For New Jersey Devils Senior Vice President and Assistant General Manager Dan MacKinnon, it was a no-brainer to select Anton Silayev with their 10th overall pick at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.
"I turned to Dan MacKinnon," general manager Tom Fitzgerald said, "(who was) sitting next to me because we really liked the Finnish center as well as Silayev, and I said, 'What do you think, the defenseman or the center?' and he looked at me (and said), 'The defenseman is 6-foot-7, he can skate, and he is mean.'
"I am like, okay, we will take the defenseman," Fitzgerald continued with a smile.
Silayev's profile will tell you he is a massive defenseman at 6-foot-7, 207 pounds. He has a mean streak and the skating ability of a player half his size. Most mock drafts projected him as a top-five pick, with many believing he would go as high as third overall.
"He is 6-foot-7, great size, but you quickly see his agility and footwork for that size, among the best you see at that age," said Devils chief scout Mark Dennehy . "He is mobile for his size with great defensive range. He is a pest to play against. He plays with a mean streak," Dennehy said. "Good shot, good hands."
During the team's 2024 Development Camp, Devils' media got their first look at Silayev, and the prospect came as advertised. The towering defenseman effortlessly skated around the ice, showcasing impressive edgework for his frame.
"I'm very happy to be here," he said through a translator on the first day of development camp. "I would like to stay longer, but unfortunately, I have to go back to Russia and prepare for the KHL next season there."
Silayev remains under contract for the next two years in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), where his head coach is former Devil Igor Larionov.
The 18-year-old defenseman was credited with 74 blocked shots and 98 hits in 63 games this season for the Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod. His 11 points were the most by an under-18 player in Kontinental Hockey League history, topping Vladimir Tarasenko's 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in 38 games for Novosibirsk in 2008-09.
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