Russian trio selected in first round of NFL draft

Three NHL franchises put aside concerns about Russian players, picking three of them in the first round of the draft in Montreal.

Due to complications surrounding Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, which have resulted in restricted travel to and from North America, it has been suggested that Russian players may not be selected in the first round of the draft for the first time since 2005.

On Thursday, that was proven wrong as three top teams chose a trio of Russian talents in their roster for the upcoming season in the first round of 32 players.

First picked from Russia was Anaheim Ducks’ Pavel Mintyukov, whose manager Pat Verbeek remarked to the Toronto Star: “The talent is undeniable.”

“We want to take our franchise in the right direction, toward winning the Stanley Cup, and we believe this player will really help us get there.” verbeek added.

After Mintyukov was assigned to a new team, the Washington Capitals, who already have Russia’s leading player in captain Alexander Ovechkin, chose his compatriot Ivan Miroshnichenko with the 20th overall pick.

Miroshnichenko, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in March, had his junior season in Russia cut short but has since received clearance to resume play.

However, it should come as no surprise that he was picked by the Capitals given the comments their general manager Brian MacLellan made to Sportsnet this week regarding the safe return of Ovechkin and other Russians from their home country to the team.

“I think obviously there’s a little uncertainty,” MacLellan authorised. “But when I speak to our guys I think everyone is pretty comfortable coming back and playing next year so I can trust what our players are saying and how they feel about it.

“And there might be some uncertainty, but I think we’re pretty confident that they’ll all come back to play.”

Four picks later than Miroshnichenko, the Minnesota Wild took down Danila Yurov for the third and final Russian pick of the first round.

This disproved a bogus draft by NHL Central Scouting Director Dan Marr that ended with Russians being completely eliminated from the first round for the first time in 17 years.

All three youngsters selected on Thursday were due to advance to the first round, but doubts about their likelihood of making it to the United States have also been cast by the plight of Philadelphia Flyers prospect Ivan Fedotov, who is said to have been in St. Petersburg on suspicion of draft evasion.

The 25-year-old goalkeeper, who previously worked for CSKA Moscow before joining the Flyers in May, is now reportedly set to complete his studies at a military center in northern Russia.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman discusses travel and concerns of Russian players not returning from post-season breaks insisted on Thursday that the league must “Respect the process of what’s going on.”

“The Russian players still living in Russia need to make sure they are making the best decisions possible for themselves and their families.” added Bettman.

The NHL boss claimed that North American ice hockey teams and the championship “I probably don’t have the full story on what’s going on in terms of every player’s relationship in Russia in terms of the government.”

With the NHL season scheduled to begin in October, the final six rounds of this year’s draft will take place in Montreal on Friday.