Daniil Orlov

November 2023 – Defensive minded player who hasn’t found his offensive game but has a sneaky good transition game with the puck at times. Good IQ and playmaking but still lacking the offense to guarantee an NHL caliber player. A move to North America may be key to understanding his true potential and if his offense can be unlocked. He’s been more confident with the puck this season which is a plus, but his upside isn’t the highest, which may be difficult to ensure his place in a deep Devils D pool. – Austin Kelly

July 2022 – The New Jersey Devils selected Daniil Orlov with their fourth-round, 110th-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. A smooth-skating blue-liner who uses his size well in puck battles, Orlov is very good at getting off the boards with the puck and making small plays that advance the puck. His defensive positioning and awareness makes him a projectable chance-suppressor — although there are some adjustments required to make his defending better on smaller ice. He boasts some decent small-area playmaking, but struggles with long passing accuracy and doesn’t have the hardest shot. Despite that, Orlov led his MHL squad’s defensemen in scoring with nine goals and 21 assists in 54 games, 12 points ahead of any other blue-liner. Expect Orlov to take his sweet time developing in Russia’s pro leagues until he hits a high enough level to come over to North America and take a shot at the Devils’ lineup — he’ll offer some value in multi-cat leagues as a big hitter and shot-blocker, but don’t expect much offensive production out of him at the next level. Hadi Kalakeche