2004 Draft: Reviewing Czech Picks Part II

Fourth Round

The St. Louis Blues coveted Michal Birner, a skilled left winger, all season long and selected him early in the fourth round, which may seem a bit early, but it speaks of their desire to draft a player who seemed to consistently impress them. Birner is a wildcard who was slotted to go in the fifth or sixth round, in all likelihood, but he certainly has the upside to prove his critics wrong.

Birner is a dependable forward with good puck skills who at times struggles physically and in traffic. He is not striking in any aspects of his offensive game, which is perhaps why he was rated only 68th among European skaters by the Central Scouting.

Birner will bid farewell to his parent club HC Slavia Praha and cross the ocean into North America to play for the Barrie Colts of the OHL. He will be a major contributor at the junior level, but if he makes the NHL it will be as a depth player.

Pegged as a possible second rounder, Karel Hromas fell all the way to the fourth round, which came as a surprise. The good-sized winger was selected by Dale Tallon and the Blackhawks who also picked up his Sparta Praha teammate Jakub Sindel in round two. The selection is a wise one, as the Hawks have picked up a solid, though unspectacular, player who looks like he has the makings of a good pro with the kind of size that Birner lacks.

Hromas' combative, in-your-face style has brought him a lot of respect. He loves to hit and is very balanced and strong on his feet. What he does not have are good hands, but he mucks his way to a share of points. This guy is a constant presence.

Although Hromas was drafted in the CHL Import Draft by the WHL's Everett Silvertips, he has yet to confirm whether that is his desired destination for next season. He is considering staying with Sparta Praha - establishing himself as a senior Extraleague regular would, no doubt, be beneficial for him. He fits the mold of an NHL checking-line grinder.

Fifth Round

Some sort of malaise seemed to strike Petr Pohl is the second half of last season. Performing for the best team in the QMJHL (Gatineau), he was gradually relegated deeper and deeper into the team's doghouse after seemingly running out of steam all year and failing to improve his defensive habits. Nonetheless, the Columbus Blue Jackets saw enough talent to take the flyer on the young sniper, as he joins other Czechs Jaroslav Balastik and Jaroslav Kracik on the team's depth chart.

A quick skater, Pohl thrives with the puck and is a constant catalyst when in possession. A finesse player, Pohl was unable to inject a North American flavour to his game last season, enough to establish himself more than a soft scorer.

Contrary to the previous reports on McKeen's, Petr has informed us that he does intend to remain with the Olympiques to his second QMJHL campaign, when he will be expected to team up with newcomer David Krejci, the Bruins' second round pick.

It must have been a weekend of mixed emotions at the Psurny household - Roman Psurny was drafted by the New York Rangers at 135th overall, while brother Michal (Psurny) was passed up entirely (which was not unexpected).

A slick left winger with very good quickness and offensive smarts, Roman made great strides last year, shaking off the one-dimensional label that seemed to follow him. An opportunistic forward who is fond of open ice, Psurny must add at least 10 pounds of muscle in order to shake off bigger, older opponents.

Ideally, Psurny would be well-suited for second line duty in the NHL, but could spend his career in Europe if he does not progress exponentially at the physical aspects of his game. A Medicine Hat draft pick (at the CHL Import Draft), Psurny has not yet announced his intentions, but is learning towards spending next year in the Czech senior Extraleague.

Sixth Round

Projected as a likely top-two rounder only a year ago, Jaroslav Mrazek struggled through an awful campaign and slipped to round six, where the New York Islanders selected him 179th overall. The blueliner is a longshot, to put it simply, and will require several seasons of development before it becomes clear as to whether there is NHL potential there.

Size works in Mrazek's favour - at 6-2, 190 he is well built and he is willing to use his frame along the boards. The biggest concern with Mrazek this past season has been his head - he made relatively few strides at limiting the amount of ill-timed rushes and risky plays on his part. As the season grew old, it also become clear that his hands were not very good.

At an early glance, it seems that Mrazek could be a depth blueliner, but it is early to tell. After playing for Sparta Praha last year, he is likely heading to North America to play for the St. Michael's Majors of the OHL.

The expression 'go figure' came to mind when Roman Polak immediately followed the Mrazek selection 180, an astute pick by the St. Louis Blues. The Vitkovice Juniors blueliner made great strides to his game, while Mrazek, ironically, seemed to regress.

A smooth skater, Polak greatly impresses with his strong legs and balance on skates. He has a good frame and is tough to knock off his feet. Sound positionally, he impressed me with his knowledge of the positional game and ability to take the body. Although not a great offensive presence, I found his playmaking abilities to be quite sound.

Polak has all the tools to develop into an NHL regular. He has decided to leave Vitkovice and head over to Canada to play for the Kootenay Ice of the WHL. Look for him to spend the next two seasons at that level and then head the AHL route.

With Polak off the table, the Tampa Bay Lightning snatched up another Czech rearguard Jan Zapletal with the 188th pick overall. Zapletal is clearly a gamble, even this late in the draft, as he played defense for the first time last year after making the move from forward.

The HC Vsetin blueliner has size and he can skate and these are two vital keys to future success. He is very agile, smooth and balanced on his skates. His hands are pretty good and he has shown that he can join the rush on occasion. Clearly raw and somewhat confused playing at a new position, Zapletal had some poor showings last season, struggling with decision making and handling speedy opposition in one-on-one situations.

The WHL's Regina Pats were calling and Zapletal is mulling over that offer over at the moment. He is a hit-or-miss project for the NHL game, but could do rather well at the CHL level.

Seventh Round

The raw and skinny Stanislav Balan was picked up by Nashville 209th overall - undoubtedly a rough, slight winger who flashes some upside, but the light at the end of the developmental tunnel may not be visible for a good while.

The Hame Zlin centerman is a fluid, agile skater and an accomplished stickhandler who prefers to share the puck. He impressed me with his vision, but is a non-factor in traffic and must bulk up pronto to be effective as a pro in his home country, let alone North America. He looks like a future mainstay in Europe.

Rounds Eight and Nine

Jonas Fiedler, third-rounder from 2002, did not come to terms with the San Jose Sharks and re-entered the draft. He was picked up by Carolina 235th overall. After his three-year stay in the OHL, he is likely to play for Lowell of the AHL next season .. the gangly Lukas Volema was picked up by Dallas with the 248th pick. The stay-at-home blueliner is unlikely to see much action at the elite level at home, so expect him to play in the Div I league .. Jan Steber was drafted by Toronto 252nd overall and is an interesting package at 6-3.5, 200 pounds. The skilled giant must improve his footspeed and will have plenty of time to do so in his second year with the Halifax Mooseheads .. little sparkplug Jakub Petruzalek was plucked up by the New York Rangers - he impressed with good numbers in the Czech junior Extraleague, but his downsides are as glaring as his upsides. The swift-skating winger plans to skate for the Ottawa 67's next year .. Martin Vagner is likely to try out for the Lowell after re-entering the draft and getting selected by the Carolina Hurricanes. Although he has good wheels, Vagner showed a penchant for misreading plays and making bad decisions with the puck. Unless he makes adjustments, Lowell will not be impressed .. no Czech overagers were selected at the draft.