, author: Plackhin A.

From Olympus to Olympus. Will Kirill Kaprizov become the new Ovechkin?

Already in his first overseas season, the Russian forward impressed the fans, and in his second season he became a Minnesota legend.

At the end of April, Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov turned twenty-five. On that day, he turned down the cake - he said he needed to stay in shape before the last NHL regular-season games. However, the Russian forward's overseas career is already sweeter than any biscuit.

He came to America as an established player. He started in Novokuznetsk Metallurg, had his first real adult season in Salavat Yulaev, three years in CSKA and the Gagarin Cup. And, of course, Olympic gold in Pyeongchang with the winning puck in the final against Germany. All that was left to do was conquer the NHL.

This season is Kaprizov's second in his overseas career. "Minnesota Wild", betting on the Russian forward, did not go wrong: Last year he was the reason the whole world talked about the team. "The Wildcats had never exactly been star-struck, and their hockey was lackluster. And then he showed up - productive, energetic, winning, almost immediately becoming the team leader. This season he rewrote the club's record, including the most important one, raising his season high for Minnesota to 108 points.

What is Kaprizov's strength? A good combination of mental and physical attributes. He has high speed, excellent physical preparation, he is a very skilled technician and can create scoring chances. At the same time Kaprizov is not the kind of leader to pull the blanket over himself: he is happy to dispense assists. It is the same for his teammates; Kirill has no problem finding a common language with his teammates. In addition, Kaprizov has a strong mentality - neither in the KHL, nor in the NHL he is known for scandals and breakdowns, and he overcomes any mishaps, without which it is impossible to go through a long season, without visible problems.

Already today they are calling him the successor of Alexander Ovechkin. How fair would that be? On the one hand, Kaprizov has high scoring ability, leadership qualities (he was a captain of the Russian youth national team), a more refined game, attacking flexibility, low injury rate and age. Still, Kaprizov is inferior to Ovechkin in size, his element is less power play and more combination play. He also lacks his defensive playmaking skills, for which he regularly gets taunted by the fans in their comments. In that regard, Ovechkin is a more universal warrior, a kind-hearted bearded man who knows no mercy on the ice. But he didn't become like that right away, either.

Kaprizov needs to find his team in order to live up to expectations. Despite Kaprizov's prolific play, he is unlikely to win a Stanley Cup with Minnesota. Although the team has rebounded, they are still far from favorites. That means that, sooner or later, Kirill will still change teams. That is why the negotiations on the extension of the contract last summer were so long.

However, while Kaprizov has a chance not to rush. Even with 108 points per season in Minnesota, he has not yet reached the ceiling - he needs to get stronger in order to earn a place in the history of the whole NHL, not the club. Undoubtedly, Kirill can do it.

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