Tag: Marcel Kotula

Mens Prospects

2022 Top 80 Men’s U23 Players. #80-51

We have reached the end of another hockey season—the first actual season of normalcy in a while. With the rankings, this year will see a lot of change. There was no hockey or minimal games for many players who tried their hand around Europe or North America in 2021. This year’s rankings experienced the most significant changes I have recorded in the five years of making the list. Fourteen players ranked in the top 80 either aged off, retired, or were suspended for a prolonged period. These are the most open spots the list has seen as well. With all of that combined, this is the first chance we have had in years to see what junior coaches in Poland think of players as 23 U20 and 23 U18 players were selected to represent Poland at junior IIHF events.

We have waited to reveal the players ranked 80-50 in past years until the final article. This year, I wanted to change that and add more thoughts to the players who just missed the top 50. That said, the difference in the rankings at this point is minor.

Players had to be under the age of 23 and at least 16 years old on June 1st, 2022. 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. One hundred sixty-nine players were considered for the list and reviewed, and eighty players received a ranking. 

Honorable Mentions (Alphabetical order): Antoni Gauvin (G), Kacper Gulczyński (D), Jakub Pezowicz (D), Jonathan Kaczmarek (F), Mateusz Kołodziej (G), Mateusz Siekierka (F), Olaf Wlodara (D). 

Rank – Player Name (Position), Age During Next Hockey Season, Team (Ranking in 2021, change in rankings)

80 – Michał Proczek (D), 20, Polonia Bytom, (NR)

The soon-to-be 20-year-old defenseman finished with 20 points (5G-15A-20PTS) in 31 MHL games. His 20 points were the second most among U20 defensemen in the league. He represented Poland at the U20 Division 1 Group B World Championships. 

Proczek assist vs. Podhale Nowy Targ MHL

79 – Marcin Dulęba (F), 19, UKS Niedzwiadki Sanok, (75, -4) 

He only played in eight games this year but did record 12 points (3G-9A-12PTS)—primary assist machine over the last couple of seasons in the MHL. 

78 – Jakub Wenker (F), 20, Sokoly Torun, (62, -16)

Led all U20 players in MHL, scoring 53 points (32G-21A-53PTS) in 26 games. He also got 14 games in the PHL with KH Torun, where he went pointless. The top scorer in the second league may only be a bottom-six forward in the PHL. 

Wenker goal vs. Polonia Bytom MHL

77 – Szymon Klimowski (G), 20, MMKS Podhale Nowy Targ, (NR)

Klimowski split his time between Podhale Nowy Targ at the PHL and MHL levels. At the MHL level, he played in 14 games posting a .888 save percentage, which was fifth among U20 goalies. In the PHL, he played in four games posting a .816 save percentage. 

Klimowski save vs. Oswiecim MHL

76 – Dominik Kasprzyk (F), 20, UKS Zaglebie Sosnowiec, (NR) 

One of the busiest junior players of the year playing in 55 games across the international stage, PHL, and MHL. He was pointless in 22 PHL games but posted 27 points (17G-10A-27PTS) in 28 MHL games. He represented Poland at the U20 D1B World Championships and posted one assist in five games. 

Kasprzyk goal vs. Opole MHL

75 – Oskar Polak (G), 20, MMKS Podhale Nowy Targ, (NR)

Polak was another goalie put in the rough Podhale situation. He spent most of his time at the MHL level, recording a .881 save percentage. The 6’0 Nowy Targ native also played in six PHL games posting a .848 save percentage. He was the starting goalie for Poland at the U20 D1B World Championship but ultimately struggled at times. 

Polak save vs. KH Torun PHL

74 – Michał Jaracz (D), 20, Cracovia Krakow, (NR) 

Jaracz played a more significant role in Krakow this year in a bottom pairing defensive role. He went scoreless in 19 PHL games but put up seven assists in 13 MHL games. He was a steady presence on Poland U20 at the U20 World Championships. 

73 – Oliwier Kurnicki (D), 18, Sokoly Torun, (NR) 

I like Kurnicki a lot and think there are a lot of tools there that could make a good player. He mainly played in the MHL this year, recording 15 points (4G-11A-15PTS) in 30 games but also did play in 9 PHL games for Torun. He represented Poland at the D1B U18 World Championship, posting one assist. 

