Antiillafire
Registered User
Some thoughts after the end of the HGC group stage, with a basically meaningless game against Germany on deck in a handful of hours. For the tournament itself, the powerplay really let this team down. Although the overall strength of the squad was lesser than in previous years, there was chances to win games if they could covert.
2024 Class:
Theo Kiss: I don’t think his draft chances are very high. He kind of reminds me of Samuel Sisik, but a better skater. He’s good with the puck on his stick in the o-zone when he has time and space. The problem being that in the NHL or any top league you won’t have that time and space. I see his draft chances as about the same as guys like Cisar and Cedzo last year.
Ondrej Maruna: Already noted how I view his game in the other thread. To be honest I’m not sure he lasts in the QMJHL, I think he ends up playing half the season before he is back here playing junior and in the second league.
Tobias Pitka: Probably the best overall 2024 eligible forward. I liked his 2 way game and he works hard. Draft chances still slim. He kind of reminds me of a less gritty Paul Gaustad, but that type of NHL player is pretty much extinct.
Samuel Kupec: For the matchups he was getting, the best defenseman besides Radivojevic. But he’s not better than guys like Natny, Kmec, Eperjesi were at the same age. All 3 were not drafted.
Martin Haronik: I really liked his sole game (so far) against Finland. Moves very well for his size, and tracks the puck good. Shame he will play his draft season at a low level, hopefully he moves to J20 or a better junior league. Could be #1 goalie at U18’s in several months.
2025 Class:
Luka Radivojevic: I don’t think he was at his best in the first 2 games but then played really well against Finland. Really dynamic skater and great passer, shot accuracy needs work. It’s a shame the majority of Slovak forwards outside of a handful can’t handle his passes at all. In the d-zone he has good poisoning and stick checking but gets pushed around, strength needs to be improved.
Jan Chovan: Probably my most surprising player. He really stood out in a positive way. His numbers in the Finnish U18 league are very unimpressive, but looked better than Finnish players at HGC who put up much better numbers than him. Could be a riser.
Tomas Pobezal: I have been a big fan of Pobezal for quite some time, and by a significant margin I saw him as the best Slovak at this tournament. He hasn’t played a large role in serious matches for months, but looked good playing a large role on both the penalty kill and powerplay. He’s not a high end offensive talent but I think he could end up in the same range as Mesar for the draft, probably higher given he’s a C who plays a strong 2 way game.
2026 Class:
Tobias Tomik: Had some really good scoring chances but couldn’t bury any of them. He has a strong base to build on (passing, shooting, vision) and hopefully all this will improve as he gets stronger.
Again I think anywhere from 1-3 Slovaks could be taken in 2024. Chromiak, but who else? I look back at past drafts and a forward like Oliver Okuliar. He was a level better than each of these 2024 forwards and was not drafted. I don’t see the same kind of flashes I saw with a guy like Pekarcik who at the Hlinka despite the points showed elite skating and good potential in shooting and passing.
2024 Class:
Theo Kiss: I don’t think his draft chances are very high. He kind of reminds me of Samuel Sisik, but a better skater. He’s good with the puck on his stick in the o-zone when he has time and space. The problem being that in the NHL or any top league you won’t have that time and space. I see his draft chances as about the same as guys like Cisar and Cedzo last year.
Ondrej Maruna: Already noted how I view his game in the other thread. To be honest I’m not sure he lasts in the QMJHL, I think he ends up playing half the season before he is back here playing junior and in the second league.
Tobias Pitka: Probably the best overall 2024 eligible forward. I liked his 2 way game and he works hard. Draft chances still slim. He kind of reminds me of a less gritty Paul Gaustad, but that type of NHL player is pretty much extinct.
Samuel Kupec: For the matchups he was getting, the best defenseman besides Radivojevic. But he’s not better than guys like Natny, Kmec, Eperjesi were at the same age. All 3 were not drafted.
Martin Haronik: I really liked his sole game (so far) against Finland. Moves very well for his size, and tracks the puck good. Shame he will play his draft season at a low level, hopefully he moves to J20 or a better junior league. Could be #1 goalie at U18’s in several months.
2025 Class:
Luka Radivojevic: I don’t think he was at his best in the first 2 games but then played really well against Finland. Really dynamic skater and great passer, shot accuracy needs work. It’s a shame the majority of Slovak forwards outside of a handful can’t handle his passes at all. In the d-zone he has good poisoning and stick checking but gets pushed around, strength needs to be improved.
Jan Chovan: Probably my most surprising player. He really stood out in a positive way. His numbers in the Finnish U18 league are very unimpressive, but looked better than Finnish players at HGC who put up much better numbers than him. Could be a riser.
Tomas Pobezal: I have been a big fan of Pobezal for quite some time, and by a significant margin I saw him as the best Slovak at this tournament. He hasn’t played a large role in serious matches for months, but looked good playing a large role on both the penalty kill and powerplay. He’s not a high end offensive talent but I think he could end up in the same range as Mesar for the draft, probably higher given he’s a C who plays a strong 2 way game.
2026 Class:
Tobias Tomik: Had some really good scoring chances but couldn’t bury any of them. He has a strong base to build on (passing, shooting, vision) and hopefully all this will improve as he gets stronger.
Again I think anywhere from 1-3 Slovaks could be taken in 2024. Chromiak, but who else? I look back at past drafts and a forward like Oliver Okuliar. He was a level better than each of these 2024 forwards and was not drafted. I don’t see the same kind of flashes I saw with a guy like Pekarcik who at the Hlinka despite the points showed elite skating and good potential in shooting and passing.
