For a while, the New York Rangers were often hesitant to take Russian prospects. The uncertainty of their dedication to North America, as well as the death of Alexei Cherepanov, almost certainly made Rangers scouts a little gun shy in the draft when it came to picking players from Russia, especially those in the KHL.
The success of Pavel Buchnevich seems to have changed that mindset a little. A year after that pick, the Rangers took Igor Shestyorkin. The Rangers then traded for young Yegor Rykov and Vladislav Namestnikov. Continuing that trend, the Rangers selected Vitali Kravtsov in the 2018 draft…and seemed rather dead set on that decision from the get go.