2024 CHL Import Draft

[dj Mahoney]

No names but I expect a lot of Russians and Belarussians to be drafted...

I also expect every guy on the Czech U18 team that isn't drafted to be drafted. Czechs love this draft.lol

Benak, Mrtka, Galvas, Sikora all come to mind if they haven't been taken previously.

Do you have any idea where Jiri Felcman is playing this year ? If you were going to give a percentage that he plays in the NHL what would it be ? Dik

 

[Hinterland]

Do you have any idea where Jiri Felcman is playing this year ? If you were going to give a percentage that he plays in the NHL what would it be ? Dik

Has nothing to do with the CHL draft but Felcman is under contract in Langnau and he's gonna play for them. Most certainly on the NL team because he now has his Swiss playing license, no longer counts as an import player.

 

[pgfan66]

Statistically, every 4th Swiss kid is a native French speaker. In hockey probably more. In this year's CHL draft, Steiner and Schenk are German speakers, Bosson and Sansonnens are French speakers, Pedrotti Italian. However, French is mandatory in school pretty early. Many Swiss prospects are pretty fluent in French even if they're native German or Italian speakers.

The only problem is that the Québec "French" has very little in common with European French. I understand exactly shit myself.

And Swiss French has some pretty big differences to French French too. But still, there’ve been quite a few French-speaking Swiss players in the Q in the past and the language is 100% a factor for many of them.

 

[Hinterland]

And Swiss French has some pretty big differences to French French too. But still, there’ve been quite a few French-speaking Swiss players in the Q in the past and the language is 100% a factor for many of them.

I mean Belgian (Wallonian) French is different as well and even inside France there isn't the one French. There are always nuances in regional dialects. In Belgium and Switzerland they have the simplified numbers system I like quite a bit. Makes no sense to say (4×20)+10 if you can just say 90. But again, inside Europe these are all nuances...as long as we're not talking about slang (French slang can be really crazy) I can understand and talk to them all. Québec "French" is pretty wild though. I don't think it's possible for any European French speaker to understand much when the Québec people talk. Maybe you can adjust to it and pick it up over time but that Québec French is definitely something else. Québec people are able to understand Europeans though and Europeans can obviously pick up written language in Québec as well.

So yeah. I agree language is a factor.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

How many of the guys reporting to the CHL will be names to watch for the 2025 NHL Draft?

 

[pgfan66]

How many of the guys reporting to the CHL will be names to watch for the 2025 NHL Draft?

Usually just a handful. The Czech and Slovak 07s will be players to watch. The Swiss 07s might be too but, in my opinion, meh… Not a ton of eligibles besides that.

 

[Hinterland]

Usually just a handful. The Czech and Slovak 07s will be players to watch. The Swiss 07s might be too but, in my opinion, meh… Not a ton of eligibles besides that.

It depends on who's gonna report I guess. Some of the bigger names were probably hope picks. From the Swiss kids it's really only Schenk. Sansonnens is NHL drafted already, Steiner is too young and Pedrotti I simply don't think is good enough. Bosson is 06 born and would need one heck of a CHL season to be considered for the NHL draft as an overager. He has the talent but he's not trending nicely. Highly unlikely.

 

[Hockeyfrilla]

Filip Ekberg is leaving Almtuna. Coming over?

Filip Ekberg - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Filip Ekberg, 2007-04-14 Uppsala, SWE Sweden. Most recently in the undefined with Ottawa 67's. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

 

[dyldude]

How many of the guys reporting to the CHL will be names to watch for the 2025 NHL Draft?

Daniil Skvortsov and Ruslan Karimov out of Russia.

