Wolves Stars and Russian Defenders | Hurricanes Pipeline Delivers

Prospect hype is easy. Proof is harder. Nick Bass (Canes Prospects) & I spent January chasing the proof across leagues, and the Hurricanes pipeline delivered: a Wolves top line that terrorizes the AHL, a college playmaker finally freed, and two Russian defenders whose feet might be their ticket to Raleigh.

We open with Jakub Vondras, the 6'4 goalie sharpening his angles and lateral power in Czechia, then head to Ann Arbor where Jayden Perron’s touch, pace, and vision have clicked on Michigan’s top unit. Chicago steals the spotlight as Felix Unger Sorum bulks up, embraces contact, and turns shifts into assists, while Bradly Nadeau evolves from “elite shot” to trusted penalty killer and five-on-five driver. Top it off with Justin Robidas, the relentless 5'8 engine mixing goals, takeaways, and special teams minutes that make coaches trust him late in games.

The blue line buzz brings us to Russia: Timur Kol logging heavy MHL minutes and running a power play with a heavy shot, and Kurban Limatov flying in transition with elite skating, building a profile that fits the modern NHL. We zoom out to Oskar Vuollet’s midseason reset in the SHL and Stanislav Yarovoy stabilizing in the VHL, then wrestle with the Alexander Nikishin question—usage, learning curve, and why patience can still be a plan. Along the way, we connect these arcs to trade deadline calculus: who has real value now, who projects higher, and how this depth gives Carolina options without mortgaging tomorrow.

If you’re scouting for impact, development trends, and honest NHL timelines, you’ll find clear markers here: role trust, special teams usage, and production that travels. Subscribe, share with a fellow Canes fan, and drop your pick for the next call-up—who’s your must-watch prospect right now?

Highlights:
• Vondras’ size, lateral reads, and steady Czech form
• Perron’s top-line usage, power-play touch, and consistency at Michigan
• Unger Sorum’s strength gains, playmaking surge, and contact comfort
• Nadeau’s two-way leap, PK trust, elite shot, and NHL timeline
• Robidas’ versatility, scoring run, and size skepticism debunked
• Wolves’ top line driving AHL results
• Kol and Limatov’s MHL pace, size, and transition upside
• Vuollet's turnaround in the SHL and increased usage
• Yarovoy’s stabilization in the VHL and creative flashes
• Trikozov’s adaptation year and off-ice context
• Nikishin’s usage, PP reps, and NHL speed adjustment
• Prospect depth vs deadline leverage and future blue line tiers

#canes #hockey #carolinahurricanes #stormtracker23 #canesprospects #thehockeyguy #topshelfhockey #lockedonhurricanes #ahl #chicagowolves #alexandernikishin #bradlynadeau #KHL #darrenyorke

Transcript

January Standouts Introduced

SPEAKER_01 0:33

Well, January was another great month for Carolina Hurricanes prospects right around the globe. No surprise, Chicago Wolves Phenoms, Bradley Nadeau, and Justin Robodaugh are at the top of the list. They're joined this month by teammate Felix Ungersorm, as well as collegiate Jaden Perron and returning goaltender Jacob Blomdras. Joining me as always to discuss the top five prospects of the month and the players we should keep an eye on in the coming months. I'm delighted to welcome in from Kane's Prospects, of course, Nick Bass. Hi there, Nick.

SPEAKER_00 1:11

Hello.

Jakob Vondras’ Growth In Net

SPEAKER_01 1:12

Hey Nick, uh, another interesting month. Uh, in particular, of course, some of these players were just off the charts, and we'll talk about them. But interesting to see coming back at number five is Jacob Vondres. Now, Vondras was number three last month, um, and he's off to a pretty good start. He's playing in the Chechia 2 League uh with Partabici, and of course, uh, he's playing well. Uh, some interesting things about uh Vondres. He is a bigger goaltender. We've talked about this before. He checks in at six foot four. Um, he was a sixth rounder. Uh Darren York said this about Vondres. I thought it was interesting. Incredibly smart goalie, lots of little shoulder checks, and being able to recognize side-to-side plays and his athletic and the power to get across. So it's somebody we're excited to bring into our organization. We talked about this last month. Great lateral movement for Bondras. What did you see with Jakob in January?

