Grading Every New Jersey Devils NHL Draft Pick
By Nick Villano
D. player. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. Avto-Russia Jr.. Daniil Karpovich. 186. 85
For a sixth-round defenseman, the Devils really hit the nail on the head with Daniil Karpovich. The Devils had to dig deep to find this player, going to the lesser Russian divisions to see him play. He scored 10 goals as a defenseman in his junior league. He showed offensive prowess even against lesser competition. When analysts watch this player, they fall in love with the tape. Most had him ranked in the top 100, yet the Devils got him at 186.
Karpovich still has a lot of development to go before we know if he’s an NHL talent, but this is the type of swing we want the Devils taking at this point in the draft. Especially since the Devils ended up trading their seventh-round pick to the Nashville Predators, the Devils made the most of their final pick.
Most teams passed on Karpovich because it was hard to see him play. With no or few scouts seeing what he could do, teams decided to go with a player they were more confident in. However, the Devils might have found a gem thanks to other teams’ lack of confidence.
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This is a player with an NHL frame, something that usually gets teams overdrafting players. This time, teams ignored Karpovich. The Devils might have found an NHL defenseman that could quickly show his worth.