Ilya Nabokov

October 2024 – Roughly one month into the KHL season, the 21-year-old has been Metallurg’s undisputed starter, playing 15 of 21 games and rocking a 0.920 SV% with 2 shutouts so far. This ranks 7th in the KHL, which isn’t surprising from the reigning KHL playoffs MVP whose stock has been steeply rising of late. His contract is up after this season so there is a chance he comes to North America following his current campaign. As long as he is getting a starter’s workload the organization may keep him in Russia until the right opportunity to play arises, but given the poor starts of the organization’s current netminders, they may be eager to sign Nabokov to an ELC as soon as they can. Hayden Soboleski

June 2024 – Nabokov was selected in the second round, 38th overall, by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2024 NHL Draft. Hadi Kalakeche

April 2024 – It’s not often that you see a 21-year-old selected in the NHL draft, but it’s not often that you have the opportunity to draft a goaltender of Nabokov’s quality either. After a strong start to the KHL season, Nabokov has shown great in-season development, and his regular season and playoff statistics reflect that. He is an extremely strong skater, able to move effectively and quickly into positions. He consistently takes the correct lines, and is excellent at anticipating play and adjusting his depth based on the situation. His rebound control and tracking in and around the net may need some refining but by all measures this is an excellent professional goaltender available to be drafted. (April Rankings: #80) Colin Hunter