When it comes to Russians in the NHL Entry Draft, most teams are very wary. That’s why the selection of Vitali Kravtsov was seen as such an off the board pick. It’s worth looking at the recent history of how NHL teams draft Russian players to see why.
First off, picking Vitali Kravtsov ninth shouldn’t have been considered off the board. He was ranked the third best European skater by NHL Central Scouting, behind defensemen Rasmus Dahlin and Adam Boqvist. Based on his ranking and statistics, there is not doubt he should have gone in the top ten.