According to Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff, Red Wings prospect Dmitri Buchelnikov may not know which team he’s playing for this upcoming season, but he will be spending August in Sochi, Russia, playing for the Russian Under-23 team:
Russia may still be banned from international hockey, but that won’t be preventing Detroit Red Wings draftee Dmitri Buchelnikov from representing his country.
Russia’s under-23 national team will be playing in the upcoming Sochi Tournament. The event is one of the biggest KHL preseason tourneys, often serving as a showcase for upcoming Russian talent. With the unveiling of the team selection earlier this week, Buchenikov’s name was on the list.
Buchelnikov, 19, also saw action in last season’s Sochi Tournament. Playing for the Russian U25 squad, he wound up collecting 3-2-5 totals through five games, earning him recognition as the top forward of the tournament. Two of his goals were game winners.
The player who Detroit made the 51st selection of the 2022 NHL entry draft is among nine SKA St. Petersburg players who were earning selection to the Russian U23 squad. The select team of young Russian stars will play games against Sochi (August 3), Admiral (August 5), Avangard (August 7) and SKA (August 8).
Continued; the KHL basically plays a full month’s worth of preseason hockey in August, and, as Duff suggests, the Under-23 or Under-25 teams exist as a sort of equivalent to World Junior Championship-eligible teams.
Duff also notes that Buchelnikov’s future is somewhat murky; he’s under contract to SKA St. Petersburg, but he also played for the VHL’s SKA-Neva St. Petersburg (SKA’s roughly equivalent to a “second league” team) and the MHL’s SKA-1946 St. Petersburg (roughly equivalent to a Major Junior league team) last season.
He played in 10 games for the “big club” last season, but he only posted a goal and an assist, earning scant ice time.
His stats reflect not having any continuity last season, and it would be best for his development to be placed with one team this time around.
