Yegor Surin was one of the MHL's most dominant players this season with 22 goals and 52 points in 40 games through the regular season with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.

He then followed that up with five goals and 23 points in 19 postseason games en route to a trip to the Kharlamov Cup Final.

The 6-foot-1, 192lb center is also a physical force having had 100 hits in the regular season and 64 in the playoffs.

One downside to that physicality however, was the fact that he frequently wound up in the penalty box, having a combined 138 penalty minutes across 61 total MHL games.

Despite that though, Surin is projecting to be one of those unicorn type players with very apparent skill.

“We like him,” one scout said to The Hockey News. “He’s a wild card in that he has some good hockey sense and skill, and he plays with an edge. He could go anywhere, but somebody is getting a pretty good player.” 

Added another scout: “The base thing for him is excellent skill and excellent sense. His skating is just OK.”

There's worries about his consistency and effort at times too, but teams are always looking for a physical goal-scorer so I'm fairly confident somebody's going to take a swing on him and why not let it be the team with a penchant for underrated Russian.

What are the experts saying?

Steven Ellis (Daily Faceoff): "Surin was a man on a mission throughout the MHL playoffs, only getting outpaced by Ivan Demidov. He played great during the second half, where it seemed like he was more in control of his own body and not trying to hit guys for the sake of throwing a hit. Discipline can still be an issue at points, but he’s so skilled with a great shot and quick hands. If Surin can put everything together consistently without trying to get too cute with the puck, he’ll be a steal. The upside is real here."

Corey Pronman (The Athletic): "Surin is a well-liked player because of how hard he plays while having good albeit not amazing pure offensive abilities"

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