2020 NHL Draft Profile - Potential Preds: Iaroslav Askarov

The 2020 NHL Draft will look different than it ever has before, but the goal for the Predators remains the same - find players who will one day dress for the club on a full-time basis.
The Preds are currently scheduled to have seven opportunities to select those players in the upcoming NHL Draft - which will be held virtually - including the 11th overall pick in Round 1. That selection will be made sometime during the evening of Oct. 6 from a Bridgestone Arena conference room instead of a busy draft floor, and there are a number of players the Predators are eyeing.

We won't know for sure which name Nashville will call until that very moment arrives, but there are a number of players who could find themselves becoming pick No. 11 in just a few days.
So, who will become the newest member of the Preds? It might just be Iaroslav Askarov.
Iaroslav Askarov, Goaltender - Top-ranked European Goaltender, NHL Central Scouting
6-foot-3, 176 pounds - Neva St. Petersburg, Russia-2
June 16, 2002 - Omsk, Russia
- Askarov spent the majority of the 2019-20 season with Neva St. Petersburg in Russia's second division where he went 12-3-3 with a 2.45 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage
- On Nov. 27, 2019, the 17-year-old became the second-youngest goalie in history at the time of his KHL debut when he made 23 saves in a 4-2 win for SKA St. Petersburg
- Backstopped Team Russia to gold-medal performances at the 2018 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge where he was named a tournament all-star and the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup
- Named best goaltender and a tournament all-star at the 2019 Under-18 World Championship where he helped his country earn a silver medal
- Member of Team Russia's silver medal-winning entry at the 2020 World Junior Championship
From NHL Central Scouting: "Tall, athletic goaltender who likes to stay upright. High hockey IQ. Quick, involved, active and very mobile. Communicates loudly with his skaters."
Current Player Comparable: Pekka Rinne