PHOTO COURTESY OF TVNOVINY.SK
Adam Sykora skates with his player of the game award after Slovakia's 3-1 win over Italy on May 23 at the 2022 World Hockey Championships in Finland.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat Tigers added some international flair to their prospect pool Friday morning.
With the first overall pick in the 2022 CHL Import Draft, the Tigers selected Slovakian centreman Adam Sýkora.
.The 17-year-old (18 in September) had 10 goals and 17 points in 46 games last season playing for HK Nitra of the Slovak professional Extraliga league. He helped HK Nitra reach the Slovak Extraliga championship series, amassing two goals and three assists in 19 playoff appearances.
Tigers director of player personnel Bobby Fox had a simple answer for why they wanted Sýkora with the first pick.
“He plays like a Tiger,” Fox said. “He’s a spark plug, he’s just relentless on the ice. He’s skilled, he’s going to provide offence for us. He’s just a very well rounded player.”
The 5-foot-10, 172-pound winger concluded his 2021-22 campaign by representing Slovakia at the 2022 IIHF World Championship in Finland, recording two goals and one assist in six outings.
Fox said his favourite part of Sýkora’s game is the relentlessness.
“He’s fun to watch,” Fox said. “You can tell he plays with passion and he sells himself through his passion on the ice.”
Sýkora is ranked 42nd by NHL Central Scouting among international skaters for the 2022 NHL Draft starting July 7.
Fox said they expect him to be drafted in the first three rounds,
“I think the advantages for him is I think NHL teams would agree the WHL game translates better and he’s going to be able to develop his game and get ready to be an NHL player in this league,” fox said.
In a media release from the Tigers after making the selection, general manager Willie Desjardins also said the Tigers expect him to be taken in the draft and are excited to add a player of “his calibre.”
“Adam is a skilled offensive forward with a great motor and (he) plays with intensity. He takes away time and space, and is not afraid to be first to pucks and play in the dirty areas,” Desjardins said.
“He had an excellent World Championships as one of the youngest players in the tournament, and we expect him to be taken in the first few rounds of the NHL Draft next week. We are excited about the prospects of adding a player of his calibre and providing an environment where he can continue to improve and develop his game.”
With each CHL club having two roster slots for Import drafted players, Sýkora will fill one slot, with Latvian defenceman Bogdans Hodass taking the Tigers’ other European spot next season.
Hodass had a strong season in Medicine Hat this year, playing in 57 games while contributing seven goals and 24 points and providing a physical presence on the blue line.
The Tigers’ second import player last season, Russian blue liner Gleb Ivanov, has returned to play hockey in Russia, Desjardins confirmed to the News earlier this week. Ivanov had three goals and nine points in his 48 games in the orange and black.
Sýkora’s father Roman played briefly with Tri-City in 1997-98 and spent two seasons with the Trail Smoke Eaters of the BCHL.
Sýkorais the second player selected first-overall in the CHL Import Draft by the Medicine Hat Tigers in their franchise history. The Club selected Czech defenceman Vladimir Sicak with the first-overall selection in 1998. He is the first Slovakian player drafted by the Tigers since they took Martin Kubalik third overall in 2002.