Kurnicki Goal vs Sanok MHL

72 – Bartłomiej Wsół (F), 22, Podhale Nowy Targ, (NR)

Wsół finally became a full-time PHL player after bouncing between the levels of Nowy Targ since returning from Slovakia. He recorded 7 points (2G-5A-7PTS) in 34 games. Both the floor and ceiling are likely a bottom-six PHL forward. 

Wsół goal vs. KH Torun PHL

71 – Paweł Pisula (F), 18, UKS Niedzwiadki Sanok, (NR)

Pisula didn’t have the most incredible club season this year, with only eight assists in 28 MHL games, but he had a great showing at the U18s and also picked up two assists in five games. Strong passer but will need a lot of seasoning. 

Pisula assist vs. MOSM Tychy MHL

70 – Mikołaj Szczepkowski (G), 19, UKS Zaglebie Sosnowiec, (NR) 

Szczepkowski had a roller-coaster season in the net. In 20 MHL games, he recorded the highest save percentage of all goalies at .914, but he managed a .854 save percentage in seven playoff games. When he represented Poland at the U20 World Championships, he looked great against Slovenia but struggled in his other appearance.

Szczepkowski Save vs Slovenia U20 IIHF U20 D1B

69 – Mateusz Wawrzkiewicz (D), 21, Tampa Bay Juniors, (NR)

Wawrzkiewicz spent another year in the USA with the Tampa Bay Juniors in the USPHL Premier. The 6’1 defenseman posted seven points (2G-5A-7PTS) in 37 games. Someone I think could step into a PHL lineup in a bottom-paring role, but we will have to see what his next move is. 

68 – Szymon Maćkowski (F), 19, SMS PZHL Katowice, (NR) 

Maćkowski has been consistent on junior non-IIHF national teams in the past few years. He recorded 31 points (19G-12A-31PTS) in 26 games with SMS PZHL Katowice. He also represented Poland at the U20 World Championships, where he scored one goal in five games. 

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67 – Jakub Michalski (D), 18, Strömsbro IF J18, (NR) 

Michalski started the year in Podhale, dividing his time between the PHL and MHL before making the late-season move to the second U18 league in Sweden. In Sweden, he posted a goal and assisted in 16 J18 Region games. Back in Poland, he went pointless in 10 PHL games but recorded five assists in nine MHL games. The stay-at-home defensemen also represented Poland at the U18s but struggled against stronger opponents. 

Michalski assist vs. Hungary U18 IIHF U18 D1B

66 – Hubert Szarzynski (D), 16, Flemingsbergs IK U16, (NR)

Szarzynski played all over the U16 level in Sweden last year. Across four different levels, he recorded 21 points (5G-16A-21PTS)  in 27 games. He mostly played at the U18 level, where he posted 11 points (1G-10A-11PTS) in 33 games. To top the year off, he made his senior debut, playing in four games and picking up two assists in Sweden’s division 2. For the next year,  Szarzynski will move to Nacka HK J18 and play in the top two levels of Swedish U18 hockey. Same junior program as former NHLer and Swedish Olympian Philip Holm. 

65 – Sebastian Wicher (F), 20, Polonia Bytom, (NR) 

Wicher has been a staple of Bytom since they were relegated from the PHL. This year, he posted MHL career highs with 37 points (22G-15A-37PTS) in 29 games. He also was a member of Poland U20 at the U20 D1B World Championships. I would not be surprised if a PHL team picks him up for 2023. 

Wicher Goal vs. Unia Oswiecim MHL

64 – Tobiasz Kapica (F), 20, Podhale Nowy Targ, (70, +6) 

Kapica was a prospect I was interested in for this year after he barely played in 2021 due to playing abroad in Sweden. He spent the season between Podhale’s PHL and MHL club this year. It was not what I would have hoped for in his final U20 season, as he went pointless in 22 PHL games and recorded 15 points (6G-9A-15PTS) in 20 MHL games. He also represented Poland at the U20 World Championships, where he went pointless in 3 games. 

