Montreal Canadiens

Future Cup: Alexander Zharovsky Named Most Valuable Player of the Tournament
Michaël Petit
Future Cup: Alexander Zharovsky Named Most Valuable Player of the Tournament
Credit: Capture d'écran | Twitter

Earlier this week, we shared a magnificent goal by Alexander Zharovsky from the Under-20 tournament in Russia (Future Cup).

A nice little goal in the style of Pavel Datsyuk—it's always a pleasure to watch.

Anyway, that was just the first of three games in the tournament, and today was the grand final between Zharovsky's team (Russia U20) and Belarus U20.

Let's just say it was a walk in the park for Russia U20. Zharovsky's team completely dominated the tournament, and the Habs prospect was even named MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the tournament.

Zharovsky recorded two assists in the championship game.

Russia's U20 team (since there was also a Russia U18 team) won the final 6–2, their closest game of the tournament…

In their first game, they beat Russia's U-18 team 10-3, then went on to defeat Kazakhstan's U20 team 7-0.

Zharovsky, who was of course also named the tournament's top forward, tallied six points in three games at the Future Cup.

And honestly, he was bound to dominate that tournament.

It proves that he's truly a cut above his peers, and that's certainly encouraging for the Habs.

However, he still has a few areas to improve in his game, and he needs to use this season to fine-tune his skills so he'll be fully prepared when he arrives in North America.

His current contract expires on May 31, so the prospect will be able to join the Habs' organization (either in Montreal or Laval).

Given the Habs' depth on offense, they'll need to make room for the Russian prospect by possibly trading one or two forwards—especially if the Habs expect Michael Hage and Zharovsky to join the team at the end of the season.

In Brief

– Interesting.

– I can't believe it.

– A huge loss for the Flames.

– The Red Wings are reportedly willing to wait until the trade deadline to resolve the situation with restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson.

– Read more.