No. 3: Semyon Der-Arguchintsev
Better known as “SDA,” Der-Arguchintsev has had a great rookie campaign with the Toronto Marlies, scoring 25 points in 39 games played.
At 20-years-old, the Russian centre is still young, but has a ton of offensive upside, as shown by his play paired beside Nick Robertson in the Ontario Hockey League. The duo ripped it up for the Peterborough Petes, as SDA was a great play-maker registering 63 assists in 55 games.
Like many young and undersized centre’s, SDA needs to work on his defensive-play before he ever gets called up to the big-league’s, but he’s still very raw.
This is the 20-year-old’s first full professional season, so it’s going to come with many up’s and down’s. At 5-foot-11, 165 pounds, unless he bulks up tremendously, he’s always going to have issues defending, which will be the downside of his game.
Despite the defensive issues, his play-making ability and offensive abilities have been good in his first full-year, as he’s fifth on the team in scoring with 25 points.
Although you can never have too many centres in the system, SDA could be a good trade chip for the Leafs, as they look to fetch a legitimate NHLer.