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Golden Knights Draft

Golden Knights Trade Down, Take Chayka from KHL; Round 2 Analysis

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Vegas Golden Knights, Daniil Chayka

Add a tall, stay-home defenseman to the Vegas Golden Knights prospect pool. Daniil Chayka, who played last season in the KHL after the OHL’s delayed start due to COVID, is the latest Golden Knights prospect.

A few outlets had a first-round grade on Chayka.

From our friends at Smaht Scouting: 

“One of the most impressive attributes about Chayka’s play is his reach. But his reach isn’t just good without the puck. It is good with the puck as well. With Chayka’s long frame, he uses his reach to his advantage. His reach allows him to take up more space, which gives him more room when possessing the puck. When Chayka does not have the puck and is playing in his own zone, his reach allows him to stand tall and intercept passes that are not coming to his immediate vicinity.”

The left-shot defenseman had an up-and-down season in Russia. He was not very good in the World Junior Championships but was very good in some Russian tournaments against KHL teams.

He had two points (1-1-2) in 11 KHL games last season. In 2019-20 with the Guelph Storm of the OHL, Chayka scored 34 points (11-23-34).

The Vegas Golden Knights originally had the 36th overall pick at the front of the second round. However, GM Kelly McCrimmon traded down two spots in a deal with the Detroit Red Wings.

The Golden Knights got the 38th overall (2nd round), and the 128th overall (4th round) pick from Detroit.