Vladimir Grudinin is a smooth-skating offensive defenseman who excels at playing a puck-rushing style of play. The standout aspect of his game is his high-end edge work. He’s very smooth on his edges, allowing him to explode out of his crossovers and carry the puck through the neutral zone with speed. He’s an advanced puck-carrier who excels as transitioning the puck, showcasing the mobility and vision with the puck on his stick required to consistently gain zone exits and entries with control. His mobility also allows him to control his gaps well on the defensive side of the puck, able to stay with quicker opponents and limit chances against while defending the rush. He also shows very good offensive instincts, particularly as a puck distributor while controlling the puck high in the offensive zone. He displays strong vision, able to find teammates with efficiently placed passes and can make crisp cross-seam passes while quarterbacking the power play. His mobility allows him to walk the offensive blue line to open up passing and shooting lanes, and he also picks his spots well to activate. Where he will need to show improvement in order to make it as a pro defenseman is in his in-zone defensive play. He is generally sound with his gap control and stick positioning, but his body positioning and physical engagement during extended periods of defensive zone time leave something to be desired. He is an undersized defenseman, and in turn is often prone to losing net-front battles. He’s also guilty of puck-watching. He will need to add strength and improve his defensive play to make it at the pro level, but Grudinin’s package of mobility and offensive awareness leave plenty of optimism in his game.

– FCHockey’s 2022 NHL Draft Guide