Meet Matvei Gridin, the Flames’ pick at No. 28 in the NHL Draft

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The dream started a long time ago for Matvei Gridin.

It came true on Friday night, but was born half a world away and long before the Calgary Flames selected him with the No. 28 pick in the NHL Draft on Friday evening.

“My first step on the ice was when I was two years old and at three years old I started to really think about the NHL,” Gridin told Flames TV in Las Vegas.

Gridin was something of a surprise pick by the Flames and the Sportsnet panel seemed to suggest it was a bit of a reach by the organization in the immediate aftermath of Flames director of amateur scouting Tod Button calling the Russian winger’s name.

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But the Flames couldn’t be more excited by the player they got.

In their eyes, they got a forward with high-end talent and a propensity for finding moments to make a big impact in the offensive zone.

“I think size, skill, hockey sense and just his overall game,” said Flames GM Craig Conroy when he was asked about what he liked about Gridin’s game by reporters in Vegas for the draft. “When he was in Muskegon (of the USHL), he’d be playing against good teams and he could take over games himself.

“The one thing is you’ll see his shot when we move along and even at Dan Milstein’s camp, he caught your eye. If (Flames president of hockey operations) Don Maloney was here, he’d be saying the same thing. You’re watching everyone else and then you’re just drawn to him, just like in the games.”

On the most basic level, Gridin’s numbers seem to back up the Flames’ belief that he’s got elite offensive upside.

He can score goals, that much is for sure.

Playing with the Muskegon Lumberjacks, the Russian right-winger scored 38 goals and added 45 assists in 60 games last season. Nobody in the entire USHL had more than the 83 points he put up.

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Gridin is committed to play for the University of Michigan Wolverines, so he’ll have some time to develop his game and add a little bulk to his 6-foot-1, 185-lb. frame, but he’s already had time to adapt to the North American game after playing at home in his native Russia until 2022.

‘It all starts with my IQ’

And there’s an intelligence to his game that was brought up repeatedly by both Conroy and Button.

It’s the key to everything he does on the ice, in the opinion of the player himself.

“From my IQ goes passing and shooting and creativity,” Gridin told Flames TV. “It all starts with my IQ I need some improvements in my consistency without the puck, but I’ll work on it.”

It’s not just hockey intelligence that makes the Flames believe Gridin could be a difference-maker for them, though.

He’s got the skills to go along with the IQ, too.

“It was a skill, offensive draft for us,” Button told reporters in Las Vegas. “We got a lot of skill. He led the USHL in scoring at 17 years old and he’s got skill. He’s really, really smart. The right word is cunning, he looks like he’s (doing one thing) and then he pounces. He surveys and he pounces. He’s not going to wow you with energy, but then all of a sudden you look up and he’s made two quick plays and there’s a scoring chance.

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“Cerebral and skill. He lays in the weeds and he really reads the game well, but he’s explosive when he decides what he needs to do.”

So while Gridin might not wind up being your prototypical power forward or dazzle you with his ability to take off down the ice at lightning-quick speeds, the Flames love the way he reads the ice and flat-out produces in the offensive end.

“Great shot,” Conroy told reporters. “I watched him in a lot of games against the U.S. program this year and it was impressive. He was making plays through people, around people and whether he shoots or passes he can do it all. There’s a reason he led the USHL in scoring. Good size, skates well and I love his shot, too.”

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