Nashville bolsters its goaltending pipeline by snagging Europe’s top-ranked netminder, a poised 6-foot-3 standout defined by technical control, elite puck-tracking, and a dominant glove hand for the future.
The Nashville Predators opened day two of the 2026 NHL Draft by adding to their goaltending pipeline, selecting Russian netminder Dmitri Borichev with the No. 70 pick in the third round.
Borichev was viewed as one of the better goaltending prospects available outside North America, ranked by Central Scouting as the top European goalie in the class. He’s 6-foot-3, close to 200 pounds, and already has the frame NHL teams tend to lean toward with young goalies.
This past season in the MHL with Loko Yaroslavl, he put up a 2.25 goals-against average and a .929 save percentage over 24 games. Pretty solid numbers for an 18-year-old playing in that environment.
Borichev isn’t overly flashy or chaotic in net. He’s more controlled than anything else. He tracks the puck well, stays square, and doesn’t really overextend on plays. It’s a simple style, but it works. When he does have to make a tougher save, the glove is the part that stands out.
Nashville has usually been pretty patient with goaltenders, and this feels like another one of those long-term swings. He’s not coming over and pushing for NHL time right away. He's going to stay in Russia for a bit and keep playing. And Nashville will just let the development run its course, and when the time is right, he will come over to North America.
.
