Photo: Pavel Neelov
The 2025 NHL Draft was an important one for the Boston Bruins as they continue their “retool” towards being a viable Stanley Cup contender again. First round pick James Hagens was the feature selection, but there might be some sleeper prospects in the later rounds. One of those intriguing players is sixth round choice Kirill Yemelyanov, who has been off to a scorching start to his MHL season in Russia with Loko Yaroslavl.
On Tuesday, Yemelyanov tallied a hat trick in a 9-0 win. It was another productive day for the 18-year-old forward who now has 12 goals in 20 games. The 6-foot, 170-pounder has been a force all season and is in the midst of a stretch where he has scored seven goals in the last five games.
The scout coming into the draft was that Yemelyanov played a mature, consistent game for his age but that his offensive upside was maybe limited. However, the Russian forward is showing that he can be a line-driving scorer. Here is what Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney said after drafting Yemelyanov:
“He’s actually a player that our Russian scout [Arseniy Bondarev] had seen quite a bit, it’s in his hometown in Yaroslava. We had [European Scout] Milan Jurcina, who’s based in Prague, go over and see him as well at a tournament. I got to see him last year and this year down in Florida at the Gold Star Hockey Camp. Not only that, we tracked with video and seeing where he’s at from a production standpoint. But he’s got a 200-foot game.
“He’s got a little bit of offensive ability where he helps drive some stuff on their line. It’s maybe not a high, high end offense, but he’s certainly someone who’s involved in terms of driving some plays and getting some scoring chances and he also has a real good determination to the way he plays the game. A kid who has some growth potential left and just a kid that we’re excited to add to our group.”
And driving offense has been Yemelyanov’s specialty so far this season. He is certainly a player to keep an eye on in the coming years for the Bruins.
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