• PROSPECT-UPDATE ARCHIVE
The only leagues that play hockey on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are in Russia. Why is that? Because the Russian Orthodox Christmas isn't until Jan. 7, so Dec. 24 and 25 are like any other days in that nation. That's probably a good thing, since it keeps the game going throughout the month of December.
Because there were games in Russia, the top-performances list for draft prospects continues here unabated. Only one player qualified for the list, but that's OK with the World Juniors about to begin.
So enjoy this one-play list with visions of World Junior hockey dancing in your head:
ALEXANDER ROMANOV -- Romanov won't be playing for Russia in the World Juniors this year, but he looks like he'll be there in 2019 and/or 2020. Coming off his outstanding performance at the World Junior A Challenge, the Moscow Red Army defenseman continued his scoring in the MHL with a goal and assist in his team's 4-3 loss to St. Petersburg SKA. Romanov scored at 12:16 of the second period to cut the lead to 2-1, and he later had the primary assist on a goal that closed the scoring at 19:43 of the third. Romanov wasn't getting much attention before this season, but he now has six goals and 13 points in 27 MHL games. (Note: Second appearance on this list in 2017-18)