NHL Central Scouting's Al Jensen said on the “NHL Draft Class” podcast that Mikhail Egorov “offers a huge upside with his quickness and the way he covers the net extensively.”
Egorov (6-foot-4, 179 pounds) played in 43 regular-season games for Omaha of the United States Hockey League, posting an 8-25-3 record with a 3.86 goals-against average, .892 save percentage and one shutout. He had the fourth-most shots in the USHL this season (1,262), and the Lancers averaged a league-low 2.58 goals per game.
He is the No. 1 final North American goalie ranking for the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft by NHL Central Scouting.
“He didn't play much at the beginning of the year, but he became a starter and played a lot throughout the second half of the season,” Jensen said. “He has a huge advantage just in the way he plays the game. He's very smart and his technical game is sound. He moves well for a 6-foot-4 goalie and has great game structure. If you're going to draft him, do the job.'' Look at this kid with him and in four to six years.
“I just realized he had a huge upside and it was actually an easy choice to put him number one in the final rankings.”
Jensen is also impressed with Carter George (6-1, 196) of Owen Sound in the Ontario Hockey League.
“His game is still great,” Jensen said. “And his drop from No. 1 to No. 2 (in January's interim rankings) has nothing to do with his play. It's just because of Egorov and his NHL potential. George was probably one of the most consistent players.'' Goalies I've watched all year. ”
Co-hosts Adam Kimmelman and Mike G. Morreale also spoke with Jensen about how coaching today's young goalies has changed over the past 20 years, as well as Americans Nicholas Kemp (4th place) and John Parsons. He also talked about his thoughts on (13th place). National hockey team development program U-18 team.
The podcast is free and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms, including iTunes, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. Also available at NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.
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listen: New episode of NHL Draft Class
