The Silvertips headed to Russia in Tuesday’s CHL import draft, selecting a pair of Russians to fill their two European roster slots.
Everett selected Russian defenseman Alexander Scherbakov in the first round. Scherbakov, the 50th player selected, was the youngest player selected in the draft, being born on Dec. 24, 1998. Elite Prospects lists Scherbakov at 5-foot-10 and 207 pounds. Last season he played for CSKA Moscow’s U-17 team, for which he had five goals, eight assists and 37 penalty minutes in 30 games.
The Tips then took Russian winger Yan Khomenko in the second round. Khomenko, the 76th player picked, is also a 98. Elite Prospects has Khomenko at 6-foot-1 and 159 pounds. Last season for Dynamo Moscow’s U-17 team he had 20 goals and 10 assists in 33 contests.
Should both Scherbakov and Khomenko report, it will be the second straight season in which both of Everett’s import spots are taken up by Russians.
Both Scherbakov and Khomenko are heading into their 17-year-old seasons, so the Tips decided to draft for youth rather than experience. Getting 98-born players is a good idea, as the uncertainty that surrounds top draft picks Tyson Jost and Patrick Khodorenko means Everett has potential gaps in that age group. However, as 17-year-olds they’re unlikely to have as much immediate impact as the Tips could have expected from drafting older players.
More to come later …
—- UPDATE, 4:30 p.m.
I’ve had a chance to talk to Everett general manager Garry Davidson about the import draft, and here’s what was gleamed:
– Davidson hasn’t really seen either Scherbakov or Khomenko play, but here’s the scouting reports: Scherbakov is a defenseman with offensive potential, and he reportedly has a good shot. Scherbakov is a left shot, which is important considering Everett’s abundance of right-shot blueliners. Khomenko reportedly has the type of skill set to become a top-six forward, possessing good hands and good vision. Khomenko was also taken in the third round of the KHL draft by Ak Bars Kazan.
– Davidson is confident both Scherbakov and Khomenko will report. Both have the same agent as last season’s leading scorer, Russian winger Nikita Scherbak, so Davidson feels comfortable with the situation. He said he’s already connected with both players and the paperwork process has begun.
– The Tips decided to go young with the import draft because they wanted players who will be around for more than one year.
– Afterward, despite being satisfied with how things unfolded, Davidson expressed his frustration with the import draft, which is run less by the teams drafting and more by the player agents. He said he thought players should have to opt into the draft, thus clearing up the questions about whether a selected player will report. Davidson’s predecessor, Doug Soetaert, actually took steps toward trying to get this rule implemented, but it ended up going nowhere.
– There’s one piece of non-draft news as Everett defenseman Kevin Davis is on the roster for the Edmonton Oilers’ orientation camp, which takes place this week. This would make Davis, who was not selected in last weekend’s NHL draft, the third undrafted Tip to be invited to an NHL development camp, joining goaltender Austin Lotz (Buffalo) and defenseman Tristen Pfeifer (Arizona).
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