David Svozil

SM-sarja U20, Ilves vs Sport Vassa, October 7, 2023: Svozil is an average sized left shot defenseman who played a steady two-way game. He showed an upright skating posture with a shoulder width base and he defended with a hidden poke check. During offensive transition he worked to be an outlet he showed a soft first touch on both is forehand and backhand. The puck did not slow him down. In the third period he had a nice smooth three quarter ice rush where he had the awareness to attack the middle lane and he recognized that the opposing defenders were too wide so he was able to get a quick wrist shot on net. The shot was not a bullet (none of his three shots were) but we liked the awareness he showed to attack the middle rather drive wide into the abyss. He had two minor penalties with one coming on an errant high stick and the other coming in defensive zone coverage when he cross checked the opposing forward on the hips and he went down fairly easily. For the night he was second among defenders earning 22:59 in total ice time including 2:41 on the power play. He did not kill penalties. He finished -2 on the night with the first goal coming out of defensive zone where he was the strongside defenseman and his partner lost his man in front of the net. The second minus came in overtime after Svozil tried to over complicate things at the end of a shift which led directly to him having his pocket picked at the redline. The overcomplication led to a 2 on 1 where he was unfortunately too gassed to backcheck. He has 3 shots, 1 grade “A”, 4 PIMs, had 1 shot blocked and on the season he is averaging 8 puck battles per game and winning 60% of them. Neutral Zone currently has Svozil as a “B” rated 2024 NHL draft prospect but with 1 assist through 11 games and a team low +/- rating of -13 we will be watching closely.

Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images