It’s that time of the year where we review some of the prospects within the Edmonton Oilers pipeline. This edition is looking at the forward the Oilers selected in the sixth round, 180th overall in the 2021 NHL draft, Matvei Petrov.
Who is Matvei Petrov?
| Position | Handedness | Height | Weight | TOI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LW/RW | Right | 6’02 | 179 LB | 11:43 |
Petrov’s on-ice production
Petrov grew up playing in the Moskva youth, and MHL system. The young Russian winger then made the jump over to the CHL after getting selected first overall in the 2020 CHL Import draft by the OHL’s North Bay Battalion.
After the COVID-19 lockdown he made the full time jump over to North America where he became an top ten scorer in the OHL, and an offensive threat, posting back to back 90+ points in two consecutive seasons with the North Bay Battalion from 2021–23.
From there, the young winder debut with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors this past 2023–24 season, where despite having a regular lineup spot, Petrov has struggled to find the back of the net like he did in Junior.
| Year | League | Team | GP | G | A | P | Playoff GP | Playoff G | Playoff A | Playoff P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | OHL | North Bay Battalion | 63 | 40 | 50 | 90 | 13 | 2 | 8 | 10 |
| 2022–23 | OHL | North Bay Battalion | 65 | 27 | 66 | 93 | 20 | 4 | 18 | 22 |
| 2023–24 | AHL | Bakersfield Condors | 53 | 9 | 5 | 14 |
A former Junior standout, Petrov has struggled to make the offensive jump to the AHL this past season.
Petrov’s player profile
Petrov is a player defined by his offensive upside as a sniper/playmaker, and an individual whose game has shown some evolution over the last couple of years.
Petrov’s strengths
Petrov is an offensive minded sniper-play maker combo who shines the most in the O-zone.
Offensive instincts/puck skills
Petrov proves to be an offensive threat whenever he is on the ice through, his quality offensive play reading, gap creation, and hints of a developing hockey IQ.
The first year pro shows good play reads through an established offensive awareness through quality vision that blended with his touch and go passes can facilitate a quick transition before the opposing forwards even have time to get on the back check.
Petrov can also identify play options effectively in zone, often always looking to make himself an option without the puck he can carve space for himself as a serviceable bumper or half wall player. This ability to always make himself an play option displays decent spacial awareness, positioning, and some poise.
At the same time Petrov is a somewhat crafty player who shows some elements of creativity with unique passing and shooting plays. His one touch passing plays can generate lightning quick ups making him particularly effective as a transitional threat.
In the o-zone Petrov can execute a combination of quality passing, dekeing, or simple puck possesion, showing above average puck skills to match his offensive senses. Petrov’s play demonstrates that the former North Bay Battalion forward is a competent decision maker, and play generator with the puck.
These offensive instincts combined with moderate puck skills justify the forwards 1:32 of PP time, while also helping explain why he starts 95% of all shifts in the O-zone.
Shooting
The quality of shooting that Petrov displays is transferable to the NHL level for he has a quick release highlighted by good mechanics, weight shifts, and use of leverage.
The Russian winger also has an entire arsenal of shots, with a quality snapshot, wrist shot, and backhander. Mixed in with a good hand-eye coordination makes him an even larger threat as the first year Condor can turn any shot into a quick one-timer esque with high end shooting power and speed.
The shooting form of Petrov is high end with a good weight and leverage transfer maximizing its power and potentcy of anything leaving his stick.
As Petrov finds footing at the pro-level so is his shot, as it currently sat at a 52% accuracy for the 2023-2024 season, with 2.3 per game.
Petrov’s shot selection remains slightly questionable at points as he will often shoot from low and outside of the faceoff dot. It is likely this lack of offensive shooting poise comes from inexperience.
Skating
Petrov simply is not a high level dynamic skater, but the Russian born winger does a good enough job with his acceleration, edge work, and improved agility to make him a serviceable pro.
The 2003 born forward shows decent skating ability which allows him to be where he needs on the ice and can competently keep up with pace of play. His sheer will allows him ok crossovers, and acceleration, which are particularly noticeable in zone entries and in transition.
At the end of transition his outside edge work particularly is notable for his stopping and ability to skate on a curve in turns allowing the Bakersfield forward greater play mobility. This increase in agility has been improving season after season which bodes well for the young forwards pro-potential.
This greater play mobility combined with his aforementioned creativity means Petrov is able to generate some distinct lane creation, further fuelling his rush chance generation.
At points the Condors forward does show some lack of extension, and a few mechanical issues that allow him to have some elements of busy feet providing a slightly shorter choppy stride. This slight busy feet does limit his lateral top speed.
Petrov’s areas of improvement
Petrov plays an offensive heavy game, but often lacks some refinement around defensive instincts, motor, and physicality, all of which are elements that are quite common.
Defensive senses:
Petrov plays an ineffective defensive transitional game, which includes a less than stellar forechecking presence, showing poor stick positioning, angles of attack, and ill-timed poke checks. This hints at a lack of defensive instincts, and poor defensive positioning.
In-zone Petrov is not much better, displaying a lack of opponent lane awareness, a limited active stick, and a low d-zone motor/risk assessment makes Petrov a defensive liability justifying his 0:00 PK time all season.
The former CHL standout has improved his physical play with decent body positioning (blocking off walls, board play, and hits), but expect for further growth in this area this upcoming season to make the first year pro an even more complete player.
Overall his 0.2 hits per game aren’t ideal but they don’t detract from his game all too much but if he could add some physicality to his game it would be another tool for his metaphorical hockey toolkit.
Petrov’s play away from the puck needs significant improvement to make the jump to the next level and unlock even more layers in his game.
Petrov’s next steps
The next stage of Petrov’s development involves further improvement in all aspects of his game minus shooting and puck skills. In general the Russian born winger just needs to get more comfortable with the pro-game.
Expect Petrov to start the season in a top-nine role with the Bakersfield Condors, and ideally work his way up the lineup. Look for further minutes than the 11:43 he got this past season. Only time will tell if Petrov can carve an NHL roster spot for himself.
Projection with the Oilers
NHL ETA: 3+ years
He could be a possible asset with other high end soft skill players, but with the depth of talent the Edmonton based team has, if Petrov does get any NHL minutes expect them to be in a bottom-six secondary scorer’s role.
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