Hockey Wilderness has decided to rank their 30 favorite prospects in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and will analyze each and every one of them. So on draft day, you'll have a good sense of who's who.

With each post, you will get to understand what type of player he is, and how he can help the Wild. You'll understand his strengths, flaws and get to understand what type of player he'll develop into.

The HW's Rank - The average rank of several of our favorite available rankings, weighted appropriately.

Summary Scout Notes - A broken down version of comments offered by each service. To read the whole explanations, click on the source site and search.

Now, introducing London Knights forward Vladislav Namestnikov:

Vladislav Namestnikov

#19 / Forward / London Knights

Height: 6-0

Weight: 166

Born: Nov. 22, 1992

Don't forget to check out the Hockey Wilderness 2011 Draft Page as well. Just click on the picture.

History And Accomplishments:

2008-09 U17 Team Russia

2009-10 U18 WJC Top 3 Player on Team

2010 CHL Import Draft - 20th Overall, 1st round (London Knights)

2011 KHL Draft - 11th Overall, 1st round (Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod)

HW's Take:

The Russian factor will never go away. Even if he is already in North America, teams will always worry. Still, Vladislav Namistnikov has some dazzling skills, as evident in the video below.

He skates very well, has good offensive instincts and doesn't mind driving to the net.

What differentiates him from being a mid-round first rounder to a second rounder is his inconsistency. His dazzling puck handling skills I mentioned doesn't seem to show up all the time. His lack of strength can also attribute to that inconsistency.

Now, if you have a last first rounder, would you take the gamble?

HW's Projection

Top six offensive winger

Summary Scouts Notes

For full explanations, click on the links:
NHL Central Scouting’s Chris Edwards (via NHL.com)

"Vlad plays a high-energy, two-way game he's very aggressive on the forecheck and backcheck and has the ability to beat defenders outside and cut back to the net. He has an excellent wrist shot that he can release with accuracy on the rush. "I find him most effective at center, but he is versatile enough to play a solid game on the wing, he's very responsible defensively and is not afraid of getting involved and battling for pucks. He'll take the body and take a hit to make a play."

OHLProspects

Namestnikov plays a solid pro two-way game ... very deceptively quick ... has some great feet, vision and flow to his game ... a very crafty player ... his playmaking ability is definitely his biggest asset ... has the stickhandling ability to slow the game down in the offensive end ... is patient enough to allow the right play to develop ... has the vision to find open teammates ... has some feistiness to him ... very inconsistent ... slightly undersized, and lacking a pure dynamic ability in his gam

The Scouting Report

Namestnikov is a smooth skater who can move up and down the ice fairly effortlessly ... a very creative player ... a very good puck mover ... great with the puck ... makes a lot of nifty little plays ... capitalizes well on any opportunity and can find holes in the defense ... makes a lot of smart decisions with the puck ... other qualities come in the form of being a very good stick checker and having great anticipation ... lacks a lot of strength

Video Evidence

Vladislav Namestnikov (via hockeysemin)

Where Does He Fit With The Wild?

He can play center and right wing.

We need a offensively skilled right wing.

Good Choice At #10?

Not at #10, no.

We have seen what inconsistency can do to a prospect (Benoit Pouliot). He may be skilled, but there are 5+ other prospects that have similar skill levels at #10 but also brings in a consistent game.

And like -NugentHopkins, his name doesn't fit!!!!

How Does He Look As A Wild?

Comment away!