 

[ChicagoBullsFan]

Next Finnish players from 2024 CHL import draft have committed to CHL teams.
Niilo-Pekka Muhonen ( Medicine Hat Tigers )
Kasper Pikkarainen ( loaned from TPS to Red Deer Rebels )
Emil Hemming ( Barrie Colts )
Jesse Nurmi ( London Knights )
Lauri Sinivuori ( Oshawa Generals )

 

[SergeConstantin74]

Next Finnish players from 2024 CHL import draft have committed to CHL teams.
Niilo-Pekka Muhonen ( Medicine Hat Tigers )
Kasper Pikkarainen ( loaned from TPS to Red Deer Rebels )
Emil Hemming ( Barrie Colts )
Jesse Nurmi ( London Knights )

Mikko Leppä and Roope Rajala will report to Victoriaville

Tigres : les Finlandais devraient arriver le 12 août dans la région - La Nouvelle Union et L’Avenir de l’Érable

Les deux joueurs finlandais réclamés par les Tigres de Victoriaville à la dernière séance de sélection européenne de la Ligue canadienne de hockey, le défenseur Mikko Leppä et l'attaquant Roope Rajala, devraient arriver dans la région le lundi 12 août.

www.lanouvelle.net

 

[landy92mack29]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1818410483789287603

 

[Hockeyfrilla]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1818351477112684852

 

[Czechboy]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1819752301701042284

Just a summary of who has gone to CHL (checkmark), who hasn't (x) and who hasn't decided yet (?)

Looks like more than half to me.

 

[Hinterland]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1819449861575717316

 

[Speyer]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1819449861575717316

Its a good sign to read that the Sea Dogs GM has actually seen him play live last season. Still to many players are drafted into the CHL after only having been scouted on Elite Prospects, which shouldnt be the base of a move to NA.

 

[Hinterland]

Its a good sign to read that the Sea Dogs GM has actually seen him play live last season. Still to many players are drafted into the CHL after only having been scouted on Elite Prospects, which shouldnt be the base of a move to NA.

It depends on the approach and the budget of the team I guess. Scouting and finding quality imports isn't cheap. Certain teams actually travel all the way to Europe to not only scout players but also talk to players and convince them to play for them.

I know for a fact that the Ottawa 67's invested a lot of time to scout and get Kimi Körbler and I'm sure they did the same to land Ekberg this year. Their Associate GM, Jan Egert, has a lot of connections and a lot of expertise in scouting. I don't think all teams can afford this or are willing to invest that kind of money though.

 

[Speyer]

It depends on the approach and the budget of the team I guess. Scouting and finding quality imports isn't cheap. Certain teams actually travel all the way to Europe to not only scout players but also talk to players and convince them to play for them.

I know for a fact that the Ottawa 67's invested a lot of time to scout and get Kimi Körbler and I'm sure they did the same to land Ekberg this year. Their Associate GM, Jan Egert, has a lot of connections and a lot of expertise in scouting. I don't think all teams can afford this or are willing to invest that kind of money though.

No not all teams are able or willing to do it. The obvious advantage is that when you reach an agreement with the player you want to draft you can usually get him no matter how good he is and where your draft position is. The agent of the respective player just will put the word out that his client isnt going to report for any other team, and the other franchises therefore wont waste their pick on him.

But not any team is able and or willing to send their people to europe for this. Sure, if you can get someone like Ehlers, Meier or Hischier its obviously a worthwhile investment. But if you only walk away with a player like Ponzetto that doesnt pan out whatsover its a big waste of resources that could have been used otherwise. So therefore you also have teams that just roll the dice on some player that they dont really know that well. If I remember correctly Delemont was drafted third overall in his draft season by the Titan. In an interview that summer he alluded that he never talked to anybody from that organisation before and learned that he was drafted after the fact from an internet site.

 

[Hinterland]

No not all teams are able or willing to do it. The obvious advantage is that when you reach an agreement with the player you want to draft you can usually get him no matter how good he is and where your draft position is. The agent of the respective player just will put the word out that his client isnt going to report for any other team, and the other franchises therefore wont waste their pick on him.

But not any team is able and or willing to send their people to europe for this. Sure, if you can get someone like Ehlers, Meier or Hischier its obviously a worthwhile investment. But if you only walk away with a player like Ponzetto that doesnt pan out whatsover its a big waste of resources that could have been used otherwise. So therefore you also have teams that just roll the dice on some player that they dont really know that well. If I remember correctly Delemont was drafted third overall in his draft season by the Titan. In an interview that summer he alluded that he never talked to anybody from that organisation before and learned that he was drafted after the fact from an internet site.

