| Marko Stacha | HK Nitra | Slovakia | L | D | 6’1″ | 196 | Vancouver Giants | 2020 | Ilava, SVK | 2002 | 2022-2023: Free Agent 2021-2022: C+ |
Neutral Zone NHL’s Ian Moran, February 15, 2023: Stacha is currently back in Slovakia playing for HK Nitra. During the 22/23 season he has played sixteen games in Slovakia’s top league and has 2 assists and 39 penalty minutes. He has never been an offensive threat, but he makes quick reads in the transition game and that’s truly what matters in North America today. Another key for his success is his competitiveness and ability to win 50/50 puck battles. Last year in the WHL he won 56% of his puck battles while this year in the top Slovakian professional league he’s winning 59% of his puck battles. I kind of love that. He has a powerful skating posture and although I’ve noted that he rarely crosses his feet while setting his gap, he will need to continue developing his quick feet and ability to reverse escape to help avoid hard charging forecheckers if he was ever to come over to North America. Offensively he has the speed to jump into the rush as a secondary option, but there’s no denying that he sometimes uses his speed and over skates the passing lanes and when this happens he ends up being just a decoy. In his end he is a beast who closes on the cycle quickly with the strength to hit and pin opposing forwards to the walls. He’s the kind of defenseman I’d love to see invited to an NHL development camp because I feel he’s a sleeper who’s competitiveness might just win him a contract.
Neutral Zone NHL, July 4, 2022: Why an NHL draft pick, he is a 6’1″ 200-pound defenseman who has played for Slovakia in each of the past two World Júnior Championships. He has played the past two seasons in the WHL. Through 52 career Western Hockey League games he has won 57% of his puck battles. Why not and NHL draft pick, through 52 Western Hockey League games he has hit the net with 46% of his shots. In 2021/22 he attempted 51 shots from the point, 23 of them were blocked. He was on the receiving end of 1.25 hard body checks per game.
WHL: Kamloops Blazers Draft Prospects, January 4, 2022: Stacha has an NHL frame, a quick stick and excellent lateral quickness when closing on opposing forwards to shut down a line rush. There are the rare times when we have seen him crossover to close the gap, but the majority of times Stacha keeps his hips low and slides quickly laterally with a heel to heel motion. While boxing out or clearing shooting lanes in n the defensive zone he keeps his hips low, his chest high and he drives his opponent to less dangerous ice with quick hard inside edge pushes. Stacha works well with his defensive partner and understands how to anticipate loose pucks so he can be a quick clean outlet. The 2002 just had his second WJC cut short as he was playing for Slovakia and he is currently in his second WHL season after playing 22 games for Vancouver Giants last year.
WHL: Kamloops Blazers as of January 2, 2022 Season stats: Games played 24, Goals 5, Assists 4, Points 9, plus/minus 14, Penalty Minutes 15, Penalties Drawn 8, 2021 Game Averages: Time on ice per-game 18:22, Power play time 0:53, Short-handed time 02:09, Shots 2.7, %Shots on goal 49%, Face-off % -%, Puck battles 11, %Puck battles won 56%, Hits 0.92, Hits against 1.42