63 – Piotr Ciepielewski (F), 18, KS Naprzod Janow, (NR)

Ciepielewski made significant strides this year and was rewarded with a cup of coffee in the PHL. He played in seven games with eventual champions GKS Katowice. He spent most of his season in the MHL, where the Sosnowiec native posted 17 points (9G-8A-17PTS) in 20 games. He later represented Poland at the U18s, where he assisted once in five games. Easy guy to project to play in the PHL. 

Ciepielewski Goal vs. Ukraine U18 Exhibition

62 – Paweł Wybiral (F), 19, SMS PZHL Katowice, (NR) 

Another familiar face on the covid era non-IIHF junior teams was Wybiral. He posted 34 points (15G-19A-34PTS) in 24 games, making him the leading scorer on SMS PZHL Katowice. He also represented Poland U20, where he notched a goal and an assist in five games. Another one I expect to see get some PHL time next year. 

Wybiral Goal vs. Estonia U20 IIHF U20 D1B

61 – Jakub Wieczorek (G), 16, Dübendorf U17, (NR)

We don’t often see Polish goalies go abroad to play junior hockey, and Wieczorek is quite the rarity, especially with his success in the second level of U17 hockey in Switzerland. While we don’t have a save percentage, we know that in 13 games, he posted a 2.15 GAA which was sixth among all goalies in the league. He has also been solid in appearances for Poland U16.

60 – Szymon Luszniak (D), 22, Zaglebie Sosnowiec, (60, +0) 

Luszniak has cemented himself as a PHL defenseman and should continue to serve as that on lower-end PHL teams. He posted two assists in 32 games while primarily playing on the second paring, usually with Michal Narog. He did add 9 points (1G-8A-9PTS) in 11 MHL games. He is a PHL player and too good for the MHL, but he may have already hit his ceiling.

Luszniak assist vs KH Torun PHL

59 – Karol Sobecki (D), 17,  MOSM Tychy, (NR)

At only 16 years old, Sobecki became a full-time MHL player this year. The defensemen recorded three goals and three assists in 25 games. He also made his PHL debut in the playoffs for GKS Tychy, playing in one game during their series versus JKH GKS Jastrzębie. He was extremely impressive at the U18s. There he recorded two goals and one assist in five games. The 6’0 defensemen showed off a strong shot and sound defensive awareness. 

Goal vs Ukraine at U18 D1b World Championships

58 – Bartosz Florczak (D), 20, STS Sanok, (40, -18) 

Florczak has remained a full-time PHL defenseman for Sanok, but the development has not been as fast as I hoped. This year in 39 games, the defensemen went pointless but did record 5 points (2G-3A-5PTS) in 5 MHL games. He struggled at the U20 World Championships, finishing a minus seven with one assist in five games. He is too good for the MHL but hasn’t taken the step to being a good senior player. 

Florczak shot and assist vs. Estonia U20 IIHF U20 D1B

57 – Igor Augustyniak (F), 21, Cracovia Krakow, (61, +4)

Another case of too good for the MHL but not strong enough to be solid at the PHL level. At only 21 years old, he has played in 63 PHL games but only registered a goal and three assists. His ceiling may only be a bottom-six forward in Poland. 

Augustyniak Goal vs KH Torun PHL

56 – Igor Tyczyński (G), 16, Team Poland U16, (NR) 

Tyczyński has a solid chance to be Poland’s best goaltending prospect in a while. He was great with Poland team U16 in the Czechia junior system. The action that stuck out to me was at the MHL. He played in 9 games and posted a .912 save percentage while stopping 339 shots, averaging 38 saves per game. He topped that off recently with a tremendous U16 tournament at the 2022 Riga Hockey Cup. I’m very excited to see what next season holds for him. 

Tyczyński save vs Great Britain U16 Riga Hockey Cup

55 – Marcel Kotuła (G), 21, Zaglebie Sosnowiec, (36, -19) 

Kotula is a goalie facing the lack of game problem for many young goalies in Poland. Across the MHL and PHL, he only played in 12 games. He was not particularly impressive at either level, posting sub .880 save percentages in both leagues. The sample size is tiny, so stats are not fair to judge him on fully. He should be the backup in Sosnowiec next year, and I hope he gets more games. 

