Adam Sykora staying in Slovakia for ’22-23 season

By JAMES TUBB on August 4, 2022.

jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb

Medicine Hat Tigers import draft pick Adam Sykora won’t be donning the orange and black this season.

The Slovakian forward told Matej Deraj of Dennik Sport in Slovakia on Tuesday he would be playing for HK Nitra for the 2022-23 season.

“I’ve been informed I’m staying in Nitra,” Sykora said to Deraj. “The Rangers assured me they’d be very happy if I stayed and continued to play men’s hockey. I’m happy with the decision.”

The decision comes from Sykora’s NHL club, the New York Rangers, who drafted him 63rd overall in the NHL Draft on July 8. That selection came six days after Sykora was drafted by the Tigers with the first overall pick in the 2022 CHL Import Draft.

Tigers general manager/head coach Willie Desjardins said the timing of the Import draft had an affect on Sykora’s certainty next season.

“This year was a little different than other years (Import draft). Previous years, the NHL draft was ahead of the Western League draft, so you could ask a team if they’re sending their guy this way,” Desjardins said. “This year, because it was after, we didn’t know what team he would go to and since then, the Rangers have signed him, and once the NHL club signs them, they’re in control of where they end up. The door is still open for him to come our way and we’re gonna go up and watch him at the World Juniors.”

Sykora and Team Slovakia open their IIHF World Juniors tournament in Edmonton on Aug. 9 as they take on Czechia.

Hodass competing at World Juniors

Tigers import defenceman Bogdans Hodass was selected to represent Latvia at the World Juniors on Tuesday.

This is the Jelgava, Latvia product’s third time competing at an international level. Hodass represented Latvia in 2022 World Junior Division 1-A tournament last winter, contributing three assists in five games. He also played in the 2021 IIHF Under-18 Championships in 2020, picking up an assist in two games.

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