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Canucks take a big swing on a small forward, drafting 5’7” Artyom Manukyan in 6th round

You tend to see very different strategies in the final two rounds of the NHL draft.
Daniel Wagner
Daniel Wagner
Artyom Kanukyan on the beach
Artyom Kanukyan on the beach

You tend to see very different strategies in the final two rounds of the NHL draft. Some teams look for depth forwards and defencemen, drafting players with low ceilings in the hopes that they’ll have some homegrown talent at the bottom of their lineup. They’re just trying to make contact and get on base, even though this strategy rarely produces results.

Other teams swing for the fences, trying to hit a homerun on a player that has been overlooked or underrated. That means taking a chance on a player with significant flaws because of one elite ability. These players are usually boom or bust, but when they boom, the reward can be worth it: a top-six forward or top-four defenceman in the 6th or 7th round.

The Canucks took the latter strategy with their 6th round pick, taking a wild swing at an overaged, undersized Russian winger: Artyom Manukyan.

They’re not just taking a homerun swing; they’re taking a homerun swing with an 0-2 count. Manukyan is in his third year of draft eligibility, having turned 20 in early June. That’s strike one. He’s 5’7” and and 139 lbs. That’s strike two. Some would count his Russian-ness as strike three, because of the possibility that he stays in the KHL, but we’ll call that a foul ball for now.

So there are definitely some concerns when it comes to Manukyan, but the sixth round is a pretty good time to draft a flawed player with upside. And Manukyan has some serious upside.

Manukyan boasts the speed, skill, and hockey sense of a first-line forward. He’s the complete package offensively: he can create scoring chances equally well for himself and for his linemates, thanks to his great wheels and vision with the puck.

“[Manukyan’s] biggest asset is his skill,” said Artyom Batrak, a former MHL player and current KHL broadcaster. “I’ve seen a lot of his goals. I’ve seen him undress half of the team to score a goal. He also has a great hockey IQ...he understands how to play the puck under pressure.”

Batrak said that after the 2016-17 season, when Manukyan broke the record for most points in an MHL (Junior Hockey League) season, putting up a whopping 105 points in 60 games. The MHL has only been around since 2009, but the next closest scorer in that time had 92 points.

There’s a caveat, of course: most top junior players don’t spend a full season in the MHL, but got called up to the KHL. Nikita Kucherov, for example, had a better points-per-game than Manukyan in his 2011-12 season in the MHL, but only played 23 MHL games. Manukyan, because of his size and because of playing in a strong Avangard system, did not get an opportunity in the KHL that year.

With that kind of production, Manukyan would have made sense for a team to target late in the 2017 draft, but he slipped through undrafted. So what made the difference this year?

Perhaps it was because he didn’t just play in the MHL. Manukyan played 24 games in the KHL this past season for Avangard, even if he only managed two points. In 12 games in the MHL, Manukyan tallied 8 goals and 12 points and it became clear that he was simply too good for the junior league.

More importantly, Manukyan made Russia’s U20 team at the World Junior Championships. That allowed scouts to see him perform against his peers. While he had just two assists in five games, he showed an ability to play with and against top players.

His performance at the World Juniors, as well as a strong performance in the CHL/Russia Super Series where he had 4 points in 6 games, helped the Canucks feel more comfortable with taking a chance on Manukyan, who might be more willing to come to North America after getting limited chances to play in the KHL.

And Manukyan can flat-out play. This end-to-end rush is a joy to watch.

Manukyan also has a great shot that can beat a goaltender cleanly. For example:

 

 

 

 

And finally, Manukyan has a pet parrot named Eric. So that's neat.

This is an intriguing pick by the Canucks that has the potential to pay off in a big way. At the very least, it’s far more interesting than taking a 6’2” guy who can’t skate.