To be fair, Ponzetto wasn't a bad pick. For years he was considered to be one of the best Swiss born 06 forward. The pick didn't work out but in my view, significantly worse players got drafted into the CHL this year out of Switzerland alone. Jordan Forget and Kimi Körbler played topline during CHL playoffs and I don't think they were expected to be much better than Ponzetto ahead of last season. I don't know what went wrong for Ponzetto during the first half of the season but I think he played hurt for the most part of 2024 so that clearly didn't help. It's normal for Europeans rookies to need adjustment time as well. Forget's teammate Jiří Klíma is a pretty good example. I'd have to look up the exact numbers but I think he scored close to 30 of his 31 points after christmas. Kinda crazy he didn't get drafted into the NHL actually.

 

[Speyer]

To be fair, Ponzetto wasn't a bad pick. For years he was considered to be one of the best Swiss born 06 forward.

I mean thats not wrong regarding his pedigree, but it doesnt say much eihter. I definitely had him below Reber, Antenen and Körbler going into the season. Yes he put up very good numbers on the u17 national team before that. But he never displayed any outstanding offensive skills during that time though. In fact he seemed to be leeching of points of the far more dynamic Reber in a lot of the games that I saw. At the end of the day it was not unreasonable to throw a pick at him when you are Halifax. But if you do that you have to accept that you are going to get a player with a ceiling comparable to Biasca. But I would agree that the pick should only considered to be "failded" in retrospect. I highly doubt though that Halifax would sign him again knowing what they know now.

The pick didn't work out but in my view, significantly worse players got drafted into the CHL this year out of Switzerland alone. Jordan Forget and Kimi Körbler played topline during CHL playoffs and I don't think they were expected to be much better than Ponzetto ahead of last season.

I dont think the other swiss draft picks (who actually reported) were significantly worse players than Ponzetto. I had Körbler pegged as a better player going into the season as he was a much better two way player with a better motor to boot. Forgets resumee was arguably a bit better as well at draft day. His international stats were more or less comparable to Ponzettos and he at least had played fairly successfully in our U20 league before. Ponzetto only played in the U17 league. The jump in level of competition from there to the CHL is huge. I also dont agree with you that Forgets season in Shawinigan has been that good, even against the backdrop that its chaotically run franchise. You make it sound like he is guaranteed to take a top line spot next season. Every fans take i read, wants him on the third or even fourth line.

I don't know what went wrong for Ponzetto during the first half of the season but I think he played hurt for the most part of 2024 so that clearly didn't help. It's normal for Europeans rookies to need adjustment time as well. Forget's teammate Jiří Klíma is a pretty good example. I'd have to look up the exact numbers but I think he scored close to 30 of his 31 points after christmas. Kinda crazy he didn't get drafted into the NHL actually.

Its true that some imports struggle adjusting to their respective league. Pius Suter had big problems in his first season in the OHL. Even Meier didnt put up great numbers as a rookie on a stacked Halifax squad. But at least those guys showed something in those years that their respective teams held onto them. I admit I havent seen that many games of Ponzetto in 2023-2024. But when I saw him, he was invisible. And all you hear from fans about the toppic is along the lines of "looks lost out there", "complete lack of hockey iq" and "is simply ont ready for the CHL"...

 

[SergeConstantin74]

Its a good sign to read that the Sea Dogs GM has actually seen him play live last season. Still to many players are drafted into the CHL after only having been scouted on Elite Prospects, which shouldnt be the base of a move to NA.

Quebec had only seen some clips of Vsevolod Komarov before drafting him in 2021. It was because of travel restrictions during COVID but it worked out well anyway.

The CHL Import Draft is often a game of agents selling their clients who want to make the move.

