games. In that time he was able to score 6 goals and add 3 assists for 9 points. In a full season that type of pace would’ve put him in the realm of 21 points and that’s not accounting for skill development. The Kelowna Knights defeated the Whalers the season in the playoffs in a hard fought 7 game series for the Western Conference title.


Zaitsev after scoring his 1st SMJHL goal

Being a late bloomer it was difficult for scouts to place exactly where Zaitsev would end up being selected. Minnesota ended up calling his name 23rd overall and many early pundits were labeling him as the “steal of the draft”. Going forward we’ll have to see how that pans out.

Next season Zaitsev had a more prominent role. In his first full season as a Whaler, playing mostly top line minutes, he scored 14 goals to go a long with 19 assists. A far cry from what the analysts were hoping to get out of him. His 33 points, although, respectable were simply not enough to put a team over the edge and again for the 2nd consecutive year the Knights defeated the Whalers this time in a 4 game sweep to claim the Western Conference Championship. Luka did walk home with the Ron Bolt Trophy at the awards show that season however as the SMJHL Most Sportsmanlike Player.


Luka back when he was Chance Winston, after scoring for the Canadian Junior National Team

During this period Minnesota made a trade that sent Zaitsev to the Toronto North Stars, the team who he will suit up for this season.

It was announced at the beginning of S23 that this would be his final SMJHL season, a long with teammate Andrey Barbashev, who would also be accompanying him to Toronto following the season.

Since I will be doing a rookie profile on Barbashev I won’t comment on his performance but Zaitsev certainly had his best performance in S23. In a full 40 games Luka netted 20 goals which was good enough for 5th overall and chipped in with 26 assists as well which was tied for 10th overall. This offensive outburst of 46 points put him 6th overall in the league. A huge improvement from his prior 2 seasons.

Vancouver fans were able to smile a little bigger this season as well as they were finally able to dispatch the Kelowna Knights in the Western Conference Finals. In the deciding game, Zaitsev scored 2 goals to help the cause. His 8 play offs game in total would prove to be the highest in the league this season. Unfortunately, Detroit was able to defeat Vancouver and Zaitsev as well as many of his graduating teammates would leave the SMJHL empty handed.

Perhaps that will make him hungrier for an SHL championship.

What does he bring to the table in terms of skills?

SKILLS:

If you know Zaitsev then you know he prides himself on his ability to score goals. Unfortunately, he hasn’t done that to date at the pace he had wished to do so. He works at this with a passion though. He will come into the SHL with the ability to score goals at the pro level and we expect him to do just that in his rookie season.

He falters a bit in his playmaking abilities however. Although, Zaitsev has always put up solid assist numbers in the SMJHL it seems as though his mind is pretty well set on putting the puck in the net himself. Luckily it appears as though he’ll be playing on a line with his long time team mate, Andrey Barbashev who will more than willingly pass him the puck and allow him to do just that.

Zaitsev is strong, he can skate fast and do it for days at a time. He also has the trade mark Russian stick handling ability and of course as we mentioned, the goal scorer. Where he lacks most however would be in his defense.

Going from Juniors to Pros is always a tough transition. Many of times young players simply rely on their offensive abilities and simply brush aside the defensive side of the game in the SMJHL. You can’t do that in the SHL. You need to be responsible in your own end and if you don’t you simply become a liability on the ice for you time. This is something Zaitsev is going to have to work on immediately if he wants to be an important player for the North Stars in this upcoming season.



LOOKING AHEAD

Toronto just experienced some tough luck in free agency as they lost Barney Stinson and Tom Sawyer, two players who were primed to play key roles in the upcoming season where they hoped to contend. It certainly seemed that way as they brought in players like Phil Schenn and Willie Weber. Unfortunately, this will be a minor set back but with the prospects and current talent Toronto is still looking like a team on the rise and Zaitsev is firmly planted in that mix.

Expect Zaitsev to play 3rd line minutes with Barbashev and perhaps David Benson, another rookie and former 1st overall selection. This will provide him with opportunities to further the chemistry he has with Andrey and we here believe that both these young Russian men will have successful rookie seasons and if things go right we may just get to see them suiting up for the play offs.

Finally, don't have to worry about your or Barbashev in the SMJHL. Good luck in the SHL.

Haha Thanks my man!

Can't wait for more!

Andrey Barbashev II|| LW || Kelowna Knights || TPE 667
Son of North Star Great Andrey Barbashev
Birthplace: Vienna, Austria
Height: 6'0
Weight: 185
Number: 92
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Career Statistics:
SMJHL S49 Regular Season:
S49 | 50 GP | 6 G | 5 A | 11 P | -2 | 0 PPP | 6 PIM | 36 H
S50 | 50 GP | 17 G | 21 A | 38 P | +13 | 7 PPP | 16 PIM | 48 H
S51 | 50 GP | 20 G | 19 A | 39 P | +9 | 6 PPP | 24 PIM | 73 H
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Transactions:
S49:Drafted 32nd Overall by Kelowna
S49:Signed 1yr/$3.0M
S50:Drafted 15th Overall by West Kendall
S49:Signed 3yr/$12.0M
S51:Extended 1yr/$6.0M for S52 with WKP
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Accomplishments:
S49:World Junior Gold Medalist

 

First media I've done in forever. Gotta get back into the habit.

You should!! Awesome job!