When the Penguins made their third pick of the day in Wednesday's NHL Draft, they finally selected a skater.
After taking goaltenders with their second- and third-round picks, the Penguins selected forward Lukas Svejkovsky in the fourth round at No. 108 overall. Svejkovsky has a Czech background, was born in Point Roberts, Wash. right on the Canadian border, and played most of his hockey growing up in Canada. He's played in the WHL for the past two seasons.
Svejkovsky scored nine goals and 17 assists for the Vancouver Giants in the 2018-19 season. He scored five goals and five assists in 18 games with Vancouver to start the 2019-20 season before being traded to the Medicine Hat Tigers. He scored 13 goals and 15 assists in 34 games to finish the season.
Penguins scouting director Patrik Allvin said he thought Svejkovsky's game "took off" after the trade to Medicine Hat.
"He has hockey sense, his skill level, and also a good skater," he said.
Svejkovsky is 5-foot-10, 165 pounds and is a right-handed shot. He primarily played center with Vancouver, but played right wing with Medicine Hat. He says he has no preference for the position he plays.
"When I got to (Medicine Hat), our center depth was about as good as it gets in the league," he told NHLEntryDraft.com. "If I’m needed in the C spot, no complaints, I’ll definitely play C. I like playing C and right wing."
"I think I still have to grow a little bit. I’ve got to keep on getting stronger," he added of his game. "With that, I have to keep my speed and quickness. I’m more focused on taking it day by day right now. In four to five years I hope I’ll be ready to play pro hockey."
He said that he models his game after two undersized players who play with an edge -- Brayden Point and Mathew Barzal.
Svejkovsky will participate in the U.S. junior evaluation camp next week, part of the process for selecting the World Junior Championship team. Penguins forward prospect Judd Caulfield (2019, fifth round) will also participate in the camp.
Svejkovsky's father, Jaroslav, was a first-round pick of the Capitals in 1996 and played 113 NHL games over four seasons with the Capitals and Lightning.
SCOUTS SAY
NHL Central Scouting ranked Svejkovsky the 165th North American skater this draft.
The Draft Analyst: "He's a very good skater with breakaway speed and inside-outside moves, and he knows how to get himself into shooting position without requiring much from his center. Svejkovsky also makes precision plays at top speed and is capable of exploiting tiny windows of opportunity before the defense and goalie can adjust. This quick strike mentality served him well regardless of his usage or deployment and there were several games where he dearly was the best player an the ice. Svejkovksy's enthusiasm and battle level are evident when he digs in for a tough board play. He may look like a finesse winger but off the puck he sure doesn't act like one."
