Russian winger is top pick in draft Yashin traded to Islanders

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SUNRISE, Fla. – Ilya Kovalchuk’s talent overshadowed any concern for his temperament.

The Atlanta Thrashers made Kovalchuk the first Russian ever chosen No. 1 in the NHL entry draft Saturday. And general manager Don Waddell wasted little time setting high expectations for the strong and speedy forward.

“We all feel that he’s going to be a superstar in this league and he will get 100 points for a lot of years,” Waddell said, downplaying reports that Kovalchuk sometimes plays selfishly.

Kovalchuk is Atlanta’s second No. 1 pick in three years. With the top pick in 1999, the Thrashers chose Czech forward Patrik Stefan. They had the second pick last year and took Canadian forward Dany Heatley.

“I understand it’s a young team, but I will do the best I can to make this team a lot better, a lot stronger and I want to do that,” Kovalchuk said through an interpreter.

Several other teams envision bright futures, too, after the first day of the two-day draft.

University of Maine recruit Paul Lynch Jr. was selected in the fifth round (138th overall) by Tampa Bay.

Lynch, a 6-foot-4, 205-pound defenseman from Peabody, Mass. plays for the Valley Junior Warriors (Mass.) in the Eastern Junior Hockey League. He is due to join the Black Bears this fall.

The Ottawa Senators traded disgruntled center Alexei Yashin to the New York Islanders for the second pick, defenseman Zdeno Chara and forward Bill Muckalt. The Senators then selected Canadian center Jason Spezza, the top rated North American player.

“I’ll just go out and play hard and try to have fun,” Spezza said. “Getting a chance to play in Canada is going to be unbelievable. I grew up on the home turf. It’ll be pretty awesome.”

The Calgary Flames made two big trades. They got center Rob Niedermayer and a second-round pick from Florida in exchange for forward Valeri Bure and winger Jason Wiemer. Then they added goalie Roman Turek from St. Louis for goalie Fred Brathwaite, young winger Daniel Tkaczuk, prospect Sergei Varlamov and a ninth-round pick.

“It’s a time for change,” Flames general manager Craig Button said.

There could be more wheeling and dealing, as veteran stars Jaromir Jagr, Eric Lindros and Michael Peca remain the center of several trade rumors.

The Thrashers are trying to build a contender through the draft as opposed to trades and expensive free agents. They think Kovalchuk is the key.

His draft stock started rising when the 6-foot-2, 207-pound scorer had 11 goals and four assists in six games during the World under-18 Championship in Finland this spring. His skills have been compared to Florida’s Pavel Bure and his toughness likened to San Jose’s Owen Nolan.

He expects to make an immediate impact in Atlanta.

“There are a lot of great players who want to be on the roster,” he said. “But I will do whatever I can to be there. I really want it.”

Kovalchuk was one of three 18-year-old Russians selected in the top five picks.

With the third pick, Tampa Bay took physical Russian center Alexander Svitov. Florida selected Canadian center Stephen Weiss fourth, and Anaheim then got Russian winger Stanislav Chistov at No. 5.

Svitov had eight goals, six assists and 115 penalty minutes in 39 games with Avangard Omsk of the Russian League last season.

“In our opinion this was the most complete player in the draft,” Lightning GM Rick Dudley said. “I think if there’s anybody in the draft that can play in the NHL next year, it’s him.”

The Panthers, to the delight of the home crowd at the National Car Rental Center, drafted Weiss.

Weiss, compared to Joe Sakic and Steve Yzerman, had 40 goals and 47 assists in 62 games last season.

Chistov had five goals and one assist in seven games for Russia at the world junior hockey championships in January.

“He’ll take a year or two (to develop),” Ducks general manager Pierre Gauthier said. “But he’s got great hands and great speed.”

Two goalies went in the top 10 for the second time in as many years. The Columbus Blue Jackets selected goalie Pascal Leclaire at No. 8, and the New York Rangers picked Dan Blackburn 10th.

“I’ve known about this guy for a long time,” Rangers general manager Glen Sather said. “He’s a great goaltender. We had him rated No. 1 overall among the goaltenders.”

Ohio State became the third college to produce two first-rounders as the Buckeyes had forwards R.J. Umberger and Dave Steckle taken 16th and 30th, respectively.

The draft produced several family ties, too.

With the sixth pick, the Minnesota Wild took center Mikko Koivu, the brother of Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu.

Three picks later, the Chicago Blackhawks took center Tuomo Ruutu from Finland with the ninth pick. Ruutu is the brother of Vancouver forward Jarkko Ruutu and Ottawa prospect Mikko Ruutu.