As the Flyers' (supposed) search for a center continues, there are some opportunities in the upcoming draft. Several intriguing prospects may end up falling into the lap of Daniel Briere. Some are more ready than others to make the jump to the NHL. Others might be guys who could help out in a few years when some of our current players age out. Still, some of these prospects are going to be hard to ignore. One of them is Russian forward Ilia Morozov.
Morozov is a 17-year-old center playing for the University of Miami (Ohio) RedHawks. He is the youngest player currently playing in the NCAA. He was born in Moscow, moved to Chicago three years ago to pursue a hockey career, and became more acclimated to the North American style. And since he is already here, there wouldn't be any kerfuffle over whether or not he can leave Russia to play in the US.
The youngster is already making waves. He is 6'3' and 200 lbs. He first played for the Tri-City Storm in the USHL before making the jump to the NCAA. This season, his freshman year, he scored 8 goals and had 12 assists in 36 games. That doesn't sound like first-round pick numbers. So, why is there so much buzz about him?
First of all, the RedHawks weren't that good a team. They had an 18-16-2 record and struggled on the power play this season (12.1% --- 17 goals on 140 attempts); although that is up from just three wins the year before. Morozov finished in a tie for fifth place in points on the team. He also appeared on every line, played in every role (4-on-4, penalty kill, power play, etc.), and averaged over 19 minutes of ice time a game. For a 17-year-old freshman, that's a lot of confidence in his abilities.
The thing about Morozov that impresses scouts is his ability and desire to learn. He came to the US to adapt to the style of play so he can learn. He had concentrated a lot of this season on figuring out how to battle in the corners, steal pucks, limit turnovers, etc. He is eating up as much knowledge of the sport as he can. In fact, in a draft profile on him by The Hockey Writers, they praise Morozov by saying:
"At 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, and still growing, he consistently wins board battles with strength and effort. Morozov is strong enough to push players off pucks and long enough to disrupt passing lanes. While not the fastest skater, Morozov covers ground well and often draws penalties by protecting the puck. His overall style reminds me a little of Leon Draisaitl, whom he said he likes to model his game after, along with Aleksander Barkov and Evgeni Malkin."Matthew Burhman
Draisaitl, Barkov, and Malkin. Let's be honest, any one of us would love to have one of them as our center. At his age, there is still a lot to learn, but he is eager. He is not one of those kids who thinks they know everything and is uncoachable. Instead, Morozov is eager to learn and wants to learn as much as he can. For a coach like Rick Tocchet, that should be music to his ears. And his style of play could fit perfectly into Tocchet's system.
The fact that he is a young Russian, too, means he could also forge a connection with Matvei Michkov. Michkov has stated a few times that he got lonely when he was a rookie, as he didn't speak a lot of English. Perhaps the two of them could become good friends and form a great hockey relationship with each other.
Either way, Morozov's benefit to the Flyers is his willingness to improve. Being as young as he is, he would fit well with Porter Martone, Alex Bump, and Michkov. This could end up being a very young, impressive team in another year or two, and that could cause nightmares for other teams in the Metropolitan Division. For that reason, Morozov could end up being a very fun addition to the Flyers.
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