SPEAKER_00 2:17

Uh yeah, he was just a he's a big athletic goalie who knows what he's doing in the net, and he's just continuing a really solid run of form that he's had over the past uh two months, three months at this point, and putting together a really solid season over there in uh the Czech Republic.

Jayden Perron’s Breakout At Michigan

SPEAKER_01 2:33

Well, an interesting thing about Bondras, uh, you know, he played back uh in 22, sorry, 23-24. He was with Sudbury in the OHL. But I wasn't aware that he also played for Team Chechia in the World Juniors. And won bronze. Yeah, oh, they got bronze, yeah. So so that's an interesting one. I didn't really see that until some recent uh analysis I was doing on Bonders, but uh sounds like he he had a great opportunity to to get some international play, which is which is always fantastic. So, and of course he went back to Chechia uh following that season in uh in uh in Sudbury. So now moving on to number four, and we've talked about him a lot, is Jaden Perron. Jaden, of course, uh with Michigan in the NCAA. He's off to a pretty good start this year. 28 games played, 12 goals, 16 assists, and he's playing the way that uh we thought he might. What have you seen with Jaden?

SPEAKER_00 3:32

He's uh become a lot more consistent. Um, whenever the puck's on his stick, he's one of the more dynamic players in all of college hockey, and he's finally been uh consistent this year uh in regards to his other two years at North Dakota. It just seems like something didn't particularly pan out for him. So now that he's in Michigan, he's being relied on on the top line, he's running a power play, he's doing it all, and he's uh looking a lot better this year.

Felix Unger Sorum Embraces Physicality

SPEAKER_01 3:58

He seems to be really finding his game, so that's great. Um, third rounder, we've talked about this before. He was drafted quite a bit later than a lot of folks thought he would. Uh, even Darren York had said something about this. We really didn't expect to see him that late in the draft. So that's uh that's fantastic. And and again, we're hoping that uh he'll continue to go. And he's one of those short kings that you often talk about too, Nick, and another one of the smaller players checking in at 5'9, about 175 pounds. So yeah, uh Perron doing very, very well. Next up, we start talking about some Chicago Wolves, and boy, I'll tell you, they're having a great season, and this guy is really starting to fly, and that's Felix Ungersorm. Felix Ungersorum uh he's uh he's been hot lately in his last 11 games. He's got two goals and 14 assists. So he's really starting to put it all together, and we know he's a great setup guy. And uh, so what are we seeing from Felix Ungersorm?

SPEAKER_00 4:57

It's uh it's a good mix of things. I think one is the confidence. He's just showing he's able to do a lot more with the puck just because he knows what he's doing in his second year in North America now and he's a lot more adapted to it. And then uh the other part of it is, you know, we we talked with Spears and Astus a couple of weeks uh I think two weeks ago at this point. Yeah. And his big his biggest thing with Felix was that he's gotten so much better at being able to handle the physicality because he's you know grown a lot in the weight room and just grown a lot overall. So he's able to handle the the level of physicality that the AHL offers, and that has also helped him a lot to become almost a you know a uh a player where he's doubled his point total from last year.

