NHL Draft Profile- Zeev Buium

The 2024 NHL Draft will be here before you know it, and Draft 412 will preview some of the prospects who will be probable first round picks. Draft 412 will review the strengths and weaknesses of each prospect, and where they should land in the NHL Draft.

Name- Zeev Buium

Pos- Defenseman

Team- University of Denver

HT/WT- 6’2” 180 lbs

Born- 12/7/2005

Home – San Diego, CA

Buium played two seasons in the U.S. National Team Development program after spending two years of high school at Shattuck-St. Mary’s Prep in Faribault, Minnesota.

He led the team defensemen with 40 points in 63 games for the U.S. NTDP Under-18 Team in 2022-2023 and helped Team USA win the gold medal at the 2023 IIHF U18 World Championship, scoring 1 goal and 5 assists in the 7 games. He committed to play hockey at the University of Denver. 

In his first season at Denver, Zeev Buium was a dominating offensive force. In 42 games he had 11 goals and 39 assists. 

He is a mobile defenseman who moves well and is constantly moving and looking for lanes to drive though. While puck handling he is efficient on the forehand or backhand and does a good job of always keeping his head up. His vision helps him to make plays in traffic and he uses the boards well to make outlet passes. On the power play, he is always moving and creating open space for himself at the point. He has a good, hard one-timer and rarely passes up the opportunity to let a slapshot go. 

In the defensive end, Buium uses his stick effectively when defending the rush, and he uses his skatework to guide the attacker in the direction he wants them to go. His skating and change of direction ability help him to move laterally and he always seems to have his stick in the passing lane. He transitions quickly from defenseman to a puck mover and makes smart outlet passes.

He has gone from 5’10” 165 lbs to 6’2” 185 lbs over the past couple of seasons. Physicality has never been a big part of his game and although he uses his stick well, he will need to add some strength and abrasiveness to be able to compete against the boards in the NHL. In battles in front he tends to try and tie up the sticks instead of taking the body, and the stronger forwards in the NHL will take advantage of this style of play. 

Draft Nation thinks a good comparison to Zeev Buium is Calvin de Haan. de Haan was the 12th overall pick in 2009 and was known as an offensive type of defenseman who could play big minutes. He was never able to get stronger in the NHL and injuries held de Haan back from putting up elite numbers. Buium will need to get stronger and work on his defensive end battles.

Final Analysis

Zeev Buium’s start this season for the University of Denver has him flying up the draft boards. He plays a solid two-way game but needs to get stronger and learn to play with his added height and weight. Buium has the making of a solid top 4 defensemen who can play big minutes for an NHL team. 

Draft 412 Draft Prediction - Round 1