Vegas Golden Knights: Pavel Dorofeyev scores a beauty in KHL
Vegas Golden Knights prospect Pavel Dorofeyev is spending the year in the KHL and his 2019-20 season couldn’t have got off to a better start.
Dorofeyev was selected by the Vegas Golden Knights with the No. 79 overall pick in the Third Round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, with many experts of the opinion that the 18-year-old should have gone a lot higher.
He was ranked #41 by ISS Hockey, #26 by Future Considerations, #27 by Hockeyprospect.com, #31 by McKeen’s Hockey and #12 by NHL Central Scouting prior to the draft, which points to the fact that Dorofeyev has a high ceiling when it comes to his potential.
The Russian stud stood out to scouts thanks to his sweet release, his sublime puck-handling ability, his treasure chest of skills and his smooth skating ability, in addition to having the knack of being able to produce highlight-reel plays in the toughest of spots.
Dorofeyev, who was recently ranked No. 34 in the Sporting News’ Top 50 NHL Prospects List, looks to be the perfect long-term replacement for Nikita Gusev who was traded to the New Jersey Devils for two draft picks earlier this summer. Dorofeyev is certainly a high-end prospect and the Knights will be hoping that it is third time lucky with a Russian stud after both Gusev and Vadim Shipachyov failed to work out.
And he showed real signs of honing his skills and developing as a player last year, recording 17 goals and 14 assists for 31 points in 19 games for Stalyne Lisy Magnitogorsk in the MHL, before being promoted to Mettallurg Magnitogorsk where he tallied two points (one goal, one assist) in 23 games on a very good KHL team.
When he was drafted back in June, it was always clear that Dorofeyev was going to return to Russia for 2019-20 and he has so far made the most of his opportunity in the KHL for Mettallurg Magnitogorsk.
Playing in Mettallurg’s second game of the year against Severstal, Dorofeyev displayed vision, awareness and an absolute rocket of a release as he unleashed a beauty of an effort from way out. It acted as almost a coming-of-age moment for the prospect, who has all the skills in his toolbox to enable him to morph into a top-six forward in the NHL.
It was one of those highlight-reel goals that is worth watching over and over, and you can see it for yourself below. All we can say is it was an absolute beauty.
Pavel Dorofeyev (#27) scores his first KHL goal of the year and it's a beauty. Vegas picked up one heck of a player in the 3rd round. #VGK @Vegasborn #GoldenKnights pic.twitter.com/8LRr9cEpge
— Jack Manning (@NHLJackManning) September 4, 2019
Now, Dorofeyev did only get 6:41 minutes of ice time but it was an impressive start and if he keeps producing moments like the one above, then there is no doubt that the wing will get plenty more opportunities to shine in the KHL.
dark. Next. What is going on with Jimmy Schuldt?
The KHL is a competitive league and it is one of the top hockey leagues in the world, so a full season playing at that level will only help to accelerate Dorofeyev’s development and it will give him ample time to learn his craft and learn how to compete against men.
It is interesting that Dorofeyev’s KHL contract expires on April, 30, 2020 and he will be eligible to play in North America after that date, so he could be a potential candidate to crack the Vegas Golden Knights roster in 2020-21. Carving out a productive year in Russia this year will certainly help to prepare the talented forward for the NHL.