Evaluations for first year NHL draft eligible players Vojtech Hradec, Aron Kiviharju and Konsta Helenius
| Vojtech Hradec | BK Mlada Boleslav U20 | Czech U20 | L | LW | 6’4″ | 194 | Mlada Boleslav, Czechia | 2005 | 2023-2024: B+ |
Game Rating: C+
Comments: Hradec is a long lanky left shot left wing September 2005 with a bit of a bow legged hunched over skating posture. He showed very good straight line speed and although he finished -2 he showed a real urgency to help defensively. While in the defensive zone his head was on a constant swivel, he maintained line-ups and was more than willing to maintain shooting lanes to block shots. Hradec showed good awareness while defending the cycle, but there were too many times when he initiated contact and then ended up on the wrong side of the puck or let his man beat him into the open ice. Offensively he was quiet and was consistently the high man or F3 in the offensive zone. We were not sure if this was by design or not, but he certainly did not engage in the offensive zone other than to provide high support. He did not see power play time, but he did earn 1:42 while on the penalty kill including taking four face-offs while a man down with one being on a 5v3.
| Aron Kiviharju | TPS | Liiga | L | D | 5’10” | 172 | Turku, FIN | 2006 | 2023-2024: A |
Game Rating: B+
Comments: By NHL standards the 5’10’, 172lbs Kiviharju is an undersized left shot defender who has elite high end puck poise and vision. The Team Finland coaching staff spread out their 5on5 minutes fairly evenly, but he led their defensemen in minutes played (14:58) including a team leading 5:48 on the power play. He did not kill penalties. He quarterbacked the power play from the top of a make shift umbrella and he disguised his passes very well. He earned a secondary 5on5 assist during the second period by executing a scissor play along the offensive blueline and then firing a rocket flat pass to the extended goal line option. As we’ve seen in the past he understands how to use body leverage to take away his opponent’s hips which helped have a Team Finland high six takeaways. Kiviharju is a high end prospect who carries himself like a leader.
| Konsta Helenius | Jukurit | Liiga | R | RW | 5’9″ | 154 | Ylojarvi, FIN | 2006 | 2023-2024: A |
Game Rating: B
Comments: Helenius is a below average sized right shot forward who primarily played center versus Team Czechia, finishing 11/15 on face-offs. He showed a powerful deep kneed athletic skating base that allowed him to be at top speed in a single hard stride and the edge control to power his way through contact while making tight turns. On the power play he would be originally positioned as the bumper, but he had the freedom to use his quickness to provide flash screens and his net front activity led directly to Finland’s first goal of the game. He earned the primary assist on Finland’s third goal of the game when he showed the puck poise to not force a poor angle shot, instead faking three times to draw the strong side defensive winger out of position and then passing a flat puck to his defenseman for a one-timer goal. We like his direct mindset and the toughness/willingness he showed to take a hit to make a play, but at 5’9″, 154lbs there is no need for him to be on the receiving end four hard hits including three in open ice. Helenius was a contributor to both special team’s units (2:36 PP, 0:47 PK) and he finished the game with five giveaways and four takeaways. He is no doubt a high end NHL prospect who will have eyes watching his every move during the 2023/24 season.