Insider praises this Oilers player for quality work ethic during practice
Bob Stauffer recently posted on X (formally known as twitter), praising Vasily Podkolzin for his admirable work ethic during practice.
The veteran hockey insider reports that Vasily Podkolzin has been putting a ton of extra effort during practice. According to Bob Stauffer, he's usually the first one on the ice, and the last one to leave. After practices, Podkolzin has been spotted with assistant coaches, refining subtle aspects of his game. At just 23 years of age, this is exactly the kind of work ethic that rubs off on teammates and drives the Oilers to be better.
Vasily Podkolzin was acquired by the Edmonton Oilers during the NHL offseason for next to nothing. The Vancouver Canucks traded Vasily Podkolzin to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a fourth-round pick in the 2025 draft - an absolute steal to say the least. The young Russian forward has been a great asset to the team so far, and this statement is further emphasized by his impressive showcase against the Nashville Predators last Thursday.
On Viktor Arvidsson's first goal of the 2024-25 campaign, Vasily Podkolzin made an excellent play on the back-check, stripping the puck from the Predators player, setting up an excellent play to help notch the first goal of the evening. On top of that, Podkolzin is proving to the NHL that he's someone you don't want to mess with - knocking out defenceman Jeremy Lauzon in a spirited 80's style fight.
In addition to his exemplary work ethic at practice, Podkolzin has been commended for his impressive english speaking abilities. Russian players are often criticized for their broken english, but the Oilers young stud is described as highly intelligent and extremely fluent in the english tongue. This further demonstrates just how dedicated Podkolzin is to the game of hockey, and his overall desire to make a career for himself here in North America.
Although Podkolzin has well documented cases of past confidence issues, Oilers enthusiasts are watching a young star flourish right before their own eyes. I think it's safe to say that if Podkolzin manages to keep up this level of play, he's earned up himself a cemented role in the Oilers top 6 moving forward.
