Kudryavtsev called his experience alongside Myers, “the big difference from last year’s camp,” and it helped give him confidence heading into joining the AHL club.
Now, Kudryavtsev is comfortable in his role with the Abbotsford Canucks and is playing AHL games as a 20-year-old.
“I'm very happy with getting my chance at the AHL level and am very excited to show that I'm capable of playing in the AHL,” said Kudryavtsev. “It's a really good experience for us 20-year-olds like me, Petey [Elias Pettersson] and Lekki [Jonathan Lekkerimäki].”
Pettersson and Kudryavtsev, the two 20-year-old defencemen have played in all four games for Abbotsford and though they are young, there’s a lot of confidence from the two left-shot defencemen.
“The other teams are saying, ‘Look at this young defence corps.’ They think they are going to run us, but we have a strong defence corps. We are young guys, yes, but look at me and Petey, we are both over 200 pounds. We are young but everybody is so skilled – every d-man on our team. Everybody can skate and everybody can think. It’s just a pleasure to compete with these people every day and try to get better,” said Kudryavtsev.
In Abbotsford, there is a heavy focus on developing skills and playing to a system. Something that Kudryavtsev has enjoyed about AHL head coach Manny Malhotra has been the energy that the coach brings to every interaction. That inspiring energy from the coach is there no matter if it is a game, practice, workout, or just a chat.
What has Kudryavtsev the most excited about his head coach is Malhotra's focus on everything around the rink involving an elevated level of competition.
“This is how I think players are supposed to grow up. Being in this competitive situation with your team on the ice when you’re playing but also in practice and the weight room,” said Kudryavtsev.
“We have 10 defencemen in the AHL and everybody is good enough to play. You have to perform at practice. You have to be giving 150% effort at every practice because if you take a couple of days off and don’t show your best, you will probably lose your chance and somebody else will get the chance to play. That’s very motivating, at least it is for me. I’m motivated to be better every day and show the coaches that I am capable of and supposed to be playing here in the AHL.”
Kudryavtsev has already experienced a lot of new challenges through his hockey journey.
When he came to Canada at 17 years old, he had no teammates who spoke Russian, and he focused on getting his English to a new level so that he could have better communication with coaches.
Though there is still a lot of work to do, the 20-year-old is just one step away and is continuing to build toward becoming an NHL defenceman and achieving his dream.