 

[Hinterland]

I mean thats not wrong regarding his pedigree, but it doesnt say much eihter. I definitely had him below Reber, Antenen and Körbler going into the season. Yes he put up very good numbers on the u17 national team before that. But he never displayed any outstanding offensive skills during that time though. In fact he seemed to be leeching of points of the far more dynamic Reber in a lot of the games that I saw. At the end of the day it was not unreasonable to throw a pick at him when you are Halifax. But if you do that you have to accept that you are going to get a player with a ceiling comparable to Biasca. But I would agree that the pick should only considered to be "failded" in retrospect. I highly doubt though that Halifax would sign him again knowing what they know now.


I dont think the other swiss draft picks (who actually reported) were significantly worse players than Ponzetto. I had Körbler pegged as a better player going into the season as he was a much better two way player with a better motor to boot. Forgets resumee was arguably a bit better as well at draft day. His international stats were more or less comparable to Ponzettos and he at least had played fairly successfully in our U20 league before. Ponzetto only played in the U17 league. The jump in level of competition from there to the CHL is huge. I also dont agree with you that Forgets season in Shawinigan has been that good, even against the backdrop that its chaotically run franchise. You make it sound like he is guaranteed to take a top line spot next season. Every fans take i read, wants him on the third or even fourth line.


Its true that some imports struggle adjusting to their respective league. Pius Suter had big problems in his first season in the OHL. Even Meier didnt put up great numbers as a rookie on a stacked Halifax squad. But at least those guys showed something in those years that their respective teams held onto them. I admit I havent seen that many games of Ponzetto in 2023-2024. But when I saw him, he was invisible. And all you hear from fans about the toppic is along the lines of "looks lost out there", "complete lack of hockey iq" and "is simply ont ready for the CHL"...

I never said that his season overall has been good. But he did improve significantly over the season and he did manage to hold onto the top6 spot he was handed at the trade deadline. He was a top6 forward from then on, including playoffs. He was mostly on the top line (plus special teams) and he had an impact. What a couple of internet fans want is completely irrelevant. Forget will have to justify his spot next season but you don't usually get demoted from the topline to the bottom six over the summer for no good reason. The way it usually works is that it's the rookies having to earn ice time from the more senior players.

 

[Speyer]

Quebec had only seen some clips of Vsevolod Komarov before drafting him in 2021. It was because of travel restrictions during COVID but it worked out well anyway.

I am not saying that this strategy never works out. I mainly look at the CHL from the perspective from swiss imports and in that context it was notable over the last few years that expectiations of both players and their teams werent in sync with the actual reality on the ground. And that sometimes resulted in a year of bad development for imports not good enough for the NHL but not without potential for a pro career either. So from that perspective its certainly not a bad sign when the hiring GM has actually seen the player he is getting.

The CHL Import Draft is often a game of agents selling their clients who want to make the move.

I literally said the same thing in post number 168 of this thread.

 

[Speyer]

I never said that his season overall has been good. But he did improve significantly over the season and he did manage to hold onto the top6 spot he was handed at the trade deadline. He was a top6 forward from then on, including playoffs. He was mostly on the top line (plus special teams) and he had an impact. What a couple of internet fans want is completely irrelevant. Forget will have to justify his spot next season but you don't usually get demoted from the topline to the bottom six over the summer for no good reason. The way it usually works is that it's the rookies having to earn ice time from the more senior players.

Only because you play on the top six for a stretch of a season it doesnt mean that you are considered a top six forward long term by the coach. By that logic Pius Suter would be a top six forward in the NHL. New guys will be joining the team next season. Younger guys will be a year older and move up the food chain. We will have to wait and see where Forget lands. And yes, while its irrelevant what a couple of internet fans want, those guys still have seen Forget play more often for Shawinigan than you and me combined. So those takes are still a valid indicator of how his performance has been this season and how it stacks up against what you can normally expect from a top six player in the Q.

 

[Kaizen]

Next Finnish players from 2024 CHL import draft have committed to CHL teams.
Niilo-Pekka Muhonen ( Medicine Hat Tigers )
Kasper Pikkarainen ( loaned from TPS to Red Deer Rebels )
Emil Hemming ( Barrie Colts )
Jesse Nurmi ( London Knights )
Lauri Sinivuori ( Oshawa Generals)

Has Veeti Vaisanen indicated whether he plans to play in Medicine Hat or remain in Finland?