It will be interesting to track the future of the PHF. I think growth of women's sport is great, but is it feasible? I'm not sure. The top end girls are getting paid around $75k next year. Is that a number that would keep a player like Nela from going back home when its all said and done? I'm not sure about that either.
F - Nela Lopusanova - Vlci Zilina (2026 NHL Draft)
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Gigantor The Goalie
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The cap got raised to 1.5M for next year and there's going to be a fair amount of players making +100K. The Boston Pride are going to spend, spend, spend. Same with Connecticut likely.
The math doesnt really check out. There are anywhere from 21-26 players per team. Out of that $1.5m 75% gets allocated to salary. There might be a couple that make 100k but cant imagine its many.
Gigantor The Goalie
Speak for the Goalies
"Fair amount" was probably over extending it depending on what your definition of fair is. Either way the top players in the PHF will be making +100K. Schroeder/Fratkin/Gabel on Boston will be asking for above that. Players coming out of the NCAA will be asking for +100K like Chloe Aurard. It's 2-3 per a team now at most but it'll hopefully keep growing & Alina Muller isn't going back to Switzerland or Sweden. Lot's of unknowns especially with the PWHPA having their own league and what that will look like. If Nela wants to play against the best she'll get the opportunity.
austin63867
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Nominated for IIHF Female Player of the Year
vlady
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quite an achievement. She also won the Piotr Nurowski Best European Young Athlete prize
Slovakia’s Lopušanová wins Piotr Nurowski Best European Young Athlete prize
Slovakian ice hockey player Nela Lopušanová has won the eighth winter edition Piotr Nurowski Best European Young Athlete prize.
www.insidethegames.biz
Yeah, first time I heard about that prize as well, but it's a multi sport award, so it counts.
Antiillafire
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austin63867
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Damn, what a goal! Great power move to get around the defender, and insane hand-eye on the finish.
Is she really that good (probably) or is it that other players just aren't that good (probably also true).
Hopefully she continues to excel and it attracts even more interest for the sport although I wonder how successful the pro leagues will be as the interest for woman's hockey might not match the money some are predicting here.
The offensive/defensive zones look normal, but yeah, the neutral zone is tiny, very weird.
BondraTime
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Bit of both, but she’s pretty incredible. e.g. this past season, as a 14 year old, she put up 56 points (24 goals) in 19 games in Slovakia’s top male U16 league: Nela Lopusanova at eliteprospects.com
Slafkovsky played in this league one year younger, at 13, and put up 54 points (30 goals) in 24 games: Juraj Slafkovský at eliteprospects.com
So 14 year old Nela slightly outproduced 13 year old Slaf in the same league, which is pretty amazing, considering Slaf went on to become a 1st overall pick in the NHL.
Of course, throughout the teens is where male testosterone really starts to kick in, guys get bigger/stronger/faster, it’ll get increasingly hard for her to keep up with top male prospects. But I do think she has the skillset of a legit NHL prospect at the same age. While her playing in the NHL is a major long shot, I think she has a pretty realistic chance to play in a pro men’s league a few tiers down, could see her in Liiga or something like that in her 20s. Especially if she keeps growing - she’s currently 5’7”, and she might be done (women hit their growth spurts earlier than men), but maybe not. If she hits 5’9” or so, and keeps training hard in the gym, she’ll still be a small player in a men’s league, but could reach the size of some of the smaller men.
The most success a woman has seen in men’s pro hockey so far is Hayley Wickenheiser, who put up 12 points in 23 games in Suomi-sarja, Finland’s tier 3 pro men’s league. I think Nela has a chance to exceed that by a good margin, she’s got a similar build and power elements to her game that Wickenheiser had, but she’s IMO much more skilled than same age Wickenheiser.
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I sure hope that she keeps progressing at a high rate and although I'm not familiar with the Slovakia u16 league it seems like quite a few of the top 15 year olds actually play in the U18 and U20 leagues.
for instance there are 241 players 15 and under in the u18 league.
Elite Prospects - Slovakia U18 Stats 2022-2023
2022-2023 regular season player stats for Slovakia U18, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.
www.eliteprospects.com
There are also 18 players under 16 who played in the U20 league but only 5 that played more than 1-6 games.
Elite Prospects - Slovakia U20 Stats 2022-2023
2022-2023 regular season player stats for Slovakia U20, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.
www.eliteprospects.com
I also agree as they get older in their teens the boys really increase their physical advantage and that advantage simply can't be under stated.
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Yeah totally, though from a purely physical/injury risk, a 14 year old girl playing a full contact sport against ~17 year old boys in the U18 league would obviously not be a good idea. But her production at the U16 level, as a 14 year old, is very impressive.I sure hope that she keeps progressing at a high rate and although I'm not familiar with the Slovakia u16 league it seems like quite a few of the top 15 year olds actually play in the U18 and U20 leagues.
for instance there are 241 palers 15 and under in the u18 league.
Elite Prospects - Slovakia U18 Stats 2022-2023
2022-2023 regular season player stats for Slovakia U18, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.
There are also 18 players under 16 who played in the U20 league but only 5 that played more than 1-6 games.
Elite Prospects - Slovakia U20 Stats 2022-2023
2022-2023 regular season player stats for Slovakia U20, including top goal scorers, most games played, PPG leaders and more.
I also agree as they get older in their teens the boys really increase their physical advantage and that advantage simply can't be under stated.
I do think skill wise, this past year she was on a similar level to plenty of legit 14 year old male prospects, who have actual chances to make the NHL. Or at the very least, on par with top 13 year olds. Her skating, hands, elusiveness, quite high end. But in terms of physicality/strength, she’s obviously behind same age male top prospects, and will get more so vs. same age guys over time.
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austin63867
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It's definitely possible, but she's still quite young. MPP is one of the few female players I have seen who are able to actually dominate the game, and Lopusanova has that talent, but still has ways to go, but it's not crazy to think it could happen.
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FourQuarters
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BondraTime
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Twenty-nine 15 year olds have played at the Women's Championships total, from 1990-2015. None have since then.
Ninety-seven 16 year year olds have played at the World Championships total, a couple every year for the most part. You need to be 16 the year of the tournament with a medical waiver to play now, she will be there next year
She will be there next year, and will likely be the best 16 year old to ever play in the tournament. The level of play is obviously much lower and younger players are able to keep up with the older ones, compared to the mens side. The puberty and growth difference is negligible even compared to 15/16 year old boys
Ninety-seven 16 year year olds have played at the World Championships total, a couple every year for the most part. You need to be 16 the year of the tournament with a medical waiver to play now, she will be there next year
She will be there next year, and will likely be the best 16 year old to ever play in the tournament. The level of play is obviously much lower and younger players are able to keep up with the older ones, compared to the mens side. The puberty and growth difference is negligible even compared to 15/16 year old boys
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vlady
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she is not eligible, there is a minimum age requirement.
otherwise I am sure she would have been there and Slovakia would have scored more than 0 goals in the first 2 games.
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