Vladimir Dravecky’s rise in the OHL has been hard to miss, and the NY Islanders prospect is only adding to it.
The Islanders’ fifth-round pick at the 2026 NHL Draft has put together an eight-game point streak for the Guelph Storm, who are off to a 12-3 start and sitting atop the Western Conference. Through 13 games, Dravecky leads all OHL defensemen with 20 points, piling up four goals and 16 assists while continuing to turn heads.
A summer trade sent him to Guelph, and that move has put him in a spot where the path to more attention is wide open. The Storm are also set to host the 2027 Memorial Cup, which means Dravecky will be front and center at the CHL’s biggest stage.
There’s more spotlight coming soon, too. Dravecky played for Czechia at last season’s World Junior Championship and will have another chance to suit up in the tournament this holiday season. This time, he’ll be in a bigger role for last season’s runner-up, giving him another chance to show what he can do against the best U20 players in the world, not just OHL competition.
He’s also learning under assistant coach Rob Davison, a former Islander who had a brief NHL stint and is remembered most for a 200-foot goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs, when a bouncing puck slipped over Vesa Toskala’s glove and into the net. Davison has been glowing in his praise of Dravecky, saying he is always the first one in the training facility and the last one to leave.
For now, the numbers keep climbing, and Dravecky’s early-season surge has made him one of the OHL’s most noticeable defensemen. Whether he can keep this pace going is the next question.
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Now comes a few days off before the next matchup with Carolina, and for New York that pause could not come at a better time. The break gives the Islanders a chance to reset physically and maybe get healthier, with Matias Maccelli among the players whose status is worth watching as the team tries to steady itself after a punishing run. [Read more 🡒]