Top draft prospect Ivan Ryabkin arrives in USHL with Muskegon
Ivan Ryabkin, a top prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft, has officially arrived in North America.
Ryabkin, No. 10 in FCHockey’s Winter ranking for the 2025 draft, scored twice in his debut with Muskegon of the United States Hockey League on Friday after being released from his contract with KHL club Dynamo Moscow.
Muskegon announced they had acquired Ryabkin’s rights from Omaha in October, and the Russian center made his long-awaited debut after being granted his release last week.
“I think joining the USHL gives Ryabkin a fresh start,” American-based FCHockey scout Jacob Roth said. “For whatever reason things were not working out in Russia. He wasn’t getting the playing time he wanted or a path to the KHL. He gets to leave that all behind and now play in a top-line role for a top team that’s much more accessible to NHL scouts.”
The new guy in town! Ivan Ryabkin! His first goal in the @USHL & first as a Muskegon Lumberjack 🪓🪓 pic.twitter.com/USN5Z6Khox
— Muskegon Lumberjacks (@MuskegonJacks) January 4, 2025
Muskegon announced Ryabkin’s arrival on New Year’s Eve. He debuted three days later with two goals, five shots, and a plus-2 rating in a 4-3 loss against the US National Team Development Program.
“He just got here yesterday and had to turn around with the jet lag and all the noise going on around him and he just went out there and scored a couple of goals,” Lumberjacks coach Parker Burgess said, according to the team’s website. “It was nice for him to get that first one out of the way and we are thrilled to have him.”
Ryabkin (5-foot-11, 201 pounds) had a tough start to his season in Russia.
The 17-year-old, originally selected with the No. 117 pick in the 2023 USHL Futures Draft, had 12 points (one goal, 11 assists) in 15 games with MHK Dynamo Moskva in the MHL, Russia’s junior league, and two points, both assists, in eight games Dynamo St. Petersburg in the VHL, Russia’s second division.
He was held without a point in two KHL games.
“Ryabkin struggled to find consistency in his game in the KHL,” said Jake Janso, an FCHockey scout who focuses on Russian players. “There were games where he played a solid defensive game against tough opponents but was absent in the offensive zone. He showed some flashes of what makes him such an intriguing prospect. He reads the game very well and has a lot of playmaking talent which is much more evident at the the MHL level. The skill is there, he just needs to put the pieces together.”
Ivan Ryabkin scores again! And ties up the game! 3-3 pic.twitter.com/cashF9yyVV
— Muskegon Lumberjacks (@MuskegonJacks) January 4, 2025
Ryabkin’s draft stock had seen a slight decline throughout the season, having initially been slotted No. 5 in FCHockey’s Preliminary ranking for the 2025 draft in September.
His 14 points (one goal, 13 assists) across three levels of play in Russia marked a significant drop in production over his 16-year-old season, where Ryabkin had 58 points (24 goals, 34 assists) in 44 games in the MHL last season.
A move to the USHL with Muskegon might reignite that offensive game and revitalize his draft stock.
“I was impressed with Ryabkin in my first viewing of him,” Roth said. “His positive shifts were really strong. He has the potential to be a difference-maker on every shift with his passing. Consistency will be the key for him. He is a first-round talent and the effort level needs to match and, if he can do that, I could easily see him going top-15.”
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: