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Slovak prospects - Top 10 rankings (updated July 3rd)

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I'm not familiar with every of these undrafted players, but I must say I like what I've seen from Tomas Pobezal so far; impressive speed and solid work on the forecheck despite his size.
 
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https://x.com/i/web/status/1839985556945535016

Looks like the Czechs got another Slovak. FWIW.. I don't like that this is happening. BUT.. I hope he's awesome.lol

www.eliteprospects.com

Sebastian Taliga - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Sebastian Taliga, 2009-03-16 Martin, SVK Czechia. Most recently in the U18 SM-sarja with Lukko U18. Complete player biography and stats.
www.eliteprospects.com www.eliteprospects.com

My understanding from the Czech article (which could be bias) is that he was not being invited to Slovak NT tourneys because he was playing in Finland and Slovakia will not nominate players outside of Slovakia for U16. Not saying that is 100% accurate and happy to be corrected but that was what I got out of the article.
 
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Czechboy said:
https://x.com/i/web/status/1839985556945535016

Looks like the Czechs got another Slovak. FWIW.. I don't like that this is happening. BUT.. I hope he's awesome.lol

www.eliteprospects.com

Sebastian Taliga - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Sebastian Taliga, 2009-03-16 Martin, SVK Czechia. Most recently in the U18 SM-sarja with Lukko U18. Complete player biography and stats.
www.eliteprospects.com www.eliteprospects.com

My understanding from the Czech article (which could be bias) is that he was not being invited to Slovak NT tourneys because he was playing in Finland and Slovakia will not nominate players outside of Slovakia for U16. Not saying that is 100% accurate and happy to be corrected but that was what I got out of the article.
Click to expand...
That is exactly what happened. It's really so ridiculous that any comments are not needed
 
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Now with the international break after 2 months of playing I took a look at some stats and what cough my eye is how well the 2010 born players are doing in the U18 league.

Here is a comparison if I count the last 6 years.

[TABLE=collapse]
[TR]
[TD]Name[/TD]
[TD]Born[/TD]
[TD]Position[/TD]
[TD]Games[/TD]
[TD]Goals[/TD]
[TD]Assists[/TD]
[TD]Points[/TD]
[TD]PPG[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]VÁLEK, Matúš[/TD]
[TD]2009[/TD]
[TD]LW[/TD]
[TD]26[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]40[/TD]
[TD]57[/TD]
[TD]2,19[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]JENČKO, Daniel Alexander[/TD]
[TD]2005[/TD]
[TD]LW[/TD]
[TD]33[/TD]
[TD]23[/TD]
[TD]28[/TD]
[TD]51[/TD]
[TD]1,55[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]DOMONKOS, Dominik[/TD]
[TD]2010[/TD]
[TD]LW[/TD]
[TD]18[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]1,50[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]ORBAN, Alexander [/TD]
[TD]2010[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]13[/TD]
[TD]11[/TD]
[TD]8[/TD]
[TD]19[/TD]
[TD]1,46[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]ŠUŠOLIAK, Patrik [/TD]
[TD]2010[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[TD]13[/TD]
[TD]23[/TD]
[TD]1,35[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD] ŠVAJDA, Leonard [/TD]
[TD]2010[/TD]
[TD]RW[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[TD]13[/TD]
[TD]23[/TD]
[TD]1,35[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]MELICHERÍK, Max [/TD]
[TD]2010[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]18[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[TD]14[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[TD]1,33[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]MOLNÁR, Ondrej[/TD]
[TD]2005[/TD]
[TD]RW[/TD]
[TD]51[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]33[/TD]
[TD]60[/TD]
[TD]1,18[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]MATTA, Ivan[/TD]
[TD]2008[/TD]
[TD]LW[/TD]
[TD]44[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[TD]51[/TD]
[TD]1,16[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][TABLE=collapse]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
SVRČEK, Michal[/TD]
[TD]2007[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]34[/TD]
[TD]26[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[TD]36[/TD]
[TD]1,06[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]ŠOTEK, Alex[/TD]
[TD]2004[/TD]
[TD]LW[/TD]
[TD]46[/TD]
[TD]19[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]46[/TD]
[TD]1.00[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]MEŠÁR, Filip[/TD]
[TD]2004[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]52[/TD]
[TD]23[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]50[/TD]
[TD]0,96[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]LUKÁČIK, Matúš[/TD]
[TD]2008[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]32[/TD]
[TD]15[/TD]
[TD]15[/TD]
[TD]30[/TD]
[TD]0,94[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]CHRENKO, Tomáš[/TD]
[TD]2007[/TD]
[TD]CE[/TD]
[TD]9[/TD]
[TD]2[/TD]
[TD]6[/TD]
[TD]8[/TD]
[TD]0.89[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]PISARČÍK, Samuel[/TD]
[TD]2009[/TD]
[TD]RW[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]8[/TD]
[TD]14[/TD]
[TD]22[/TD]
[TD]0,81[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]TOMÍK, Tobias[/TD]
[TD]2007[/TD]
[TD]LW[/TD]
[TD]33[/TD]
[TD]18[/TD]
[TD]7[/TD]
[TD]25[/TD]
[TD]0,76[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

It can go even higher or lower as the season continues. This doesn't really mean anything some of these players weren't even drafted but most of them were an important player on the national team.

Domonkos is almost at goal per game - Here is a video with his 4 goals against Hoba which i belive could be the record for the youngest player who scored 4 goals in the U18 match.



Obviously every player plays a different role and has a different talent on his team so comparing players just based on stats is not ideal.

And there is also an age factor I am comparing their age group but Melicherík is almost one year younger than Válek and Jenčko.
 
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hellwar9 said:
There is also the factor that when Jencko was there, or others from 2004 and 2005 age group, it was the U18 league, now it is the U17 league. The older ones play there only for an exception, so it can't be compared that well.
Click to expand...
Hm thanks for pointing that out. I looked at the average players age of each season and the 2018/19 and 2019/2020 are not that much older. Yes there is some difference but its not that big.

When Jencko (2005) was playing the youngest team in the league Zilina had 16.38 average age. Which is lower than the youngest team 2007 or 2009 faced.

Unless I am looking at this the wrong way?
 
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November 2025 Rankings.
My first in season rankings for 2025, after a number of games and international tournaments.

#1. Tomas Pobezal: In terms of this season so far, Pobezal has been the strongest so far. With limited ice time, he is producing very strongly and is also showing strong 2 way capabilities. I have also been happy he has gotten back to C. He is small but his game is by no means on the perimeter, he is not afraid to get to the dirty areas. Didn’t have the best U20 tournament but also was on a very strange line with 2 other smaller players.

#2. Luka Radivojevic: Radivojevic is a difficult player to assess, because he is producing well in USHL so far and getting lots of ice time. But what holds him back is his size and he’s not exactly explosive stride, even though he is an above average skater. He is also really good on the powerplay. I will be interested to see him with big expectations at the WJC.

#3. Jan Chovan: Chovan is the most interesting player in the 2025 draft for Slovakia in my opinion. His numbers in Finnish junior league are very average, yet for the national team he has produced quite well. At this past U20 tournament he was the best Slovak forward in difficult matchups against drafted players 2 years older than him. He is very raw but has a tool box that could make him the highest pick on this list (size, skating, shot, hands). The question, can he put it together?

#4. Andreas Straka: Straka’s biggest problem is his consistency. One game he looks like a top 3 round pick than the next game you never hear his name called. Going to the QMJHL was a smart move, he will play many games and work on his consistency.

#5. Michal Svrcek: I was surprised Scott wheeler had Svrcek as one of his honourable mentions in his first draft rankings. And I think his description of him was accurate -> “Svrcek is a good-to-great skater in straight lines and on cutbacks, twists and turns. He’s agile, plays with jump has quick hands. And while there are times when he can try to do too much he can also attack at defenders one-on-one and really shoot the puck in motion.”

#6. Alex Misiak: Misiak has a knack for finding the soft spots of the ice, where he can create offence. He also has an aggressive side to his game. He’s more offensively inclined than his brother but does not quite have the same size and physical presence. Still I believe he could be a riser and be in the top 3-4 of the Slovak prospect rankings listed right now.

#7. Roberto Leonardo Henriqez: Solid numbers in NAHL but I worry that he is only 6 foot 1 which seems small for many goalies today. Pradel has better size but I believe he doesn’t have the same level of technical skills as him.

#8. Patryk Zubek: Prototypical frame and shot/passing to be a higher pick but skating isn’t good enough. Still let’s see how the project can improve his skating, and can see changes by U18 tournament.

#9. Samuel Murin: Very much a sleeper pick. A work horse type player who punches above his weight, but I’m not sure how much more offence there is.

#10. Michal Pradel: I worry he relies too much on purely his size, and can be caught scrambling a lot. I am not sure he will be drafted without a very good U18 performance.
 
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Antiillafire said:
November 2025 Rankings.
My first in season rankings for 2025, after a number of games and international tournaments.

#1. Tomas Pobezal: In terms of this season so far, Pobezal has been the strongest so far. With limited ice time, he is producing very strongly and is also showing strong 2 way capabilities. I have also been happy he has gotten back to C. He is small but his game is by no means on the perimeter, he is not afraid to get to the dirty areas. Didn’t have the best U20 tournament but also was on a very strange line with 2 other smaller players.

#2. Luka Radivojevic: Radivojevic is a difficult player to assess, because he is producing well in USHL so far and getting lots of ice time. But what holds him back is his size and he’s not exactly explosive stride, even though he is an above average skater. He is also really good on the powerplay. I will be interested to see him with big expectations at the WJC.

#3. Jan Chovan: Chovan is the most interesting player in the 2025 draft for Slovakia in my opinion. His numbers in Finnish junior league are very average, yet for the national team he has produced quite well. At this past U20 tournament he was the best Slovak forward in difficult matchups against drafted players 2 years older than him. He is very raw but has a tool box that could make him the highest pick on this list (size, skating, shot, hands). The question, can he put it together?

#4. Andreas Straka: Straka’s biggest problem is his consistency. One game he looks like a top 3 round pick than the next game you never hear his name called. Going to the QMJHL was a smart move, he will play many games and work on his consistency.

#5. Michal Svrcek: I was surprised Scott wheeler had Svrcek as one of his honourable mentions in his first draft rankings. And I think his description of him was accurate -> “Svrcek is a good-to-great skater in straight lines and on cutbacks, twists and turns. He’s agile, plays with jump has quick hands. And while there are times when he can try to do too much he can also attack at defenders one-on-one and really shoot the puck in motion.”

#6. Alex Misiak: Misiak has a knack for finding the soft spots of the ice, where he can create offence. He also has an aggressive side to his game. He’s more offensively inclined than his brother but does not quite have the same size and physical presence. Still I believe he could be a riser and be in the top 3-4 of the Slovak prospect rankings listed right now.

#7. Roberto Leonardo Henriqez: Solid numbers in NAHL but I worry that he is only 6 foot 1 which seems small for many goalies today. Pradel has better size but I believe he doesn’t have the same level of technical skills as him.

#8. Patryk Zubek: Prototypical frame and shot/passing to be a higher pick but skating isn’t good enough. Still let’s see how the project can improve his skating, and can see changes by U18 tournament.

#9. Samuel Murin: Very much a sleeper pick. A work horse type player who punches above his weight, but I’m not sure how much more offence there is.

#10. Michal Pradel: I worry he relies too much on purely his size, and can be caught scrambling a lot. I am not sure he will be drafted without a very good U18 performance.
Click to expand...

I would put Misiak ahead of Svrcek and Straka because of his potential, but otherwise I agree. I think we could see 4-5 players in the draft. Radivojevic somewhere in the late 2nd round, Pobezal and riser Misiak anywhere from the 2nd to 5th round, and Chovan somewhere in the second half of the draft. The dark horse for me is Richard Baran, who can go in the last rounds and it won't be a surprise, the guy is maturing later, but he has really interesting potential. As far as goalies are concerned, I don't dare to guess today. Svrcek with his physical parameters, one way game and selfish non-team play is do not draft material for me. Zubek with his skating looks like a future Slovak league player, his legs are pulling him down and I'm not sure if he can do something with that. Straka has lower offensive potential, so he doesn't have the numbers that were probably expected of him, but his two-way game and energy is what can make him an interesting player, so we'll see how his season goes. And I agree with Samuel Murin. I really like that player, Adam Sykora type player, but I don't know if it will be enough for the draft.
 
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Yesterday HK Nitra team played 5 juniors against HK Michalovce and they stole the show.

Pobezal 2 goals
Bercik 1 goal
Nemec 1 Assist
Lisy 1 assist
Chrenko (Bercik + Nemec) formation was circling the puck nonstop in the offenzive zone having multiple scoring chances.
 
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Post WJC and recent national team games, I am a bit more concerned about this draft class than i previously thought I would be. It looks to be close to the 2005 crop (minus Dvorsky).
 
Pazucha said:
Derek Petrovic had a 4 assist game today in the U20 league he now has 6 pts in 6 games.

He is late 2008 born and already 184 cm tall he could be an interesting prospect.

Adam Nemec with another hat-trick today.
Click to expand...

Update: He moved from Slovak U20 where he was ppg to a swedish U18 and has 2 points in 21 games. o_O

I know the league is much better but these are crazy bad numbers.

Looks like it wasnt a great move. He probably plays bottom 6 role with few minutes where in Slovakia he could have been playing top 6 minutes.
 
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Pazucha said:
Update: He moved from Slovak U20 where he was ppg to a swedish U18 and has 2 points in 21 games. o_O

I know the league is much better but these are crazy bad numbers.

Looks like it wasnt a great move. He probably plays bottom 6 role with few minutes where in Slovakia he could have been playing top 6 minutes.
Click to expand...
Petrovič is just a pr product of his agent and dad. Like many other Slovak “prospects” who ends up working 9-5 or playing semi pro in 1.shl for 400€ euro per month.
 
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It is sad that the Slovak hockey federation is so corrupt. There is no good reason to let all those canadians and americans play here. They are just taking space away from the Slovaks. There should be a rule that no more than one non-EU player per team is allowed
 
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How many Slovaks looking to go this year? First rounders?

Czechs is answer is probably 8 to 10 and Mrtka as a first rounder. I thought it would've been better a few years ago but Czechs can't seem to cross the finish line as often as I'd like (Pekar, Petr, Galvas, Zahesky all come to mind)
 
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Czechboy said:
How many Slovaks looking to go this year? First rounders?

Czechs is answer is probably 8 to 10 and Mrtka as a first rounder. I thought it would've been better a few years ago but Czechs can't seem to cross the finish line as often as I'd like (Pekar, Petr, Galvas, Zahesky all come to mind)
Click to expand...

czech said:
Radivojevic, Svrcek, Pobezal and Straka for sure. Who else? Chovan?
Click to expand...
90% - Radivojevic, Pobezal, Chovan
70% - Straka, Svrcek
40% - Misiak,
25% - Henriquez, Pradel
5% - Lisy, Capos, Zubek, Tomka, Murin depends on the rest of the season and their U18 WC performance but I see it closer to 0% chance.

A lot of smaller players so its really hard to predict the rounds.
 
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Martinez89 said:
After some time I´m finally ready for an update of my ranking of the most promising Slovak talents in upcoming years. Like a one year ago I was waiting for the all summer tournaments to be finished. Actually this is pretty exciting time because you can detect many new talents and improved players. And I saw a lot lot hockey so you can find a some new names in my list, and maybe some surprising ones. My list includes prospects eligible for 2025 draft until after 2010 birthyear. I´m not confident to judge and rank younger players yet - so the most promising 2011 players (Tomastik, Hornak) sorry, maybe the next time.

Top 15 ranking

Top tier (player no.1)

1. Max MELICHERIK (2029) - I mentioned him 2 years ago on this forum as a first person that he could be "The Next Slovak one". And after 2 years nothing changed. He had excellent second half of the season and is a real gem of Slovak hockey. Big, strong 1C who has everything - shot, skating, excellent puck protection, stickhandling.

Second tier (players 2-5)

2. Oliver OZOGANY (2027) - he´s rising in my ranking all the time and now here we go. It´s a bit difficult to rank these players from US leagues but Ozogany is a good one for sure. Last summer I saw him play a lot of times in person and I was very impressed. And he confirmed his position during the season in America where he had a great numbers.

3. Matus VALEK (2027) - he missed the significant part of the season due to injury and I was curious how he´ll look. Seems like he´s back on the track pretty quickly. In the 4 nations U16 tournament in Fussen which ended today he was the best goalscorer and most productive player and looked good. Also I see a lot of room for improvement - once when he´ll get stronger he could become a hell of a player.

4. Timothy KAZDA (2027) - the youngest player from Hlinka Gretzky tournament is offensively completely legit. Sniper with elite vision and that sounds pretty good. But he still needs to work on his skating and defensive abilities.

5. Luka RADIVOJEVIC (2025) - it wasn´t the easiest decision to place him at number 5, he could be easily no.2 of this list. The best skater from this ranking. His offense is elite and his competitiveness more so. But still his transition to the pro-hockey as a undersized D is a bit questionable at this moment.

Third tier (players 6-15)

6. Tobias TOMIK (2026) - he´s a player whom scouts will like. Good skater and plays 200-ft game. Tools are there but he's still just kind of putting it together.

