The newest member of the Blue Jackets organization has arrived.
Taken with the 69th overall pick, Stanislav Svozil was the Blue Jackets' first selection on Day 2. The left-handed defenseman hails from the Czech Republic. Svozil was named the Czech league's Rookie of the Year in 2019-20 after posting 2-3-5 in 41 games with Brno. He represented his country at the 2021 IIHF Junior and U18 World Championships.
The Athletic's Corey Pronman had Svozil ranked 42nd in his final prospect list. "He is a 6-foot-1 defenseman who can skate and make plays at both ends of the rink," writes Pronman. "He has enough speed and skill to lead a rush and create offense. He can make creative offensive plays on his outlets and inside the offensive blue line. His gaps are solid, he takes the body and is reliable to play against better players."
69. Jackets take LHD Stanislav Svozil. Good pick and one of the better defenders in the neutral zone. Top-64 value for sure. pic.twitter.com/0BUItwdunM
— Steve Kournianos (@TheDraftAnalyst) July 24, 2021
After taking two forwards at #5 and #12, the Blue Jackets have used their last two picks on defensemen. Pronman projects Svozil to be an NHL-caliber defenseman: "in a sentence, Svozil projects as a third-pair NHL defenseman with enough offense to play higher in a lineup crunch."
Stanislav Svozil to the Columbus Blue Jackets at No. 69 overall is one of the steals of the draft. Just absolute larceny.
— J.D. Burke (@JDylanBurke) July 24, 2021
Played his worst hockey of the season at the U18s, but he was lights out at the U20s and in the Czech Extraliga. Projects as a shutdown No. 4 d-man.
