Andrei Pedan

It was hard to figure out how the first round pick in last summer's KHL Draft was going to adjust to playing in North America this season.

The big bruising and powerful defenseman had shown all the tools to be successful at both ends of the ice before hitting the smaller ice surfaces.

Pedan showed his physicality and ability to play a strong defensive game throughout the season. But somehow, his offensive ability, or those that we thought he had, went MIA throughout the year. He's not particularly a strong skater, but is good enough to help him play a solid defensive game. Paden doesn't have the above average hockey sense to be an offensive force. Witness his 2 goals and 10 assists in 51 regular season games for the Guelph Storm.

Hold the presses !

Then came the OHL playoffs. And while his defensive game didn't suffer, Pedan became a force at the other end of the rink as well. In just 6 games, Pedan put up 8 assists, almost matching his regular season output.

So what does this all mean? Prior to the season you could find Pedan ranked anywhere from a late second to a seventh round pick. His regular season put some doubts as to whether he could provide the offense that was original thought. So did he lay that all to rest in the playoffs?

We can't see how one round in the playoffs has made scouts think twice, but you have to wonder if some may be intrigued by what he brings to the defensive game and that, at least for one round, showed an ability to chip in on the offense.

It is our belief that someone may just take a chance at Pedan as early as the third round.