7. Adam GOLJER (2026) - the only 2008 defender at the Hlinka Gretzky and he finished the tournament as our 1D with 3 points in 4 games. Despite this fact his offense isn´t elite and skating is just average. He plays mature game for his age, has a good size, hockey IQ... could be still on the rise.

8. Adam NEMEC (2026) - I like he has skill and also grit in his game, he´s constantly winning puck battles. Unfortunately he´s lacking speed and that´s maybe the main reason why he looks just a good complementary winger so far.

9. Dominik Martin BICKOS (2028) - he just turned 14 a few months ago but already looks like a complete player now. You can´t find many weaknesses in his game, yes just maybe his skating is average. His best asset should be his perfect shot.

10. Jan CHOVAN (2025) - he´s also a pretty complete player with good size. Not a best skater besides that above average at everything. Pretty safe draft pick in rounds 2-5 for this upcoming draft.

11. Tomas CHRENKO (2026) - in many aspects of the game he looks like a future star. Great stickhandler, hockey IQ, vision, creativity - it´s all there. With the puck on his stick is often like a wizard but we can find also a many weak spots in his game. He needs to get stronger, better defensively and is a bit undersized.

12. Tomas POBEZAL (2025) - I think his size will hold him back, his body isn´t suited for the NHL well. Also isn´t the best playmaker. But he´ll still become a good pro-player thanks to his good shot, competitiveness or skating.

13. Alexander ORBAN (2028) - very interesting player with perfect tools. His stickhandling is excellent, he´s a master of toe-drag and that´s why he´s really fun to watch. Besides that has a good size, good shot, strength, skating - so many tools in his equipment! So far he´s very very inconsistent but it´s worthy to keep eye on him.

14. Michal PLANCAR (2026) - typical powerfoward and wrecking ball on the ice. He could become the ideal bottom liner one day, he´s strong like a bull and has a great motor. But I can´t see him to be a main offensive weapon at the next level - with the puck on his stick he isn´t a good decision maker and his stickhandling and skating are also mediocre.

15. Alexander LICHNOVSKY (2027) - another player who is full of potential. Combination of his big frame and excellent skating is too good to pass him from this list. He´s also a very creative player who wants puck on his stick and make some plays. But he should improve his stickhandling and decision making. If he succeeds at that then he can become the Slovak version of Radim Mrtka.

HM:
2025 - Michal Capos, Matus Lisy, Michal Pradel, Andreas Straka, Michal Svrcek
2026 - Roderik Cernak, Michal Marsalek
2027 - Jakub Husar, Juraj Rausa
2028 - Dominik Stefan Domonkos, Christopher Tayler Podkonicky
Click to expand...
Would you move Domonkos up this ranking after this season progress so far? I am surprised he is pretty smooth skater but he puck watches a bit I find.
 
My updated top 10 for the 2025 nhl draft. Purely based on my own viewings of the player and not how they could or will be drafted.

1. Luka Radivojevic
2. Michal Svrcek
3. Tomas Pobezal
4. Alex Misiak
5. Matus Lisy
6. Jan chovan
7. Leo Henriquez
8. Andreas Straka
9. Ivan Bercik
10. Michal Pradel

HM’s: Zubek, Murin, Dubravik
 
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Antiillafire said:
My updated top 10 for the 2025 nhl draft. Purely based on my own viewings of the player and not how they could or will be drafted.

1. Luka Radivojevic
2. Michal Svrcek
3. Tomas Pobezal
4. Alex Misiak
5. Matus Lisy
6. Jan chovan
7. Leo Henriquez
8. Andreas Straka
9. Ivan Bercik
10. Michal Pradel

HM’s: Zubek, Murin, Dubravik
Click to expand...

I see 4, max 5 players:

Radivojevic, Svrcek, Pobezal, Straka and maybe on of goalies.
 
alko said:
I see 4, max 5 players:

Radivojevic, Svrcek, Pobezal, Straka and maybe on of goalies.
Click to expand...
I think Radivojevic could be the Slovak Tomas Galvas, with fans and "public scouts" saying "HOW DID THIS GUY GO UNDRAFTED" while NHL teams just see a small D who can't skate. Svrcek could be in a somewhat similar boat as he, too, is a smaller guy without a truly high-end skill/sense combo. But I definitely like him as a bottom-six energy project at least.

Pobezal, Misiak, Straka are the players I'm probably most confident about. But I will say I probably don't watch these players as much as you guys.
 
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