SCoC Draft Profiles: Ivan Muranov is an enormous winger with production to match

Analysis:

Ivan Muranov doesn’t have the same problems a lot of giant players have; being pidgeonholed into roles as net-front presences or deterrents for disreputable play.

Ivan Muranov has a much simpler role to play for his MHL-based (Think Russian Juniors) Dinamo Moskva team; Point-getter.

Muranov is a 6’4, 179 lb. skater listed curiously as a “forward” wherever he plays, though he tends to mostly be a left-wing player in most international tourneys. And from this position, he helped Dinamo Moskva succeed by being 2nd on the team in points, gathering 32 in 63 games.

Muranov got this not only by being a large lad, which is the first thing anyone who sees him notices, but he also has a fairly powerful stride and skating prowess combined with a relentless instinct to get after the puck and a powerful set of hands, which he used to great effect this year:

That pass on the last .gif though...what motion.

Muranov does have some concerns, one of which is a strength coach’s project. Being in the Russian junior league, Muranov only needed to be 176 lbs. to be effective. At the NHL level, he’ll likely need a lot more pounds to do the same. Another is a more...nebulous issue. See, unlike a lot of prospects right now, Muranov is currently up in the air as to where their 2018 sets them off to. He could be on his way to North America, go to Sweden for extra seasoning, or stay in Russia. Really, he could go anywhere he wants, because nobody knows what he wants.

Muranov is projected usually for the third round due to the nature of where he is in his career; good, but looking ahead and not having a clear option. It’s up to the team that drafts him to decide if they want to follow him on the winds for what he’s got. But for Bruins fans? This guy has a lot to like.

Player Rankings:

34th by NHL Central Scouting among European Skaters