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With the 152nd overall pick in the fifth round of the 2024 draft, the Maple Leafs selected Alexander Plesovskikh.
Plesovskikh is a quite young prospect, with an August birthday. He has average size at 6'0" and 172 lbs. He actually played between three levels in Russia last year: their U18 junior league, the MHL, and got into two VHL games. He did play in some international games for Russia as well, but those were entirely against themselves or Belarus since they are banned from international competition involving other nations.
Just like with Johansson, there isn't a lot out there about Plesovskikh. There is this tidbit by Kloke:
And there's a short blurb from Elite Prospects in their draft guide:
One of the youngest players in the draft, Alexander Plesovskikh probably has more runway ahead of him to push and develop his skills than most players in the class. He’s going to need it too, based on what we saw this season.
More of a straight-line pursuer than a creator, he mostly spent the year taking advantage of the opposition’s mistakes, pouncing on loose pucks and intercepting them to then drive the slot. One can be an opportunistic scorer at the MHL level, where mistakes are plentiful, but not at the professional level.
“Plesovskikh had a decent game here,” wrote Elite Prospect Russia regional scout Dylan Griffing in a December game report “His playmaking really comes from reactionary plays, taking his first option most of the time, which worked out fine here, but he lacks the true dynamic play to be a next level playmaker.”
Right now, Plesovskikh’s upside comes mostly from his tools. Some, like his passing and physical skills, project well to the NHL. And if he adds an extra gear to his skating, he could find a role playing North-South hockey on a KHL line.
To aspire to more, however, he will have to develop his creativity.
Sounds like he mostly played in a checking line role in the MHL, where he had a not very impressive level of points.
More to come, but welcome to the Maple Leafs' organization Alexander!
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