UPDATE: Marcel Kotuła has decided to retire. The rankings were already finalized before the decision was announced. We wish him the best in his next step. 

54 – Paweł Bizub (G), 23, Podhale Nowy Targ, (55, +1) 

Bizub went from playing way too little to maybe playing too much. Without much help, the 5’10 goalie played in 36 PHL games for Podhale Nowy Targ this year, recording a .870 save percentage. I still believe he projects as a PHL backup or tandem goalie, but he was impressive this year given the circumstances. 

Bizub Save vs. GKS Tychy PHL

53 – David Wawrzkiewicz (F), 18, Tampa Bay Juniors, (58, +5)

Wawrzkiewicz split the year between Poland and the USA after spending the previous few years in the Czech junior system. He posted 11 points (6G- 5A-11PTS) in the MHL in 16 games. His .69 point per game average was 10th among all U18 skaters in the MHL. In the USA, he appeared for the Tampa Bay Juniors in the USPHL Elite. He performed a little better with 16 points (10G-6A-16PTS)  in 17 games. His .94 point per game average was 21st among U18 skaters—two solid seasons in two different leagues. 

Wawrzkiewicz Goal vs. Italy U18 Exhibition

52 – Michał Cychowski (F), 19, Krefelder EV 1981 U20, (33, -19) 

Cychowski stayed high on the list over the past few years due to some tremendous U17 seasons in Germany and then having his first U20 experience delayed to covid. Now with a full year to play in the top level of German junior hockey, the expectations would be high. The results were underwhelming,  in 21 games, he recorded just two assists. That is among the worst production of all forwards in the league. I hope he rebounds with more substantial numbers in his final junior season. We saw it at the U17 level. 

51 – Filip Wiszyński (G), 19, UKS Niedzwiadki Sanok, (NR) 

Wiszyński went unranked last year after only playing a single MHL game. This year, he got a lot more time as he became the de facto regular-season starter for Sanok’s MHL team. He finished the year with a .905 save percentage, and this was tied for third among all MHL goalies and second among U20 goalies. While he served as the backup in the MHL playoffs, he did post a .900 save percentage in three games during the CLJ finals tournament. Wiszyński has a lot of potential, but he will be stuck behind another goalie on our list.

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Mens Prospects

One Young Player To Watch on Every PHL Team

The PHL season is fully underway. With plenty of teams facing a COVID-19 related cut to their roster. This left plenty of roster spaces open for young players to earn. COVID-19 also caused PZHL U23 to be left out of the plans for the hockey year. It also left many players without a way to play a sizable amount of games in the PHL, which is an excellent development experience. If a player were going to get meaningful minutes in the PHL, they would have to prove it to their clubs’ coach that they are ready to contribute in the league.

I think those conditions make it the perfect time to check in on the young talent for each PHL club. I also am setting a goal to pick players that are not as traditionally regarded as a top player. Sure Dominik Pas is a great young player, but he has also been in the PHL for years now. So I am setting a rule of less than 50 PHL games coming into the year.

Cracovia Krakow – Patryk Gosztyla. In the past couple of years, Krakow started to make an apparent effort in bringing in young talent. Gosztyla was part of that initial group. The 6’2 defensemen got a bit lost in the shuffle in 2019 after returning to Poland from the Slovak junior system. This year though, he has cemented himself as part of the Krakow defensemen lineup, already topping his games played total from last year. The 20-year-old also has posted five points (1G-4A-5PTS) in six games in the Polish second league. Honorable Mention: Igor Augustyniak

GKS Tychy – Kacper Gruźla. Gruźla had a breakout year last year in the Polish second league. This earned him a long term spot with PZHL U23 and an appointment to the Polish U20 squad. This year he has run with it playing in six games for GKS Tychy. Since then, he has already impacted the boxscore, recording two goals and two assists. If the 6’1 forward continues his upward trend, he could find himself with a larger PHL and national team role. Honorable Mention: Jan Krzyżek