Bradly Nadeau Becomes A Complete Player

SPEAKER_01 5:41

Yeah, I mean he's off uh to a great start. He's got 10 goals, 29 assists uh in 43 games, so he's doing very, very well. Interestingly enough, uh McKeynes, when they were talking about him at the start of the year in their their uh season preview, said exactly the same thing. And they were talking about him needing to embrace contact, needing to play a heavier game uh as uh as he kind of moves into his second season in North America. So clearly he's doing that. He's scoring some goals. He had a run earlier in the year, we talked about that a little bit, where he was scoring a lot of power play goals at one point, and that's how he kind of got up to the 10 goal mark pretty quickly. But he's now he's just setting them up like crazy. So and I think part of that is because of the two gentlemen we're gonna talk about now, because they are definitely plotting a lot of goals on the power play for the Chicago Wolves. And let's kick it off with uh with the first one, and that would be uh Bradley Nadeau. Uh we've got uh Bradley Nadeau, of course, uh known as the show uh with the Chicago Guys. He's uh doing it all this year. In his last 21 games, Bradley has 13 goals and 16 assists, so he's tearing it up. He's now uh 14th in the AHL in scoring. He's played just 34 games, so he's got significantly less games than the other folks. He's got 18 goals, 23 assists on the year. He's a plus 22, so he's definitely playing a solid two-way game. Quite impressive. Now, last night uh at the AHL All-Star competition, of course, uh he was able to let one of his uh howitzers go, and he hit 103 miles an hour, which was the best on the west side. Uh, he was only bested by uh Arthur Kelly, who was 104 miles an hour for the East. So uh great stuff by uh by Bradley last night in that competition. What are we seeing from him in January?

SPEAKER_00 7:34

He's just uh become a more complete overall player. I know everybody knows the shot and everybody knows his offensive capabilities, but you know, for the Wolves, he's become their first unit PK guy. He's able to do a lot more things, even strength that he wasn't able to do last year. And it's just uh great work of development from him and the Chicago coaching staff to get him ready to probably be an NHL player sooner rather than later.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

Well, I mean, don't forget, um, player of the week, he was a player of the week in December, the weekending December 7th, and then again in January, and more exciting, he was AHL player of the month in January. So, you know, he just keeps getting it done. Um outstanding season for this guy. And you know, it's interesting what McKean said too, and they came back and said he's not just a shooter, he's also a strong playmaker who pre-scans for lanes and actively engages defenders to make his pass as deceptive. He's getting a lot of uh assists as well, and that's uh the complete game of Bradley Nadeau. Um, how are you feeling about him and as the season goes on? What do you expect to see for uh this next month with Nadeau?

SPEAKER_00 8:48

I think he'll just continue doing what he has been doing, which is just showing up in the big moments and letting or leading the Wolves to uh hopefully a nice little playoff run here. Um I really sorry, the somebody just replied to the the hardest shot thing and said that defensively he isn't ready. And uh, I'm just gonna continue to say it over the next few weeks is that he is he's gone from a guy who wouldn't even sniff the penalty kill to being on the first unit. And seeing his plus-minus flip and the plus-minus, it's not a great stat to judge players on for the most part, but if you're doing it year over year and you go from minus 20 to plus 20 when you're playing on the same line with the same deployment, that means that you are doing something right. So I would say defensively he is ready. I'd say he's an NHL player right now. That that comment just pissed me off when I just wanted it.

SPEAKER_01 9:37

Well, you know, I'm glad you said that because I think a lot of folks have been asking this question for a while, and they keep saying, yeah, uh, he's not gonna be a Rod Brindemore type guy. Uh, you know, he's uh he's one-dimensional or whatever. They've talked a lot about this, and I've been saying the same thing you're saying for a long time about Bradley Nidaux. The other thing I found with Bradley, of course, he plays a heavier game. Uh and he seems to like to get in on the forecheck and lay the body on. Have you noticed some of that as well?

Debating Nadeau’s Defense And NHL Readiness

SPEAKER_00 10:06

I mean, he he definitely forechecks. The physicality is still trying to get to him because he's still not, you know, gigantic. He's I think a hundred and he's listed 172 and now maybe he gets to 180 by the end of the year, but even then I don't think. But like if he gets closer to 190, he's gonna be a perfectly fine guy to do that. So I I think the physicality is perfectly fine for now, and it can only really get better from here.

