Dmitry Orlov: “I still don’t know if I’ll go to the NHL this summer” (Photo © mhl.khl.ru)

During an interview with portal Sport Novokuznetsk, Washington Capitals’ prospect Dmitry Orlov stated that he still doesn’t know where he will spend the 2010-11 season.

Dmitry Orlov: “I still don’t know if I’ll go to the NHL this summer. I still have two more years of contract with Metallurg Novokuznetsk. I don’t really know, we’ll see what will happen.”

The blue liner, who did skate in last year’s rookie camp with the Capitals, has just been in the roster of the MHL runners-up. The Kuznetsk Bears lost the Russian Junior League finals 3-1 to the Steel Foxes from Magnitogorsk. Playoffs’ top scorer was 2010 eligible Maxim Kitsyn with 20 points in 17 games, while Dmitry Orlov was third in the standings with 19 points (9+10).

WJC Final roster released (Photo © fhr.ru)

On December 25th, Russian national junior team head coach Vladimir Plyuschev named the final roster for the World Junior Championships. He took some drastic decisions as he decided not to call goalkeeper Alexander Pechursky, defenseman Kirill Yuriev, forwards Mikhail Fisenko and Dmitry Kugryshev.

This is how the final roster looks like:

Goalkeepers
Igor Bobkov, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, 1991
Ramis Sadikov, Erie Otters, OHL, 1991

Defensemen
Anton Klementyev, Bridgeport Sound Tigers, AHL, 1990
Dmitry Orlov, Metallurg Novokuznetsk, 1991
Maxim Chudinov, Severstal Cherepovets, 1990
Dmitry Kostromitin, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, QMJHL, 1990
Nikita Zaitsev, Sibir Novosibirsk, 1991
Nikita Pivtsakin, Avangard Omsk, 1991
Alexander Tarasov, HC MVD, 1990

Forwards
Nikita Filatov, CSKA Moscow, 1990
Alexander Burmistrov, Barrie Colts, OHL, 1991
Vladimir Tarasenko, Sibir Novosibirsk, 1991
Pavel Dedunov, Amur Khabarovsk, 1990
Ivan Telegin, Saginaw Spirit, OHL, 1992
Maxim Kitsyn, Metallurg Novokuznetsk, 1991
Maxim Trunev, Severstal Cherepovets, 1990
Evgeny Kuznetsov, Traktor Chelyabinsk, 1992
Evgeny Timkin, Avangard Omsk, 1990
Vyacheslav Kulemin, CSKA Moscow, 1990
Kirill Petrov, Ak Bars Kazan, 1990
Magomed Gimbatov, SKA St. Petersburg, 1990
Petr Khokhryakov, Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk, 1990

Team Russia’s first match will be played on Boxing Day against Team Austria.

Team Russia WJC roster released (Photo © Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images)

The roster for the World Junior Championships has been released today by head coach Vladimir Plyuschev and Russian Hockey Federation. Just as usual it looks like that the team’s strongest area will be the offensive front, with many high quality forwards. The defense looks a bit thin and there isn’t a clear starting goaltender. The team’s leader will be Nikita Filatov.

This is how the roster appears to be:

Goalkeepers
Igor Bobkov, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, 1991
Alexander Pechursky, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, 1990
Ramis Sadikov, Erie Otters, OHL, 1991

Defensemen
Dmitri Orlov, Metallurg Novokuznetsk, 1991
Maxim Chudinov, Severstal Cherepovets, 1990
Dmitri Kostromitin, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, QMJHL, 1990
Nikita Zaitsev, Sibir Novosibirsk, 1991
Nikita Pivtsakin, Avangard Omsk, 1991
Alexander Tarasov, HC MVD, 1990
Kirill Yuriev, Lada Togliatti, 1991

Forwards
Nikita Filatov, CSKA Moscow, 1990
Alexander Burmistrov, Barrie Colts, OHL, 1991
Vladimir Tarasenko, Sibir Novosibirsk, 1991
Pavel Dedunov, Amur Khabarovsk, 1990
Ivan Telegin, Saginaw Spirit, OHL, 1992
Maxim Kitsyn, Metallurg Novokuznetsk, 1991
Maxim Trunev, Severstal Cherepovets, 1990
Evgeny Kuznetsov, Traktor Chelyabinsk, 1992
Evgeny Timkin, Avangard Omsk, 1990
Vyacheslav Kulemin, CSKA Moscow, 1990
Kirill Petrov, Ak Bars Kazan, 1990
Magomed Gimbatov, SKA St. Petersburg, 1990
Petr Khokhryakov, Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk, 1990
Dmitry Kugryshev, Quebec Remparts, QMJHL, 1990

Extended WJC roster for Team Russia released (Photo © Shaun Best/Reuters)

Today coach Vladimir Plyuschev released the extended list of the players called for the WJC. Nikita Filatov is there, as well as Evgeny Grachev, who recently has been ruled out by the Rangers. isn’t part of the roster. The team will start the training camp in Novogorsk on December 7th and will go on until December 18th.

