Every season, scouts from Future Considerations spend countless hours gathering information on the next wave of NHL talent coming down the pipe. Future Considerations Eastern head scout Dylan Galloway is no different.

Here is Galloway’s notebook for February.

Vladislav Kolyachonok, D, Flint, 6-2, 181, 5-26-2001
Kolyachonok might be one of the best kept secrets in this draft. He’s a smart, two-way defender that keeps a good gap on forecheckers, can chip in offensively, and can play a good physical style. Kolyachonok gets up and down the ice well and possesses slightly above average skating speed and agility. His agility side-to-side is also solid, as he’s able to stick to opponents on the break in and drive them to the outside and cut off the skating lanes effectively. Kolyachonok also contributes a bit on the offensive side of the puck with his smart passing and moving the puck through the defensive and neutral zones with good speed. He possesses good vision and can make nice passing plays all over the ice, including smart outlet passes and sending darts to dangerous areas in the offensive zone. Kolyachonok plays a steady all-around game and should be regarded as one of the Ontario Hockey League’s top prospects.

Nicholas Robertson, C/LW, Peterborough, 5-9, 168, 9-11-2001
Robertson possesses excellent agility both with and without the puck. His skating is definitely elite, as he can make the quick cuts east-west, but can also wheel north-south as well. Though he has high-end speed, his edges are definitely the best aspect of his skating. The most impressive thing about Robertson is that his hands, mind for the game and vision can all keep up with his feet. He’s got incredibly quick hands and can put the puck nearly anywhere with a pass. On top of all of that, Robertson is able to let go some heavy shots that has good velocity off his stick. He’s got a quick release and can get the puck up with speed. I also liked Robertson’s ability to drive to the net and use his body and angles to drive in from the outside of the ice to the inside and get a chance on net. Having said that, his backhand shot needs work as there isn’t a lot of strength to it. If Robertson were six-foot-plus, I think he would be ranked significantly higher as he’s got the smarts, skill, and skating of a first rounder. I do worry about his ability to get to the center of the ice using his physicality and speed, though.

Danil Antropov, RW, Oshawa Generals, 6-2, 190, 12-20-2000
Antropov is a highly interesting prospect who I’ve been up and down on throughout the season. One of Antropov’s greatest skills is his subtle smart touches on the puck. Slick little entry passes that are simple little deflections perfectly to the man flying down the wing breaking through the defence, one-touch passes as the go between guy in the middle of the ice in the offensive zone, or an effective exit pass to move the puck up the ice. Antropov routinely shows off this type of intelligence in his play with smart positioning and puck play. Where he needs to improve is his consistency in keeping his feet active and not settling into one spot on the ice. His first few steps aren’t quick enough to go from standing still to exploding into the play and it hinders his ability to get in on the offense he’s helping to create with those smart touches. I don’t doubt Antropov gets selected on draft day due to his smarts, vision and pedigree, what he does beyond that will completely depend on his ability to clean up his consistency post draft.