SPEAKER_01 10:29

Yeah, and and he's definitely trying to add that to his game for sure. So I'm with you. I feel like Bradley is filling out his game, his offensive game is is incredible. So um if he uh if he can shore up that defensive game as he is right now, boy, he's got a great future for sure. Now, alongside him, another one of the short kings who we talk a lot about, who's also in that 1B side, and that's uh Justin Robodaugh. You know, Robodaugh to me has just been a revelation. You know, last year he came in, spirosynacus has said a little bit about this, where he came in last year, was his first real serious pro year, because of course the year before he was in the ECHL. And so uh that is professional, but it's not uh quite the level you want.

SPEAKER_00 11:16

He got hurt halfway through the year. So that's why.

SPEAKER_01 11:19

Okay. So so he ended up there. So in he comes last year, his first full season, and he pops 20 goals. So he certainly had a great, great year for uh Chicago and and started to show a lot of the things that we saw, even in his cup of coffee with the Kings. I mean, he's just uh he's a buzz out there, he's doing a lot of heavy work. Now he had a stretch that was really incredible, an 18-game stretch from December 5 to January 22, where he had 16 goals and 11 assists in 18 games. So he had 27 points in that 18-game stretch, including 16 goals, which is amazing. So he's a guy that to me is really putting it all together. Again, short king, 5'8, 180 pounds. A lot of folks think he's too small to play in the NHL. What are you seeing with uh Justin Robuda?

Justin Robidas Proves Size Doubters Wrong

SPEAKER_00 12:10

The first of the too small comment is in complete honesty just ridiculous because I don't care that he's 5'8 and 180. He's still doing everything you want from him, and he's still being physical when he needs to be physical. For Roboda, anyways, it's it's a mute point, in my opinion. I think if I mean obviously, I think if he's 5'11 at this point, he's probably played close to a you know 50 NHL games just because of the player that he is. But you know, the 5'8 is going to scare people off, but it shouldn't. He's a complete player at this point. He's a first unit penalty killer, he's a first unit power play guy. He's been on the wing for the most part, but he can do face-offs and be a center if you really need him to be. He just does everything correctly. And, you know, Robuda's going to be a good NHL player down the line. I think he won't ever be more than just a bottom six, but he's going to be a killer bottom six forward for any NHL organization or the Hurricanes down the line.

Wolves Top Line Dominance

SPEAKER_01 13:05

Well, the interesting things about him, he's he's sitting at uh 20 goals, 22 assists for 42 points in 40 games. That's good enough for 11th in the AHL right now. But get a little to this. He's a plus 25, which is third in the AHL. So these are great numbers. And again, uh that line with him and uh Ryan Suzuki and Nado has just been terrorizing the American Hockey League. Uh those guys have been outstanding. You know, it's incredible. Uh, one of the things that Speros Anastasis said on a podcast recently, Sound the Siren, um, he was talking about just how smart and intelligent a player that uh um Robodah is. And he said, Man, he really thinks the game. He really studies it. He's, you know, and and you know, he's come back this year and he's uh he's wiser and he understands the AHL you know level and play again so much better, and he he's definitely learning to be a better pro and all of those things. So um a great story on Robodah, and uh he's another guy we're gonna continue to watch. And boy, as as the Wolves have started to really pick up their game, of course, the two gentlemen we've just talked about, uh Bradley Nadillo and Justin Robodaugh have been right there, and both of them all-stars. So it's great stuff, and getting a little bit of recognition. So that's the top five, and some outstanding players, and certainly three great ones from the wolves, and we'll expect a lot more from them as we move into the later parts of the season. Now, honorable mentions, and there's some fun ones here, um, you've got a couple of defensemen that you've really highlighted uh coming from Russia, and let's start with teamer Cole. Uh Cole is a big defenseman. We've talked about him before. He's 6'4, he's 205, he's a sixth rounder. Man, the Keynes get some of these players so much later. He's off to a great start in the MHL this year in uh Russia. He's got uh 11 goals and 13 assists in 29 games. So he's off to a great start. What are you seeing with team or cole?

