When you score 30 goals in the MHL during your D-1 season, you’re going to grab my attention. Scoring that many goals doesn’t happen by accident, and after watching Nazar Privalov twice this summer, it’s easy to understand where they come from. He’s built like a freight train, wants to finish every hit he can, and the second he catches the puck with speed through the neutral zone, he’s trying to get to the middle of the ice and beat the goalie.

The 30 goals caught my attention. The 19 assists made me curious.

After two viewings, I don’t think either number is misleading. If anything, they paint a pretty honest picture of where Privalov’s game is today.

The best way I can describe him right now is like choosing your dinner at a wedding. You’re usually getting two options. Steak or chicken. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if both options are excellent, but you’re also not going to be able to order a salmon or a pasta dish if that’s what you’re craving.

That’s kind of how I came away feeling about Privalov.

Two Key Skills

He does two things really well. He shoots the puck, and he hits people.

The shooting quality and volume are legitimate. Across my two tracked viewings, he averaged seven even-strength shots per game, four of which came from dangerous areas. He was involved in 55% of his team’s transition sequences and completed them at nearly 72%. A lot of that comes from the same sequence over and over again. He explodes out of the defensive zone, catches a pass in stride through the neutral zone, builds speed, lowers his shoulder, and attacks downhill. At the MHL level, defenders have a difficult time stopping that because he’s bigger, stronger, and willing to play through contact.

The physicality is just as noticeable. Privalov genuinely enjoys finishing checks, and in my second viewing, he was much more effective at timing those hits to separate opponents from the puck rather than simply trying to punish them after the play had already moved on.

Those two traits alone are enough to make him an intriguing prospect.

Where the evaluation gets more difficult is everything in between.

His passing, particularly in the first viewing, left a lot to be desired. Not because he was trying ambitious plays, but because there rarely seemed to be much of a plan before the puck arrived. There wasn’t enough scanning, there wasn’t much anticipation of teammates’ movements, and I rarely saw him use the puck to move defenders or create better ice for others. Too often, the puck arrived on his stick, and only then did the decision-making begin.

The second viewing was cleaner, but context matters. His team controlled the game from start to finish, giving him considerably more time and space with the puck. The simple plays were there, and he completed them. But plays where he had to pre-plan or create the passing lane were never executed successfully. He would still blindly throw passes into dangerous areas, hoping to connect, which was actually reflected in the tracking. Nearly 20% of his attempted passes reached dangerous areas of the ice, but his overall completion percentage remained well below where you’d like it to be.

That’s why I’m interested to see what this next season looks like.

Right now, so much of Privalov’s offense comes from being able to play the game on his terms. He wants to attack in straight lines, use his size, and generate shots. It works at the MHL level because he’s 6’4 and 227 pounds.

The next step is seeing whether he adds more layers to his game.

Can he become a more consistent playmaker? Can he process the game a little quicker before the puck arrives? Can he create offense when defenders take away that straight-line attack instead of forcing everything through it?

Those are the questions I’ll be looking to answer over the next year.

I also think there’s room for growth away from the puck. Defensively, I wasn’t a fan of how often he’d predetermine how he’d attack his opponent. His stick pressure lacked purpose; he relied on too many fly-bys, and once an opponent made a lateral move, his edge work and recovery ability made it difficult to get back into the play.

It’s an early evaluation and certainly not a conclusion, but he has a lot of development ahead of him if he’s going to end up inside my lottery when the final rankings come out.

I completely understand why consensus rankings are excited about a player with his combination of size, shot generation, and physicality. Those aren’t easy traits to find, and they give him a very real foundation to build on. At the same time, I think there’s a full season ahead for him to answer some equally important questions about the rest of his offensive game.

Thirty goals grabbed my attention.

I’m looking forward to seeing what else gets added to the menu over the next year.

Photo Credit: KHL