When I started doing the men’s list, there was no clear battle for number one as Alan Łyszczarczyk took the top spot for every year he was eligible. After that, it was Pawel Zygmunt’s spot for two years as he made an impact in Czechia. Today, we name only the third player to earn the number one spot. He was on the list for a long time, and it was fun to track his year-to-year growth. 

Players had to be under the age of 23 and at least 16 years old on June 1st, 2023. We are only judging play that occurred before that date as well. Players are evaluated based on a combination of career history, current play, and potential. Skaters must have played at least five games to be considered. While most of the ranking is my opinion, numerous Polish hockey people contributed their thoughts on players. 188 players were considered for the list and reviewed. Eighty players received a ranking.

1 – Kamil Wałęga (F), 22, HK 32 Liptovsky Mikulas, (2, +1) 

From 2018 to 2019, Poland had a special group of young players. The U20 teams were loaded with talent despite missing out on gold and promotion. Just look at some of the names from those two rosters: Alan Lyszczarczyk, Bartlomiej Jeziorski, Damian Tyczynski, Dominik Pas, Jan Soltys, and Pawel Zygmunt. So many have had success outside of Poland or are top players in the PHL—the best of everyone on those two teams, maybe Kamil Wałęga. Wałęga has worked his way up in the rankings and the hockey world, from playing in the PHL at a young age to making waves in Slovakia. If you’re wondering who the star of the Polish national team is right now, it is Wałęga. 

The Cieszyn native re-signed with HK 32 Liptovsky Mikulas in Slovakia’s top league last offseason. This year, he was given a more significant role with the team and responded. In 44 games, he scored ten goals while assisting on 17. His 27 points were third on the team and the second most by a U23 player in the Tipos Extraliga. He fired off 94 shots, an average of 2.1 a game.  The young center received both powerplay and penalty kill time. He also held his own in the faceoff dot, finishing at 50% across 174 draws. 

While he was under contract for another year, Wałęga made the move to sign with the best club in Czechia, HC Oceláři Třinec. He is not the first young player to use success in Slovakia to move to a stronger league. We have quite a few production comparables, and the results look promising. 5.88% of his matches became NHL regulars, while 35% became AHL or Top Europe above regular players. Those numbers speak to his high potential, but the biggest one is that 88.24% became regulars in Czechia’s top league or a stronger league. It seems almost a guarantee for players who produce like him to succeed elsewhere. 

That is going to take some time. His club even acknowledges that as in their signing announcement, they described him as a bit of a project player. It is not the first time HC Oceláři Třinec has done this with a Polish star. Aron Chmielewski was loaned to the Chance Liga by Trinec for three and a half seasons before becoming a regular with the club. I think Wałęga will advance a bit faster, given his experience outside Poland. Still, there will be adjustments for the young center. 

The club season is excellent and unprecedented for Polish players. The biggest reason he comes in at number one is his national team success. He has been one of the top forwards for team Poland over the past couple of years. In 11 non-IIHF appearances this year, he posted 12 points (4G-8-12PTS). When it mattered most for team Poland at the World Championships, Wałęga produced three goals and four assists in five games—one of the best seasons by a U23 skater for the national team ever. Poland rarely has had young players step up for the team like this. Walega, one of the leaders of that young core, was a missing piece to get Poland back into the Elite division. 

Things have been happening quickly in Polish hockey. For years, I was just looking for Poland to get more players that could even appear in the top level of Slovakia. Even if that is the peak of Walega as a player, he has been one of the best from Poland in a while. He is not a finished player yet and has continued to develop every year of his career. It is rare to see a player always take such substantial leaps year after year. It may take a few months, but I have no doubt we’ll see him make an impact in Czechia.

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