Early in this year’s draft cycle, Russian defenseman Anton Silayev was the talk of the town: listed at 6-foot-7 and over 200 pounds, he is a behemoth of a kid. The hype’s cooled off some over the last couple months, but he’s still viewed as a top-10 prospect–and maybe top-five, depending who you’re talking to.
Pre-draft rankings
No. 10 by The Athletic (Scott Wheeler)
No. 9 by Elite Prospects
No. 2 by TSN (Bob McKenzie)
No. 5 by Daily Faceoff
Statistics
What’s there to like?
“You can’t teach size.” Hockey general managers love some big D, and Silayev certainly checks that box at 6-foot-7. For a player that big, Silayev’s quite mobile as well–not “fast,” exactly, but when you’re that tall your strides can get you pretty far. In the following video clip, you can see Silayev carry the puck into the offensive zone, evade the defending skaters, and show off some impressive soft skill to maintain possession.
He misses the pass but hey, he’s just a kid, after all. Later in the clip (around the 6:00 mark), you can see him impose himself physically to separate the puck from the opposition. Good signs for such a young player, but you’ll want to see him impose himself more as he matures because with his reach, Silayev should have an easy time breaking up plays.
It’s easy to love a defenseman who’s that mobile and that big. Silayev can walk the blue line well, and skates backwards quite smoothly–and we all know how important it is to be a good skater in today’s NHL.
Silayev broke the under-18 scoring record in the KHL–that’s for all players by the way, and not just defensemen. Granted, his 63 games of experience is by far the most of any 17 year old in the league’s history — only five players have played over 30 games in that age group and three of them are stars (Kirill Kaprizov, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Vladimir Tarasenko).
He’s billed as a left-shot defenseman, but he’s played both sides of a pair and could likely continue to play either side as a pro in the NHL. Silayev earned power play time on a pretty good KHL team (Torpedo) at, we reiterate, 17 years old–including a playoff run. Players his age don’t often get those kinds of opportunities. If Silayev delivers on his promise and develops into a badass blueliner, he truly would earn the “unicorn” moniker that’s been getting thrown around the past several months.
What’s not to like?
When the KHL season ended, Silayev returned to the MHL for 10 playoff games and was less impressive than many would’ve hoped. For all the upside, Silayev still has to reach that ceiling: he’s quite raw, and will need a lot of work to get to his true potential. There are also concerns about his hockey sense and, after a hot start, his offense dipped significantly. The upside is certainly there–any team would be thrilled with the second coming of Zdeno Chara–but Silayev isn’t as projectable as some of the other prospects in the draft. Maybe the hot start to 2023-24 was a fluke, and Silayev ultimately becomes a more defensive defenseman than an all-situations No. 1.
Much like Ivan Demidov earlier in this draft, there’s also the Russian factor. Silayev’s KHL contract runs through the end of the 2025-26 season, so the team that selects him will have to be okay with an additional two years of waiting. This seems like it’s becoming less of an issue–in no small part thanks to the Flyers and their getting Ivan Fedotov to North America and the rumors of Matvei Michkov arriving early–but some teams may remain leery drafting Russians so early.
How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?
Fantastically. The Flyers have a handful of promising defensemen, and adding the size’n’snarl combination that Silayev brings would make for a hell of a top four on the backend if everything pans out. He’s a natural left-handed defenseman, but the fact that he’s already playing both sides would add some additional versatility that would allow the Flyers mix up their defensemen without much issue. The Flyers have shown a willingness to shift defensemen from their natural position (Cam York two seasons ago, playing on the right opposite Ivan Provorov, and Travis Sanheim last season playing the right opposite York), so adding a young player who’s already accustomed to switching sides would be nice.
Could the Flyers actually get him?
It’s possible! But unlikely. Generally, Silayev is viewed as a top-ten pick (Elite Prospect’s consolidated ranking has him at seven), so he probably won’t be available at 12 for the Flyers. However, some scouts have Silayev ranked as low as the teens, and stranger things have happened on draft day! He could fall to Philadelphia if other teams are too concerned about his hockey sense, the Russia factor or some other issue that rears its head leading up to the draft. If Silayev does fall to the Flyers, he’ll likely be the best player available at that point.
What scouts are saying
Silayev is an excellent skater who walks the line with ease, drops back onto his heels comfortably, and pushes forward to either carry pucks up ice, close gaps, or disrupt a carrier with an active stick. Despite how prodigious his play has been, he looks like he’s only scratching the surface of his true potential as well and impressed again in the playoffs (though he didn’t take over and produce in the MHL playoffs after his KHL season was done quite like some were hoping he would). He’s got more steps to take in his decision-making on the puck (I find he’s a little too trigger-happy — he actually shows good poise and comfort when he doesn’t rush), his shot (which he gets off in volume and does a good job putting on target, but will definitely add power as he gets stronger and works on it), and his ability to really impose himself with his size (which he really learned to do this year, leading Torpedo in hits). — Scott Wheeler, The Athletic
It’s not often you find a 6-foot-7, 211-pound defenseman capable of moving like him with his smooth and active skating stride. He seems to always be alert and able to quickly get pucks to his forwards in transition. He can carry the puck and has a great release. His personal skills are still a bit raw, but his ceiling is high. He’s looked so composed in the KHL. He seems to be ready to play in the NHL almost immediately. — Jukka-Pekka Vuorinen, NHL Director of European Scouting
He is a unique type of prospect who’s easy to dream on. He can play all situations, and play on his off wing. Silayev is a 6-foot-7 defenseman who skates very well for his size. He has excellent footwork and a smooth stride, with strong four-way mobility. He closes gaps quickly on his check, plays a very physical brand of hockey and thus projects to be a premier shutdown type of defenseman in the NHL. — Corey Pronman, The Athletic
Welcome to the poll…
Joining the poll today, we have Zeev Buium! Buium just had an eye-popping performance for Denver on their path to the NCAA Championship, and the hype has him rising up the draft boards.
He’s a plus-level skater and handler who plays an extremely involved game in all three zones, whether that’s activating into the rush or off the point, shaking pressure on exits or across/off the blue line (which he does extraordinarily well, making opposing players miss), working in and out of give-and-goes, or playing tight gaps against the rush. He’s a very busy player on both sides of the puck and he gets in and out of his transitions and footwork so quickly that he can play that style. When he’s dialed in, applying pressure on and off the puck and using his feet and his skating to influence play, he can really impact a game in a lot of ways. — Scott Wheeler, The Athletic
Previously on the draft board:
- Macklin Celebrini
- Ivan Demidov
- Artyom Levshunov
- Anton Silayev
- ????
