Nashville Picks Up Konstantin Volkov and Adam Smith With Their Final Picks
The Predators have now completed their 2016 NHL draft selections with a goaltender and, you guessed it, a defenseman.
Konstantin Volkov is a goaltender out of SKA St. Petersburg's MHL team and, yes, he is Russian. At 6'3", Volkov is an imposing goaltender but, as an MHL player, not much else is known about him. He didn't put up eye-popping numbers for SKA's MHL team with a 0.902 save percentage and a 2.33 goals against average. To sum it all up:
And the #Preds pick up a Russian goalie Konstantin Volkov. He's got size...that's all I got. #NHLDraft
— Giants in the Crease (@CreaseGiants) June 25, 2016
In all seriousness, here is what Predators' scout Martin Bakula had to say:
#Preds scout Martin Bakula on Konstantin Volkov: "He is a big goalie that moves very well for his size. We are really happy to have him."
— Brooks Bratten (@brooksbratten) June 25, 2016
With their final pick in the draft, the Nashville Predators have taken Bowling Green defenseman Adam Smith. Smith marks the fifth defensemen taken by the Predators out of their total eight picks. After transferring from the OJHL, Smith put up one goal and two assists in 22 games. However, Smith was ranked #103 overall by ISS scouting so maybe they know something we don't know.
@BGSU_Hockey Dman Adam Smith goes to @PredsNHL at #198. Definitely a project, but has good puck moving skills & skates really well.
— DJ Powers (@DJPowersHF) June 25, 2016