SPEAKER_00 15:08

I mean, he's a really solid all-around defenseman at this point. Uh it's kind of a shame that he hasn't been able to get any game time outside the MHL because I think the MHL is not beneath him, but I don't really think he's getting challenged necessarily in the MHL just because it's a junior league, in all honesty. And, you know, he's playing 25 minutes a night on average. It's a minute, almost two minutes more than the next closest guy. Uh and he's doing he's almost a point per game as a defenseman. And that's just really, really solid stuff. And you know, his contract runs out at the end of the year, so I'm interested to see where that goes if anything does happen there. But uh yeah, Cole's just been really solid this year. Uh, I really like his offensive ability. I think his slap shots are really good. He's been able to run a power play uh for Dynamo Moscow as well. So uh very interested in the player there.

Russian Blue-Liners: Timur Kol & Kurban Limatov

SPEAKER_01 15:55

Yeah, and and uh and again, uh he's a guy that uh he plays a uh a great game. He can skate, he does it all, he's a big player. And a later round draft pick by the Kings, so they're uh they're continuing to find some super super players. Now, the other uh Russian defenseman that you were highlighting was uh Kirbin Limitov, uh also playing with the same team uh in the MHL, which is interesting. Now, Limitov is 19 in March, so he's still 18 years old. Uh team Mercole is already 19, so these are still young teams. They're playing away and uh and doing some great work. Um, in 36 games this season so far for Limitov, he's got eight goals, 15 assists, he's a plus 17. He's again another big player at 6'3, almost 200 pounds. Now, here's an interesting thing from McKeynes. I don't know if you saw this, Nick, but uh McKeynes said, look, Kerbin Limitov was our highest ranked Russian player from last season and was snatched up by Carolina in the third round. So they really loved Limitov. They thought he was really going to be something special. What are you uh what are you seeing with Kerbin?

SPEAKER_00 17:06

Um he's one of the most fun players I get to watch. Um, he's an elite skater. He's pretty solid physically as well, and I love his work in transition. I haven't updated from the Donald Moscow game today because it just got over, and I haven't really done a ton with it. But uh he got to go at another goal, another goal and another assist today. So he's already passed his MHL goal uh point total for new career high as a 18-year-old, and he's just extremely fun. Uh, I want to just keep seeing him round out his game, but I mean the the base that he already has with his skating and his size is just really, really intriguing. So I'm interested to see what what happens with his development over the next few years.

SPEAKER_01 17:47

Well, he's definitely a player that uh the canes were excited about. Uh as I mentioned, McKeynes are very, very excited about Limitov. And he's another one of these big defensemen that boy that they can skate, uh they can really move the puck, uh, really impressive players. So I'm really excited to see how that's going to fare as well. Now, moving on to a smaller player, uh 5'11, 175 kind of range for Oscar Boulet. Now, Boulet, uh, we had talked about in the draft this year. Uh he was drafted in the fifth round, 133. Uh Darren York said he's an incredibly smart player. He's been able to play fast offensively, whether it's been skating with the puck, one-on-one skills, moving the puck, being able to move with the puck, playing a give and go game. So he's a guy that's uh very smart with the puck. Um he's playing in the SHL this year. He's a 20-year-old, so he's playing with men, which is great. Uh, what are we seeing with Oscar Roule?

Oskar Vuollet Finds his Form

SPEAKER_00 18:46

He's just turned his whole season around. He was off to a just a uh, to be frank, a god-awful start. Um and over the past month, uh he's really turned his game around. He's getting a lot more active both offensively and defensively, getting a little bit more ice time as well because of what he's been able to do. And he's finally getting rewarded with pucks going in the net and some of his teammates scoring as well. So happy to see him finally uh get on the score sheet a little bit more.

SPEAKER_01 19:13

Well, again, uh another player of the Keynes were able to pick up late in the draft, and uh we'll see how things kind of fare with Oscar uh as he continues his work in the SHL. Now, the final honorable mention uh is an interesting one. You've talked about him a number of times. In fact, I think I recall you said he you thought he might come over to North America this year. I know he has a great interest in that Stanislav Yarovoy playing in the VHL, which is like the AHL here in North America. Um he's off to a pretty good start, 33 games. He's got uh seven goals and nine assists. Um here's some interesting words from Darren York at the draft. He said Yarovoy went through the draft a couple of times and worked his way up this year, playing regular shifts in the KHL. So this is a couple of years ago. High-end skill, high-end compete, high-end motor, really sort of that Carolina Hurricanes prototypical forward. What are we seeing with Stanislab, Yaravoy?