JKH GKS Jastrzębie – Dawid Wróblewski. Jastrzebie has the most young talent of any team in Poland. With that, a lot of the talent has already played more than 50 games, as a lot of the talent has long been promoted to the PHL. Wróblewski saw a lot of action across different Polish junior teams putting up solid production wherever he went. This year, with Jastrzębie not having a team in Poland’s second league, the 6’4 forward was loaned to Polonia Bytom. There he has put up six goals and six assists in eight games. He should be able to start trying to force his way into the Jastrzebie roster. Honorable Mention: Marcin Płachetka

KH GKS Katowice – Maciej Miarka. Miarka joined the Katowice squad after seeing the logjam of goalies in Jastrzebie. In Katowice, the former Poland U18 and U20 goalie should play quite a few games in the PHL this year. In Katowice, the Łódź native will be backing up veteran Slovakian goalie Juraj Šimboch. So far, in two PHL games this season, the 6’1 goalie has a .912 SV%. Including stopping all seven shots, he faced in relief against defending champs GKS Tychy. Honorable Mention: Marcin Wyśnik

KH Energa Toruń – Oskar Bajwenko. Before we knew if this hockey year would go on at all, Toruń had a team mostly of junior players with a few imports and returning veterans. One of the few junior players from that group to earn a contract was Oskar Bajwenko. Bajwenko is a smaller defenseman but not afraid to go into the corners and get physical. He has received a small amount of junior national team consideration. He is a project. He could develop into a tremendous physical defenseman with two-way abilities. He has only played in one game so far in the PHL, but with the start the club has had this season, it is understandable they may not want to change up the lineup. Honorable Mention; Filip Mazurkiewicz

Podhale Nowy Targ – Ernest Bochnak. Nowy Targ came into this season, emphasizing finding new Polish talent and has already tried out quite a few new young players. This includes Ernest Bochnak. Bochnak comes over after time in the Czech and Finnish junior systems. Last year he played most in the third level of Czech hockey, recording two goals and four assists in twenty-two games. Bochnak has long been one of the best Polish junior players. He now has a chance to show that in Podhale. Through eight games, he has two points notching both a goal and an assist. Honorable Mention: Fabian Kapica

Stoczniowiec Gdansk – Michał Zając. I have many feelings about the club and how they will be as a place for developing young talent. The team will undoubtedly provide a lot of value to young players in terms of ice time. Zając is taking advantage of that, playing in each of the team’s games so far. In those ten matches, he has recorded one goal and three assists. This matches his production from last year with PZHL U23 but in a much smaller role. He is making the most of his opportunities. The 6’1 forward would have easily made the Polish U20 squad if not for COVID. Honorable Mention: Bartosz Wołoszyk

STS Sanok – Jakub Bukowski. Sanok is one of the youngest teams in the PHL, leaving many options for this choice. For their pick, I went with Jabuk Bukowski as he is probably the most pro hockey ready. He showed up well in the pre-season and has done well so far in the regular season. He has three goals and one assist. His point total is tied for third on Sanok. The talented forward showed a lot of potential in smaller Czech and Swiss leagues and now has a great chance to show his skills in Poland. He has been given many top line chances in Sanok, giving him an excellent opportunity to develop further. Honorable Mention: Maciej Witan

Unia Oswiecim – Sebastian Lipiński. While I tried to pick less known players for this list, the gap between Lipiński and the rest of the Oswiecim roster was too big. Lipiński is one of the best young goaltenders Poland has seen in a long time, with few rarely even able to play the amount of PHL games he has at his age. So far, in his lone game this season, he posted a 15 save shutout vs. Gdansk. Honorable Mention: Patryk Kusak

Zaglebie Sosnowiec – Marcel Kotuła. Sosnowiec is another team packed with a lot of young talent, but most of their young talent are seasoned veterans of the PHL. As mentioned in Lipinski’s paragraph, young goalies don’t get those chances in the PHL. This season Marcel Kotuła will compete with 24-year-old Michal Czernik for reps. Last year Kotuła led all goalies in save percentage for the Polish first league. So far through four games between the PHL and Polish first league, he has a .917 SV% along with one shutout. Honorable Mention: Szymon Luszniak

Mens Prospects

2020 Top 50 Men’s U23 Players. #50-41

This year was a pivotal year for Polish hockey. For many players that frequented the list last year or in the years past it was onto full-time professional hockey in Poland or testing their skills in another countries highest junior league, while plenty of players arose to challenge and cemented themselves as future pillars of the national team plenty of players couldn’t live up to their expectations causing drastic changes to the rankings.

