The Florida Panthers concluded a busy day by selecting 21-year-old Russian forward Maxim Mamin in the sixth round and prep academy defensive prospect Benjamin Finkelstein in the seventh round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.
Florida took Mamim with the 175th overall pick. The KHLer played in 48 games for CSKA Moscow last season, scoring seven points on four goals and three assists. In 19 playoff games, Mamin contributed a goal and an assist. The 6′,2″ forward can play either wing. He is under contract for the 2016-17 season, so it will probably be at least a year before he makes the move to North America.
THe Panthers took Finkelstein with the 195th pick in the draft. That selection originally belonged to the Boston Bruins. In exchange, the Bruins will get the Cats seventh-rounder in 2017.
Finkelstein is a small (5’9″ – 185 lbs), offensive defenseman who put up an eye-popping 24 goals and 46 assists in just 35 games for Kimball Union Academy. KUA is the same prep school the Panthers took center Patrick Shea from last year. Finkelstein will take the NCAA route and play college hockey at St. Lawrence University starting this fall.