Stanislav Yarovoy’s VHL Momentum

SPEAKER_00 20:12

So uh first up, I personally all I had was the report from Russia that said he was he was going to sign his ELC. Obviously, it didn't happen. And we talked to him myself and Matt talked with him at development camp, and he also was trying to stay in North America, but it just didn't happen, so that was just an unfortunate thing. But uh, I mean, yeah, he also had another kind of weird start to the season where he was bouncing between the KHL and the VHL, but he's finally kind of found his groove in the VHL, and he's looking a lot better now that he's getting consistent game time and he's getting power play time. He's looked a million times better, and he's showing off some of the creativity that makes him such a little interesting prospect down the line. So I'm happy to see him finally start performing a little bit better.

SPEAKER_01 20:58

Well, he's you know, he's 22 years old now. Um he's you know, he's a little older to come over to North America. Now, one of the things the Canes have been doing, of course, has been uh developing some of these players in Europe uh before they bring them over. And we saw that, of course, it was the case with uh Alexander Nekishan and also Uel Nistro. So, you know, with some of these guys, it takes a year or two for them to get their uh sea legs. The other thing, as we've discussed many times, Nick, uh they have a situation where these teams have, you know, basically teams in all three leagues, being the MHL, BHL, and KHL. So sometimes you don't get as much play at the KHL level. And uh we see this with a lot of these players where you know they'll move them up and down. Gosh, they'll put them in any of the leagues and uh in a season, and you could see them in all three, so it's kind of crazy. But uh he's in what would be the American Hockey League level, and hopefully that's gonna help him. Do you think he has potential to come over at some point?

Gleb Trikozov’s Adjustment Year

SPEAKER_00 21:57

I I think maybe kind of just depends how a lot of things shake out, but I really liked his development this year, and if he continues to put it all together, I I mean I wouldn't hate it, but I I I don't really have a crystal ball for that right now.

SPEAKER_01 22:13

Well, for sure. And uh you know, there's the the situation with the Russians is an interesting one. I mean, I think a lot about uh Gleb Trikozov, uh currently playing in Chicago. He's a guy that uh again was highly rated coming over, came over as a youngster and just has not been able to put it together already. Thoughts on Gleph?

SPEAKER_00 22:33

Uh, I I mean we got a really good answer from Spearos a few weeks ago where it was just he's he's young. He's still trying to get adapted. And last year was a it was a very rough year for him just because he went through two, you know, pretty awful leg injuries. So now it's like his first full year in North America and he's trying to put it all together, and you know, it's tougher for a young guy, and you know, he's about to become a dad in a few weeks, which is wow, dear God, he's 20 years old and he's about to have a child. Um so yeah, he's going through a whole lot of things right now, and you know, I I'm still rooting down for him because he's still very young, but you know, it is a it is a transitional period.

Alexander Nikishin’s Usage & Transition

SPEAKER_01 23:14

Well, in the different points, we've seen him really show you know some very exciting talent. I mean, I think in the prospect showcase last year, he he played very, very well. Um, had a hat trick in one of the games and so on. So he's a guy that, again, uh great offense of talent, but he's got to put it all together. And speaking of that, and I thought I'd just bring this up for an interesting uh discussion, is what are you feeling about Alexander Nikishin these days?

SPEAKER_00 23:39

Uh, you know, he's he's good. Uh, you know, deployment. I I I've kind of stopped trying to have the argument because it is dumb at the end of the day. I'm not an NHL ed coach, so it's not my thing, but I'm liking that they're finally giving him power play time, so I feel as if that's something that he can greatly use to his advantage. And I thought he's been pretty good. Obviously, the defensive side's still slowly coming together, but I still think he's looked pretty good overall.

