Maksim Mayorov

Young Russian stagnated in his second North American season, scoring 17-15-32 in 74 AHL games, but at 21 he's still got a little upside.

The Blue Jackets' other Russian wunderkind, Mayorov got his first taste of North American hockey last year and adjusted nicely, especially given that he was just 19 years old when the season began. Unlike Nikita Filatov, Mayorov doesn't have jaw-dropping speed, but he moves plenty fast enough for a kid with his size and he has the shot and skill to be a 40-goal scorer someday if he can develop some toughness, both physically and mentally. The Blue Jackets don't need to rush him, but if he takes a big step forward in the AHL this season he could force him way onto the big league roster.

Offensively gifted youngster will get his first taste of North American hockey in '08-'09. He'll likely a couple of years away from the NHL, depending on how quickly he learns how to play a little defense, but he's got tremendous upside.

Gifted offensive forward will have to make it out of Russia first before we can truly judge how much work he'll need to put into the rest of his game to cut it in the NHL.

Big man, big skill. Mayorov may be something of a project but when the marks are in, he could be one of the top snipers in the 2007 draft class. Right now, he's pure offense; time will tell how much he learns of his own zone. But his intriguing mix of size, skating and hands could make him a 40-goal man some day. Then again, he could also be one of those one-hit wonders who spends a lot of time in his coach's doghouse for failing to show up behind his own blue line.