This is not the time I wanted to start the list, as the World Championship and U18 World Championship are a great way for players to improve their stock, the U18 World Championship being the first significant exposure for a lot of players. Due to the coronavirus, there are no more tournaments, and hockey is done for the year. Polish hockey itself faces an uncertain future as the virus will leave a lasting effect for years to come.

The real world is a very dark and scary place right now, but I want to look forward to the future while stuck at home. The future of the Polish national team is something that fans should be excited about. I have maintained for years that Poland has more young talent right now then it did any other time this century. I still stand by that opinion today. Poland saw their ace prospect prove himself in professional North American hockey, another NHL draft prospect rise, and a vast increase in depth. Today we start our ranking of the top 50 Men’s U23 players in Poland.

Players had to be under the age of 23 and at least 16-years-old on March 27th, 2020. Players are judged based on a combination of career history, current play, and potential. While a majority of the ranking is my own opinion, numerous people in the Polish hockey world contributed their thoughts on players. 140 players were considered for the list and scouted. 80 players received a ranking, players 80-51 will be revealed at the end of the series in the breakdown article. Only the top 50 players receive a scouting report.

Honorable Mentions (In No Order): Adrian Gromadzki (Not eligible due to age, but would have made top 50 if old enough), Bartosz Woloszyk, Adrian Duszak, Wiktor Bochnak, and Patryk Gosztyla

Rank – Player Name (Position), Age During Next Hockey Season, Team (Ranking in 2019, change in ranking)

50 – Patryk Wysocki (D), 21, Antwerp Phantoms, (16, -34)

We start this year’s list off with a major fall. Wysocki started the year in the top Russian junior league with ORG Junior Beijing. The promising stay at home defensemen finished last season with the Chinese junior team that plays in the top Russia junior league after being recruited by Andrei Parfenov, the former head coach of the Polish junior program. Parfenov took a job in the VHL for the 2020 season. While new head coach Yevgeni Yesaulov gave him a chance, in the beginning, the 5’11 Gdansk product eventually disappeared from the lineup.  He played his last game for the team on October 10th, where he played just under six minutes. In early December, he showed up in the Belgium league, recording four assists in 14 games for the Antwerp Phantoms. A step back year for a defenseman that is good enough to be at the top level, but not enough to secure a permanent spot.

49 – Kacper Gruzla (F), 20, MOSM Tychy (Unranked)

Gruzla makes his debut on the list after a promising performance at the U20 World Championship and solid junior league season. Gruzla posted two goals for Poland, one an empty netter,  at the U20 World Championship. He also made his senior debut for GKS Tychy, along with playing in the PHL for PZHL U23. In 15 PHL games, he posted both a goal and assist. His best offensive success came with Mosm Tychy, where he recorded 22 goals and 19 assists in 26 games in Poland’s MHL, which was eighth in the league. Lots of flashes of potential, but he is someone who needs to play against stronger talent more.

48 – Szymon Radzieńciak (D), 20, HC Ocelari Trinec U20, (66, +18)

Radzieńciak is mirroring the development of his brother Grzegorz Radzieńciak. While his brother Grzegorz has flashed more of a two-way game, Radzieńciak is more one dimensional with defensive being his specialty. The 6’2 defensemen represented Poland at the 2018 U18s and was under consideration for a spot on this year’s U20 squad. The long time HC Ocelari Trinec junior player had two assists in 30 DHL games, along with appearing in two games for the PZHL U23 squad.

47 – Mateusz Zieliński (D), 23, KH Torun, (70, +23)

Zieliński took a big jump this year, becoming a larger part of the KH Torun defense. Coming into this season, Zieliński had 11 points in his previous 125 PHL games, this year in 50 games, the 6’0 defensemen had 12 points (3-9-12). This was second among all U23 defensemen for points. He played more and more than handled that challenge, especially as Torun tested plenty of import defensemen that he was able to outplay.

