2018 Top 25 Under 25: #22 Dmytro Timashov

Dmytro Timashov is a playmaking winger who took on a top-six role on a stacked AHL team this season, and although it feels like he’s been around forever, there’s still plenty of time for him to take another step forward in his development. He’s already a seasoned veteran on our T25U25 list who ranked 21^st on our list in 2015, jumped up to 13^th in 2016, then fell to 20^th on last year’s ranking. His contributions to the Marlies Calder Cup run provide us with reasons for optimism, but he still failed to make the top 20 this time around:

Timashov is a 5’10” left winger who is already quite heavy. He lacks the foot-speed of Toronto’s current top-six wingers, but his vision and playmaking could easily translate to a NHL powerplay. He posted an incredible number of assists during his two seasons in the QMJHL, and earned a more prominent role on the Marlies powerplay this season.

The main issue with ranking Timashov in the top 15 or so is that he’s going to have a hard time earning a depth role at the NHL level. He does not factor in on the penalty kill, and while he did showcase a little bit of grit this season, he’s not yet quick enough to face top competition at the next level. He’s going to have to be a high-end AHL scorer if he wants to earn NHL minutes, and while this is not completely out of the question, the Leafs have plenty of names in the organization who can compete with him.

Timashov spent most of his time with Chris Mueller and Ben Smith last season, and he couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to impress. However, Jeremy Bracco finished with only two less points than him, despite playing 17 less games, being one year younger than him, and spending most of his time on the fourth line. If Timashov wants to earn a NHL opportunity as a depth scorer and powerplay specialist, he’s going to have to prove that he’s more valuable than Bracco, as well as players like Tyler Ennis and Josh Leivo.

He received significant ice time on the Marlies powerplay last season, but could see an even greater role this year since Andreas Johnson and Kasperi Kapanen figure to be in the NHL. The powerplay was fairly playmaker-heavy rather than scorer-heavy, so Timashov did not exactly have Steven Stamkos or Patrik Laine to set up. Still, given his 5-on-5 linemates and powerplay time, it’s tough to argue that he did not get a fair opportunity to impress. For perspective, here’s a look at his point production to date:

Elite Prospects

He started to regularly beat defenders out-wide in the playoffs, and he could take another step forward next season, so he could certainly develop into an impactful AHL forward. The question becomes: Does he have the quickness and goal-scoring ability to be a 40-point player at the NHL level? I’m not so sure. Given his skillset, he will probably have to score his way onto a NHL roster, and he’s going to have a tough time earning powerplay time on a NHL team that is loaded with highly-skilled scorers.

While he started to shoot more often last season, he’s still not much of a goal scorer, as he scored just 19 goals in 87 games. He’s not as strong in the dirty areas as someone like Carl Grundstrom, and he typically plays on the perimeter of the powerplay rather than in-front of the net. He’s two years younger than Andreas Johnsson, so there’s still time for him to breakout offensively, but he’ll probably need to score at close to a point-per-game rate if he wants to earn an extended look at the NHL level. That’s not exactly an easy thing to accomplish.

I would like to see Timashov develop into a forward who can be the best player on his line, while scoring close to a point per game pace in the AHL. If he takes this type of step forward next season, he could crawl back into our top 20 on next year’s ranking. If he takes a step backwards, he could fall off this ranking altogether. Let’s hope that Timashov can build on his impressive performance from the Calder Cup playoffs, and develop into one of the AHL’s best playmakers.

The Video

This overtime winner was Timashov’s nicest goal of the season, and it showcases his scoring potential. If he can start to beat defenders out wide like this on a more regular basis, his point totals could rise in a hurry:

This goal provides a good representation of his skillset, as he fires a beautiful cross-ice pass just before his goal:

While this clip is from the 2016-2017 season, you won’t find more footage of Timashov in one place: