Russia's Cherepanov rocketing through WJC competition
Bill Meltzer | NHL.com correspondent
Coming into the 2007 World Junior Championships in Sweden, there were two schools of thought on 17-year-old Team Russia forward Aleksei Cherepanov. Some observers said the high-rated 2007 NHL Entry Draft prospect could be the next young Russian sensation in the NHL, following in the footsteps of Evgeni Malkin, Alexander Ovechkin and Ilya Kovalchuk.
Others pointed to his less-than-spectacular performances in international Under-18 competition and reputation for defensive lapses. They predicted a modest output against more experienced opponents in the 19-year-old dominated WJC.
"Cherepanov tends to skate with more passion in the Russian Super League than in the Under-18 competitions," said Russian Prospects editor and publisher Eugene Belashchenko before the tournament. "A lot of it may have to do with motivation. He'll have plenty of it at the World Juniors."
The Russian Super League is an exceptionally difficult league for young players, a low-scoring and technically demanding circuit. Cherepanov has electrified the league this season. In 30 games for Avangard Omsk, he has 10 goals and 19 points, outstanding numbers for such a young player. In fact, Cherpenov's output exceeds the RSL production of Ovechkin, Malkin and Kovalchuk at the same age.
Coming on the heels of a spectacular youth hockey career, culminating with a 31 goal, 61 point (in 28 games) season for Avangard´s top junior-aged squad in 2004-05, the 5-foot-10, 171 pound Cherepanov quickly made the transition to Russia's top level. When he's at the top of his game, he has shown himself to be an extremely fluid skater with a dazzling array of shots and shifty moves in one-on-one situations. If defenders cut
his path to the net, he can make pinpoint passes to open teammates.
NHL scouts were keen to see how Cherpanov would respond to the demands of the WJC. A great tournament could vault him into being a lottery pick at the top of the NHL draft. Poor play at another international event could result in the Russian being tagged a risky selection.
Among others, Philadelphia Flyers chief European scout Inge Hammarström named Cherepanov as one of the players he would be watching the most closely in the tournament.
So far, Cherepanov has put on a great show. After a New Year's Eve shutout over Finland, he is second in tournament scoring with four goals and three assists in four games. Several of his points have been of the highlight-clip variety.
In Russia's tournament-opening game against their traditional hockey rival, the Czech Republic, the Czechs had the better of the play in the first period, and went
leading 1-0. But Cherepanov quicky changed the momentum in the second. At the 2:01 mark, he shook loose from the defense to materialize in front of the Czech net to bank in a shot as the puck came to him
the boards from Vyacheslav Buravchikov. Less than a minute later, the Russians grabbed a lead they'd never relinquish.
In the third period, with Russia still clinging to a one-goal lead, Cherepanov provided some breathing room. Drawing two defenders toward him, he got both to bite on a head and shoulder fake. Finding an open passing lane, he fed wide-open teammate Alexander Bumagin with a cross-ice pass. Bumagin tucked the puck into a yawning net to extend the lead to 3-1. The insurance goal proved important as the Czechs got one back on the power play with over four minutes left in regulation. Russia held on for the 3-2 win.
In Russia´s second game, Switzerland held the game scoreless through one period and hung around midway through the game, trailing just 1-0 thanks to clutch saves from goalie Reto Berra. Cherepanov drew an assist on a power-play goal at 15:01 mark to extend the lead to 2-0. The celebration from the Russian bench could be heard around the nearly empty Ejendals Arena in Leksand (just 481 spectators showed up -- only the Team Sweden and, to a lesser extent, Team Canada games have drawn strong gates).
The third period was all Team Russia, as the Russians overwhelmed the Swiss with a four-goal blitz to turn the match into a blowout. The rout was on after Cherepanov buried a shot past a helpless Berra at the 8:18 mark.
Less than 24 hours after slaughtering the Swiss, Team Russia returned to Mora to battle Belarus. The Belarusians had already toppled heavily favored Finland on the opening night of the tournament, so it was important for the Russians not to give their former Soviet Union comrades even a sniff of a potential upset. That's exactly what happened.
Russia overpowered Belarus right from the start, scoring three times at even strength in the first period to grab firm control of the game. Late in the second period, with Russia leading 4-1, Cherepanov made a perfect feed from behind the net to Evgeny Ryasensky for an easy goal. Russia cruised 6-1.
It's the nature of hockey that preliminary round heroics will soon be forgotten if the player doesn't carry over his clutch play into the most important games in the tournament.
The real tests have yet to come. Nevertheless, no matter what happens, it's clear the Cherepanov is a crucial piece of Team Russia's short-term and long-term ambitions at the WJC.
"The scary thing about Cherepanov is that he's already better than a lot of the 1987 birth-year players. He's eligible for two more WJC tournaments after this year. The best should be yet to come for him," says Belashchenko.
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