2023 NHL Draft: Prospects to watch from less traditional hockey countries

Jun 5, 2023, 11:09 EDT

2023 NHL Draft: Prospects to watch from less traditional hockey countries

This is always one of the more fun parts of an NHL Draft.

If you follow international hockey, there are so many fun storylines when a “minnow” country finds a way to shine. This year, we saw a few of those at the men’s World Championship: Latvia won bronze, and Norway managed to beat Canada in an attempt to avoid relegation. We even saw Poland advance to the top division, which is a significant moment for that program’s history, too.

It’s moments like those that can have a profound impact on a country’s hockey future, and it’s great for the game. And that’s especially true when there’s an NHL connection, or when

Two recent examples are Australia’s Nathan Walker and Great Britain’s Liam Kirk. Walker was a third-round pick by Washington in 2014 and ultimately fought his way up the ranks, winning the Stanley Cup in 2018 before eventually becoming a full-time NHLer for the first time this past season. He hasn’t played for Australia in over a decade, but his impact is still one hockey fans from down under truly cherish.

Kirk, a seventh-round pick in 2018, hasn’t played an NHL game and it seems unlikely at this point, but he’s the best young player in the country and a huge reason why GB is headed back to the top division World Championship event next year. Liam Steele, a huge 6-foot-5 defenseman headed to Cornell University, could be the next player drafted from GB.

For both nations, having those players get drafted to the best league in the world is a huge sense of pride. And this year, we could see some other players taken from countries that don’t often get draft representation taken in Nashville from June 28-29.

So, here’s a look at six players from countries that don’t typically get much action on draft day that could help change that:

Damian Clara, G (Italy)

While Elite Prospects says five players holding Italian nationality have been drafted to the NHL, none of them were actually born there. That could change with Clara, a 6-foot-6 goaltender with some big potential. In a draft lacking a high-end goaltending prospect, Clara – the sixth-ranked European goaltender according to NHL Central Scouting – could be one worth taking a swing on. He won both of his senior national team World Championship games and did a lot of heavy lifting at the U-18 and U-20 level, too. Scouts liked what they saw in his two-game stretch in the second-tier Swedish league, stopping 73 shots against older, tough competition. Everywhere Clara has played, he’s been impressive.

Zétény Hadobás, D (Hungary)

Hadobás represented Hungary at the World Championship this year, and while he didn’t record any points, he still played significant minutes. It wasn’t easy scoring for a team that ultimately was demoted for 2024, but Hadobás had a tremendous season with the Hungarian U-20 national team program and even played in 15 games with Vasteras in the second-tier Swedish league, too. The 76th-ranked European-based skater, Hadobás has a solid frame, good speed and can play well at both ends of the ice. He’ll return to Vasteras next year, but we do know there’s some NHL interest in the 20-year-old. The last Hungarian-born played taken was Janos Vas by Dallas in 2002, with Canadian-born Hungarian Andrew Sarauer getting taken by Vancouver two years later.

Petter Vesterheim, C (Norway)

Vesterheim is a late 2004 birthday, making him a first-year eligible this year. Projected to be a late-round pick, he played recently played in some exhibition contests against Sweden but didn’t put up any points. Vesterheim was good against U-20 Swedish competition and was a big reason why Norway advanced to the top division of the World Junior Championship for 2024. He spent a chunk of the season with Mora IK in the second-tier Swedish league and played all seven games with Norway at the World Championship against men. While Norway has had 13 players drafted since 2000, only two – Jonas Holos and Ole-Kristian Tollefesen – actually made the NHL (Mats Zuccarello was never drafted). Could Vesterheim be the next?

Aron Jessli, LW (Norway)

It was a tremendous season for Jessli, a Niagara University commit. He led the OJHL’s Pickering Panthers with 25 goals and 68 points, good for third among U-19 skaters in the Canadian Jr. A league. The 162nd-ranked North American-based skater by NHL Central Scouting, Jessli moved to Canada to play minor hockey in 2019 and spent two years there before moving to play junior in Finland during the COVID-impacted 2020-21 season. He returned back and played well with Pickering, showing a physical side to go along with a good release and strong work ethic. Will it be enough to earn NHL Draft consideration? Maybe as a late-rounder, but we’ll see.

Mark Sever, LW (Slovenia)

Sever didn’t get a ton of attention playing in the Swiss U-20 league, but there might be something there as a project player. He had 25 goals and 48 points wtih Kloten’s U-20 team and was a big piece of Slovenia’s attack at the Division IB world juniors. He’s a slick goal-scorer who can do almost everything, although there’s no separating skill yet. At the very least, he should be a valuable long-term player at the World Championship level. But if a CHL team takes him at the import draft and he comes over, that could be big for his development.

Mai Crnkic, C (Slovenia)

Slovenia’s captain at the U-18 Division IB World Championship this year, Crnkic was always counted on when he played against his own age group. It was a bit of a mixed bag for Crnkic, who played with six different teams in Sweden this year. He did get into five games with Almtuna in the HockeyAllsvenskan, although didn’t see much ice time. There’s no standout quality in Crnkic’s game, but he’s a solid playmaker that can play at speed.

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