And here come the Russians...Subway Super Series roster announced

And, as expected, the Russian roster for the CHL Subway Super Series next month is full of names, but not a lot of guys you've heard of or are really going to give the major junior teams a lot of work, IMO. Kings 2010 pick Maxim Kitsyn is on the team, but most of the roster are undrafted '91 birthdates who are not likely to press the QMJHL, OHL or WHL squads much as has been the trend over the last few years.

One guy who jumps out at me as a legitimate 2011 draft prospect is defenseman Zakhar Arzamastsev, who had a good Under-18 tourney last spring and is one of those "under the radar" guys who is really good and has a nice upside, but will fall at the draft because of where he plays and signability concerns. He's a pretty mobile, offensive-minded defender who can rush the puck with aplomb and plays a pretty smart, composed game. Unfortunately, nobody gets to see him all that much with him playing for Novokuznetsk (2-24 in 19 games-- not bad for a 17-year-old in the KHL), but the 6-0, 190-pounder will be the one guy to key on if you're going to the games. In addition to Kitsyn, he plays with Capitals prospect and 2009 2nd-rounder Dmitri Orlov, who has been highly impressive in the two development camps I've taken in recently. If he's anything like Orlov (small, but explosive and a legit puckmover) then he'll come off the board in Minnesota even with the Russian factor that dissuades a few teams these days.

I've put the teams who own the few drafted players rights in parentheses, but may have missed one here and there. Then again, maybe not. Talk about a group of no-names... UPDATE: Russian Prospect.com has piece up saying that Andrey Pedan, Nail Yakupov (2012 eligible), Vladislav Namestnikov and a few others will augment the Russian team. That site also says Alexander Burmistrov will also play, but given he's with Atlanta, that doesn't sound right. Speaking of Russian Prospect.com, if you want more info. on Arzamastsev, here's a pretty detailed profile on him.

So, if you like to see high-scoring games where your team is spending most of the time in the attacking zone and pouring it on with the ice tilted in their favor, then this series is for you. But, if you're trying to get an honest read on where some of these CHL draft eligibles stack up, not the greatest forum for that. It will be interesting to see how Arzamastsev fares, but he's just one guy on a roster of largely unknown talent, and the youngest kid there. Hopefully, he plays a lot.

Goaltender

Shikin, Dmitry 08/28/1991
Ivannikov Eugeny 04/29/1991
Garipov Emil 08/15/1991

Defenders
Berezin, Maxim 01/29/1991
Yurychev Yuri 03/04/1991
Pivtsakin Nikita 07/23/1991
Sergeev, Andrei 03/26/1991
Ignatovich Maxim 07/04/1991
Yakovlev, Yegor 09/17/1991
Berdyukov Georgy 08/19/1991
Grigoriev, Mikhail 02/01/1991
Arzamastsev Zakhar 11/06/1992
Marchenko, Alexey 02/01/1992

Forwards
Sobchenko Daniil 04/13/1991
Dvurechensky Nikita 07/30/1991
Lebedev Kirill 01/10/1991
Zdunov Paul 06/18/1991
Malinovsky, Vladimir 06/09/1991
Golubev Denis 11/07/1991
Bocharov Stanislav 06/20/1991
Panarin Artemije 10/30/1991
Burdasov Anton 09/05/1991
Voronin, Artem 07/22/1991
Sander, Denis 10/24/1991
Kalinin, Sergei 03/17/1991
Kitsyn Maxim 12/24/1991 (LAK)
Kruchinin Alex 09/06/1991
Goldenkov Dmitry 02/25/1991