Sports. Honestly. Since 2011

Danila Yurov Scouting Report: 2022 NHL Draft #8

Danila Yurov Scouting Report

Welcome back to Top Shelf Prospects, the daily column that brings you the next crop of professional hockey players. Each day I will bring you a new player profile or topical article in the lead-up to the 2022 NHL Draft. Be sure to bookmark the site, follow me on Twitter, and spread the word for the site that will bring you analytical and critical profiles and scouting reports! Last Word On Hockey Prospects is your new headquarters for everything “NHL Draft”! We have a complete listing of our draft articles here. Today we bring you our Danila Yurov Scouting Report. 

Russian winger Danila Yurov is playing in the Metallurg Magnitogorsk system, splitting time between the KHL and MHL. He struggled to get ice time in the KHL, playing mainly on the fourth line. He didn’t put up a point in 21 regular season games or 19 playoff games. However, he was very good at the MHL level. In 23 games, he scored 13 goals and 26 assists for 36 points. Yurov also had a goal at the World Juniors, but the tournament was postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak.

In 2020-21, he scored one goal and one assist in 21 KHL games, as well as one goal in three playoff games. In the MHL, he scored 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points in 23 games. He also added two goals and three points in three playoff games. Yurov represented Russia at the IIHF Under-18 World Hockey Championships. He scored four goals and seven assists for 11 points in seven tournament games and helped his team to a silver medal. In 2019-20 he put up two goals and six assists for eight points in six games at the U17 World Hockey Challenge. He helped Russia to a gold medal.

Danila Yurov Scouting Report

Right Wing/Centre — shoots Left
Born December 22nd, 2003 — Chelyabinsk, Russia
Height 6’1″ — Weight 179 lbs [185 cm / 81 kg]

Skating

Overall, Yurov is a good skater and with some adjustments could become a great one. His overall stride is a bit choppy and this prevents him from getting the most out of his ability. Yurov’s top-end speed is still good but could become great with some improvements in his technique. His acceleration is very good. Yurov’s ability to change speeds is a weapon that he can use on the rush, or in the zone to beat defenders. His edgework and agility are excellent. Yurov is extremely elusive, both with and without the puck. He can stand to gain lower body strength though. This would help him to be stronger on the puck, fight through checks and win board battles.

Offensive Game

Yurov loves to play a very quick game. All of his movements are directed at moving the puck quickly and generating scoring chances. He attacks the front of the net with the puck, looking to get by his defender and take the puck to the net. He will look for a quick pass and a give-and-go with a teammate as well. Yurov has good stickhandling ability which he marries with his strong skating. This allows him to carry the puck through the neutral zone and create effective zone entries. His good vision allows him to be a playmaker as well. Most of the time he looks for the short quick pass, keeping the puck moving in the cycle game. However, when there is an opportunity to make a tape-to-tape pass through a tight passing lane, he isn’t afraid to try the creative play and usually pulls it off.

Yurov can also play the role of a sniper. He has a heavy wrist shot. He gets his shot off with a quick release that can also fool goalies. Yurov also has a good one-timer. Yurov can stand to improve his accuracy though. He also loves to play a physical game. He gets in quickly on the forecheck and forces defenders to move the puck quickly and make mistakes. Yurov battles hard on the boards as well. These aspects of his game should only improve as he continues to get stronger and more mature.

Defensive Game

Yurov’s defensive game is a bit hit and miss at this point. There are times he is effective on the backcheck, helping the defence down low. He reads the play well and gets into good positions to cut down passing and shooting lanes. However, there are other times when he abandons his defensive responsibilities in order to try and generate offence. He can fly the zone on the breakout, looking for a long breakaway pass instead of making sure to help out and get the puck out of danger. There are also times he can cheat on his coverage a little bit. These are things that should be able to improve with good coaching.

Projection and Comparison

Yurov has a lot of offensive talent and could develop into a top line winger in the NHL. His ability to play with pace and to be physical will certainly be aspects that help him out. However, he still needs to work on his skating stride and defensive game. According to Elite Prospects, Yurov’s KHL contract runs through the 2022-23 season, so expect him to spend at least one more season in Russia. Beyond that, it is unclear what the status of Russian prospects will be due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, so there could be some risk in that as well.  Yurov’s game is reminiscent of Nazem Kadri, however this is a stylistic comparison only and not one based on skill or ability.

Highlights

The following is a compilation of some of the highlight packages and features of Danila Yurov that are available on youtube and Twitter.

 

Check back tomorrow for our next article on the 2022 NHL Draft.

 

Danila Yurov Scouting Report Main Photo:

Embed from Getty Images

FRISCO, TEXAS – MAY 06: Danila Yurov #25 of Russia and Fyodor Svechkov #9 of Russia react after losing 3-5 to Canada in the 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship Gold Medal Game at Comerica Center on May 06, 2021 in Frisco, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

Ben Kerr

Ben Kerr

Ben is a credentialed sports writer from just outside Toronto, Canada. A lawyer, he has a highly analytical approach to writing. Ben is the COO of Last Word On Sports INC. Most of his writing can be found in the hockey department, though he follows and writes on other sports as well.

Share:

More Posts

Send Us A Message