Zieliński

46 – Igor Augustyniak (F), 19, Cracovia Kraków, (59, +13)

Augustyniak moved to the Krakow program this year after spending his entire junior career with Polonia Bytom. In his first year with Krakow, he was able to play more in the PHL, recording six games with Krakow, along with playing nine games for PZHL U23, where he recorded a goal and an assist. This came on top of a great junior league season, where Augustyniak posted 34 points (21-13-34) in 21 games, tied for twelfth in the league. The 5’9 forward should have a strong chance at making Poland’s U20 squad next year.

45 – Szymon Dobosz (F), 18, UKS Sanok, (43, -2)

Dobosz is one of the players that probably suffered the most from the cancellation of the U18s, as he would have no doubt been a leader on that squad. At an earlier U18 tournament in Hungary, he recorded four points (1-3-4) in three games. This year his season was split between PZHL U23, along with both Sanok’s U20 team and their Sovak second Liga team. In the PZHL U23, he recorded one assist in seven games. In Slovakia, he recorded eight points (4-4-8) in 16 games, down from 14 points last year. In limited U20 action, the career Sanok junior player recorded 15 points (8-7-15) in nine games. Dobosz already received U20 squad consideration this year, so I would say he has an outside chance at making it next year.

44 – Marcel Kotuła (G), 19, Zaglebie Sosnowiec, (79, +35)

Last year I feel I didn’t give enough credit to goaltenders on the list, and I wanted to change that for this year. Statistics really don’t paint young goalies in a good light in Poland, given they face 40 plus shots in PZHL U23 games. Kotuła was a victim of that posting a .829 sv% in eight games with PZHL U23. When not on loan to the Polish U23 squad, he was much better. He saved 16 out of 17 shots against Janow in his lone PHL game for Sosnowiec this year and posted a .912 sv% in 18 U20 league games. His .912 sv% was the best among goalies with at least ten matches. He received some U20 squad consideration this season and most likely will have a spot on the squad in 2020.

Kotula

43 – Michał Zając (F), 19, Polonia Bytom, (67, +24)

Zając had a great year despite not being able to log minutes for a club in the PHL. In ten games with PZHL U23, he posted 4 points (2-2-4). In a season where PZHL U23 didn’t have many consistent offensive options, this was tied for third on the team in scoring. He also appeared on the Poland U18 team that plays in the Czech third-tier u20 league, where he posted eight points (5-3-8) in seven games. He also played for Polonia Bytom in Poland’s MHL recording another eight points (3-5-8) in ten games. He had some early U20 consideration and should be a strong candidate for next season. He is a good goal scorer, but a lot of his game needs refinement.

42 – Maciej Miarka (G), 19, JKH GKS Jastrzebie, (51, +9)

The main reason why Miarka is rising this year is me wanting to give goalies more credit, but I would call this a season Miarka might just want to bury and forget. It seemed no matter where the Lodz native went, he was lit up with not much help. He posted a .847 sv% for PZHL U23 in ten games as the team’s main goalie. Then at the U20 World Championship, in back-up duty, Miarka posted a .775 SV%, Poland needed a third-string with how bad he and Lipinski performed. In his two junior games, he posted a .891 sv% allowing 8 goals in two games. His lone bright spot came in five third-tier Czech U20 league games, where he posted .092 GAA. A season to forget for a very young and talented goalie who showed how promising they are at the U18 level previously.

41 – Armen Khoperia (D), 20, Zaglebie Sosnowiec, (32, -9)

Armen Khoperia dropped in the rankings through nothing of his own fault, just the inject of new talent and players making larger jumps. Khoperia had a great year becoming a full-time PHL defenseman at just 19-years-old. In 38 games between PZHL U23 and Zaglebie Sosnowiec, with a majority coming with Sosnowiec, the 6’2 defensemen posted four points (1-3-4). Khoperia is really developing well and should start working his way towards becoming a member of the senior national team. He represented Poland at the U20 World Championships this year, posting two assists in five games.

Khoperia

Players 40-31

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