SPEAKER_01 24:09

Yeah, we we talked about him a little bit this week on our podcast, uh, you know, looking at some of the Carolina Hurricanes uh situations. And one of the things that I had mentioned, and I wondered if you'd notice this too, of course, Nick, is he did have some reduced playing time for a while. He was under 14 minutes uh two games in a row, which to me is is a little bit of a you know contradiction to where he should be. I mean, we recall he played, you know, 20 plus probably 24, 25 minutes a game in Russia. In fact, I had talked about a game last year in the playoffs where he was over 35 minutes in a playoff game as many, you know, into overtime and so on. But you know, he's a guy that really thrives on play, and and I was kind of disappointed because he was, you know, his play was being reduced in that regard. Did you have any did you notice that as well?

Other Names to Watch & Development Paths

SPEAKER_00 24:57

Not really, no, because the as much as we want to think the transition from you know a different league to the NHL is going to be somewhat seamless. It's it's not. It the NHL is at such a different pace than everybody else that you just have to you have to learn. So I'm not I'm not really worried about it in complete honesty. Maybe I was at the start of the year, but now it's kind of just like it'll happen.

SPEAKER_01 25:21

Well, we talked an awful lot about Alex before he came over, so I I always like to get your feedback uh when we talk about Nikation. Um looking at uh this past month, uh any other players that kind of jumped out at you that we didn't mention in the the top five or the honorable mentions.

SPEAKER_00 25:39

I think uh people were thinking about Ivan Ryapkin just because of the start he had in the queue. But yeah, minor injury and a lot of funny suspension stuff, not suspension, but like just penalty stuff is just slowly, you know, not hampering him, but he's still trying to figure out the discipline aspect of hockey, and it'll get there eventually. But I'm glad to see that the points are really not gonna be a struggle for him.

SPEAKER_01 26:07

Well, you know, we talked a lot about this where you know his play in Chicago, and I don't know if you talked to Spirosynassis about this, uh Nick, but his play in Chicago really was a great opportunity for him to kind of learn what it's gonna be to be a pro uh and to you know to kind of move his game to the next level. He's still very young, of course. Um so you know, it's an opportunity for him to kind of get a chance to see what it's like and and some of the rigors of pro hockey and you know, the speed and so on and so forth, and obviously the strength of the players. So, you know, I think that was a good opportunity for him, and uh yeah, he's he should tear up the the queue for sure. So yeah. Now, um as we look to the next month, February, um, what are we thinking this month in terms of uh potential players to keep an eye on?

Trade Deadline & Prospect Value

SPEAKER_00 27:01

I think uh Kirbin and Cole are uh they're already putting up pretty decent starts their month. Kirbin Lemotoff is just awesome, in complete honesty. I will continue saying it. He's probably the most fun player I've gotten to watch over the past year or so. He's just electric. I'd I couldn't tell you. And then I'd still think a lot of the Wolves guys, but obviously, you know, we're less than a month away from the deadline, so it's gonna be an interesting time to see what the what it looks like come March, whenever it is.

SPEAKER_01 27:32

Well, that's what I wanted to ask you that question as well, Nick, in terms of, you know, we look at some of these prospects the Canes have, and they are very rich in terms of a prospect base. Um, do we think that these prospects might be parts of deals for the Hurricanes as they go towards the trade deadline of March 6?

SPEAKER_00 27:52

You know, I've always I have I've always just hated talking about the deadline ever since I started getting into prospects because like it's my job to just get these guys' names out there and get eyes on them and get people ready for the next generation, and then you know, sometimes these guys get moved and it's like, well, that sucks. And you know, especially that I guess this most recent crop of them, so guys like you know, Nadeau, Robota, Lego, these are guy and Felix, like these are guys that I've like interviewed and talked to before, and it is just kind of weird. But if you're looking at it straight from a trade deadline perspective, I mean, I don't think you're gonna find a lot of other prospects that have the value that Nadeau has just because he's unbelievably good playing in a pro league. And then, you know, Justin Robota and Felix, they're they're also probably gonna have some decent value. I think Felix really helped him out, helped himself out this year. Um, so yeah, I mean they could. I I prefer not, but I mean, they definitely could.

