Blue Jackets prospect Filip Novak is set for a move to North America, with the forward signing an agreement to join the Western Hockey League’s Victoria Royals next season.
Novak was a seventh-round pick by Columbus, going 206th overall in last month’s NHL Draft. At 6-foot-1 and 198 pounds, he brings a mix of size and raw ability that made him an intriguing late selection, even if his offensive numbers in his draft year didn’t jump off the page.
The reason for that production, as the source report noted, was simple: he was playing against men in his native Czechia. Now he’ll get a different kind of opportunity in the WHL, where he can test himself against players in his own age group and try to build confidence as an attacker.
That path to Victoria wasn’t exactly straightforward. Novak was originally a first-round pick of the Lethbridge Hurricanes in last summer’s CHL Import Draft, but Lethbridge traded him to the Royals just five days ago in exchange for a pair of future third-round picks in the WHL prospects draft. Victoria then announced today that Novak will be part of its team next season.
Moves like this aren’t unusual in the CHL. As the source article noted, European players often have verbal agreements in place before the import draft, and in this case Novak and his representation clearly found a better fit with Victoria.
For Columbus, the switch gives the club a much better look at one of its European prospects in a more favorable development setting. The hope is that more ice time and more offensive chances will help unlock the part of his game that still needs polish. The source article described him as a hard-working player who needs to hone his offensive game, and the WHL should give him that chance.
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