Anton Silayev is the biggest wild card in the 2024 NHL Draft

What if you could have one of the tallest, most agile defenders of all time?

This is the major temptation of the 2024 draft class.

We know that all NHL organizations favor these types of players. It’s understandable, because year after year, no matter the era of hockey, they always seem to be centerpieces of Stanley Cup winning teams.

Just like other hockey giants before him, Anton Silayev of Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in the KHL could become a two-way force and – in a few years – play 26 minutes in the playoffs en route to the sport’s ultimate prize.

Many scouts, including some on our staff, share that view, pushing the 6-foot-7 defenseman into the top 10 – in some cases even the top five or top three – on their individual draft boards.

But there’s another scenario that isn’t quite as bright, where the players recruited around him reach star level, and he instead sinks into a specialist role low down the squad.

The Russian defenseman appears to be built to dominate the NHL, but his projection carries a similar amount of risk to players more commonly ranked in the 20s on draft boards. Like those other prospects, his potential will be largely determined by his development.