Next-Wave Defensemen Rankings

SPEAKER_01 28:50

One last question as we wrap up. You know, you look at the defense, you talked a lot about uh teamer cole and and uh Kirbin Limitov. Who do you see as the kind of top prospect defenseman uh in the next wave for the hurricanes? I mean, we've got uh Charles Alexis Legos here, of course, and UL Distrom. Uh who do you see in the next wave?

SPEAKER_00 29:14

If we're not talking about Lego as part of the next wave, because he's uh Matt and I did rankings and he was both our second rank prospects. They're the top defenseman. So if we're not going to count Lego, I think I had Alexander Syriatsky second highest. So I guess it would be him because he was a 18, 19-year-old getting regular KHL game time being used in situations where you don't expect them to be used, you know, penalty kills sometimes, but mainly quarterbacking power plays and being used in overtime is rare for a younger KHL guy, and he's already earned that trust. And an injury took him out, so a lot of people just kind of forgot about him from the start of the year. But I would definitely say he's probably him or Limitov at this point, are probably the the next two that I'm really looking at.

SPEAKER_01 30:01

Where's uh Noel Franson in the scheme of things?

SPEAKER_00 30:05

I think I had him fourth or fifth highest defenseman, somewhere around there. And I I think playing the getting those games with Cam Abbott's for Jestad was certainly something. And uh glad he's back to getting good game time in uh in the hockey Elspenskin again.

SPEAKER_01 30:24

So well, he's something he's a player we've kept an eye on as well. But boy, when you look at the canes decor uh potential for the future, it's uh it's really impressive. And as you mentioned, Charles Alexis will go, of course, he's uh he's back and should be with Chicago shortly. Um and you know, he's a guy that we know he can play in the NHL. He's proven that. And uh and as well, Yule Nistrom, I thought, accorded himself extremely well. So the Kings have got some great young players coming in. What about Dominic Badinka?

Dominik Badinka’s Minutes & Pairings

SPEAKER_00 30:56

Uh he's been good. It's just his game is a lot quieter than a lot of other guys. So he's just learning the ropes in his first first first full pro year, but uh he's he's been really solid. Learning how to handle physicality as well is a big thing. So uh good with it.

Wrap-Up And Listener Invite

SPEAKER_01 31:12

Yeah, and I I think Spirus Anassis was also commenting on Badinka recently and said, you know, here's a guy they did not expect to see him play as much as he's played. Um and you know, his situation kind of mirrors uh Alexander Nikesian's in some ways because they thought, okay, we'll bring him along, uh younger guy. Uh we'll bring him along uh rather easily and in uh and slowly in in Chicago. And of course they had all the changes and injuries and call-ups that they had to deal with, so Bodeka ended up getting some uh significant playing time. And uh and I've noticed something interesting lately. He's been teaming up with uh Dominic Fensori, uh, which is kind of interesting. So clearly they're they've got a lot of confidence in Bodeka because those guys play big minutes for Chicago. So another guy that uh we gotta have on the radar uh as we look at some of these defensemen that uh are certainly you know looking very impressive uh for the Keynes prospect side these days. In any case, uh Nick, as always, great to get an update on these prospects. Uh you know, always want to talk prospects with you because uh there's so many good ones in the Keynes uh system these days. So we'll uh we'll look forward to doing this again uh for February as we uh as we take a look at some of these uh young players that are just uh really starting to shine right around the globe. For those of you who've been watching or listening, of course, uh Nick and I are delighted you spent time with us. If you like this episode, please press the like button. If you have any comments or questions, please leave those in the comment section. And of course, uh, if you'd like to be alerted of future episodes of Storm Tracker, please press the subscribe and the bell buttons, and you'll be made aware just as soon as they're available. As always, Nick and I are delighted to spend time with us and look forward to getting together with you real soon, right here on Storm Tracker.