This is how the roster appears to be:

Goalkeepers
Igor Bobkov, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, 1992
Alexander Zalivin, Dinamo Moscow, 1991
Ramis Sadikov, Erie Otters, OHL, 1991
Alexei Trifonov, Lada Togliatti, 1990

Defensemen
Anton Klementyev, Bridgeport Sound Tigers, 1990
Dmitri Orlov, Metallurg Novokuznetsk, 1991
Maxim Chudinov, Severstal Cherepovets, 1990
Dmitri Kostromitin, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, QMJHL, 1990
Nikita Zaitsev, Sibir Novosibirsk, 1991
Nikita Pivtsakin, Avangard Omsk, 1991
Konstantin Plaksin, Traktor Chelyabinsk, 1990
Alexander Tarasov, HC MVD, 1990
Ildar Isangulov, Salavat Yulaev Ufa, 1992
Kirill Yuriev, Lada Togliatti, 1991
Vyacheslav Voinov, Manchester Monarchs, AHL, 1990
Dmitry Kulikov, Florida Panthers, 1990

Forwards
Nikita Filatov, CSKA Moscow, 1990
Alexander Burmistrov, Barrie Colts, OHL, 1992
Vladimir Tarasenko, Sibir Novosibirsk, 1991
Pavel Dedunov, Amur Khabarovsk, 1990
Ivan Telegin, Saginaw Spirit, OHL, 1992
Maxim Kitsyn, Metallurg Novokuznetsk, 1991
Maxim Trunev, Severstal Cherepovets, 1990
Sergei Plotnikov, Amur Khabarovsk, 1990
Evgeny Kuznetsov, Traktor Chelyabinsk, 1992
Evgeny Timkin, Avangard Omsk, 1990
Vyacheslav Kulemin, CSKA Moscow, 1990
Egor Dugin, Traktor Chelyabinsk, 1990
Kirill Petrov, Ak Bars Kazan, 1990
Magomed Gimbatov, SKA St. Petersburg, 1990
Petr Khokhryakov, Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk, 1990
Dmitry Kugryshev, Quebec Remparts, QMJHK, 1990
Evgeny Grachev, Hartford Wolf Pack, AHL, 1990

Dmitri Orlov: “I have to work on my confidence” (Photo © Russianprospects.com)

Dmitri Orlov is a 18 years old defenseman who has been drafted by the Washington Capitals in the latest NHL Entry Draft, with the 55th overall pick. In this translated interview with Metallurg’s press attache Sergei Druzhinin, he talked about his feelings about being a first team player, about his ability to play both forward and defense and about the Russian Junior National Team.

Dmitri, do you feel a full fledged member of the first team now?

Yes. Now I play with the first team, I get a lot of ice time and I try to be helpful for the team. The coaches trust me and I thank them for that. And off the ice I’ve got good ties with all my team mates, we have a very good group.

Do you remember your first match with the first team? Did you have special feelings?

Of course I remember it. In my very first match I wasn’t iced, but even then I was nervous. Especially when they said me “gear up!” (smiles). But when later I was actually iced I adjusted pretty quickly and the nervousness went away.

Now in Metallurg plays your usually line mate in Metallurg-91 Anton Kapotov. What do you think, would it be good for you to play again on the same pair or would it better to play with more experienced players?

In any case it’s up to the coaches. By the way, we already played one game together with the main team. During a penalty killing.

Who is the defenseman, with whom it was more comfortable to you to play with?

Probably the same Anton Kapotov. We played in the same pair since the childhood and we always easily understood each other. If I was running forward, I knew that he was covering back in the zone. And he too. When they split us in different lines, I wasn’t understanding what happened on the ice (smiles).

Do you have an “ideal” defenseman, a player that you would like to look the same?

I can’t name one… I like offensive defensemen, but nowadays there aren’t many of them in Russia. It’s possible to name, for example, Kirill Koltsov. In the tapes that they gave me to watch I liked a lot Bobby Orr’s game.

In some games of this season the coaches iced you as center. And in such role you played matches both for the first and second team. What do you prefer, playing as defenseman or as center?

As defenseman. In the child school they iced me as center and I played two years as a forward. But then I was played as defenseman and I think that’s the position in which I play best.

I ask you as a defenseman, which forwards group is the hardest one to face in the KHL?

It was very tough facing Salavat Yulaev’s forwards. They have such a great group of forwards, there is a lot of individual quality within it. Dealing with them isn’t easy.

In the match against Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod you scored a goal after a coast-to-coast. Did you ever scored such a goal earlier in your career?

I’ve scored something similar in children hockey. But of course, it was very pleasant scoring such an important goal against Torpedo an in front of my spectators.

What do you think, which part of the game you need to work on?

First of all on my confidence. Good players hit the ice with lots of confidence. And if you go to a game without it, you’re going to do errors.

Soon the junior national team will play in the WJC. How would you compare it to the U18 team, in which you played last year? And how would you judge their chances?

First of all I’ll say that I really hope to be called into the WJC roster and in that case I’ll try really hard to help my team winning the gold medal. This national team is better because there are players one year older, 1990-born. And furthermore the players who now are in North America will join. They are already used to play in the smaller ice surface. Regarding the chances, well, there are always chances. Yes, usually the favorites are the Canadians, Sweden also has a good team, but we have to fight for the gold medal anyway.

Is it hard to constantly depart to join the national team midway through the season?

Of course it’s hard to move from one plane to another. In the club you have a regime and a schedule, with the national team you have another one. And also the trips. But now I’m used to it and thus it’s easier.

The last question is a traditional one. What do you want to wish to Novokuznetsk fans?

I hope that our fans will support out team. More happiness and less angry shouts form the stands. But I want to thank our fans for coming to the game and for the support.