Kent Hughes has reportedly pulled off another steal in front of the net by acquiring goaltender Yevgeni Volokhin in the 2023 draft

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Elias Edmonson
January 21, 2024 (8:17 PM)

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With the three-goaltender situation at the Canadiens this season, it is clear that the organization hasn't really prepared for life after Carey Price.

But in the last draft, Kent Hughes addressed the situation by drafting three young goaltending prospects with the selections of Jacob Fowler in the third round, Quentin Miller in the fourth round, and also Yevgeni Volokhin in the following round.

While hockey fans have been able to observe Fowler's talent, as he was one of the two goaltenders for the United States at the World Junior Championships, it is actually the young Russian prospect that I intend to talk about.

As reported by Cédrick Gervais, from Marqueur.com, Yevgeni Volokhin's performance this year has been turning heads with incredible numbers since the start of the season.

Playing with Mamonty Yugry in the MHL, which is equivalent to the junior ranks in Canada in Russia, the 18-year-old has already notched 20 wins in 31 games with an excellent goals-against average of 2.12. Moreover, his save percentage of .927 makes him one of the best goaltenders in his league.

Check out his ridiculously good numbers:

That said, even if his stats are impressive, it's not anytime soon that we'll see the young Russian goaltender land in Montreal as Samuel Montembeault and Jake Allen are under contract for next season.

However, it remains that Volokhin represents an exciting project for the Canadiens organization and as he is a fifth-round pick, the team's management will be quite patient with him.