The Edmonton Oilers didn’t just draft size in Rudolfs Berzkalns. They drafted a center who wants to play the game the way Aleksander Barkov does.
That was the comparison Berzkalns reached for after Edmonton took him in the second round, 58th overall, in late June. He also mentioned Zach Hyman, but Barkov was the name he leaned on when asked about the kind of player he hopes to become.
“I would say Alexander Barkov for me, just because he’s a two-way centre,” Berzkalns told OilersTV’s Tony Brar. “He can play any position that is on the ice, and I think he can win some faceoffs, he can play power play, penalty kill. I think he’s very responsible, like I said, and I like watching him.”
For Edmonton director of amateur scouting Rick Pracey, Berzkalns stood out during the evaluation process. The Oilers felt comfortable moving down and still landing the Latvian center, and the trade also brought them another pick.
The appeal starts with the frame. Berzkalns is 6-foot-4 and 203 pounds, and Pracey made it clear that his size in the middle mattered.
“Clearly, size in the middle of the ice trumped a little bit of his skill, but I’m not selling Berzkalns short by any stretch,” said Pracey after the draft. “We believe in that, or else we wouldn’t have put ourselves in that position in the second round.”
Two weeks ago, Berzkalns made his first trip to Edmonton for Oilers Development Camp, a visit that made the whole thing feel real after the draft came only days earlier.
“It was great,” he said. “A couple tears dropped. For my mom, for myself, and my dad, it was awesome.
“All the great players that the Edmonton Oilers have had in their organization. It was just such a good feeling to be called by such a great organization, and just looking back at all the success that the team has had in the past. I’m just very excited to be here.”
Berzkalns isn’t the kind of prospect who jumps off the page with gaudy numbers. In 48 games with the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL during his second season of junior hockey, he scored 13 goals and finished with 25 points. But the Oilers are betting on a center who can make life miserable for opponents and grow into a playoff-style player.
That showed up in the postseason. Berzkalns had ten points in 16 playoff games as Muskegon pushed all the way to the edge of the Clark Cup before falling in Game 4 of the best-of-five, 2-1 in double overtime to the Sioux City Stampeders. He still finished sixth on the team in playoff scoring, and he did it while keeping the defensive side of his game in good shape.
“I just felt more confident using my size,” said Berzkalns. “I think that’s what gives me success, just using my size and just being that two-way centre who can play on both sides of the puck.
“I think for this upcoming season, I’m looking forward to getting more offensive. I feel like I’ve always had that in the past.
I’ve always been more of a points guy, but then the past couple years I picked up that defensive game. I’m just trying to be a complete two-way centre.”
Berzkalns has already spent a few years in North America, but he still carries plenty of pride in representing Latvia. He has played for his country at two World Junior Championships, and Canadian fans may remember the moment when Latvia pushed them to the brink in the preliminary round, with Berzkalns scoring late in regulation to force an unexpected overtime.
That latest tournament ended with Latvia seventh, and the roster included five NHL selections.
“It’s always great to represent your country,” he said. “Especially Latvia, it’s such a small hockey community. You can see it’s been growing the past couple of years on the international stage.
Berzkalns is set to return to Muskegon for another junior season, and he’s committed to Boston College for 2027-28.
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