Adam Novotny is a winger who has slowly started to get more traction as the season went on. While he was seen as a fun story as he followed a familiar path from Europe to the CHL and had some potential, during the second half of his campaign with the OHL’s Peterborough Petes, he started to get so much more attention and is now seen as a player who should at the very least go in the first two-thirds of the first round later this month.

While it’s not the most well-tread road, Novotny came over to North America for his draft year like some other top European prospects have in the past — Leon Draisaitl and Zdeno Chara are the first two that come to mind, who graced the WHL with some future Hall-of-Fame play. And similar to other top prospects like Marco Rossi and Nico Hischier — okay, now we’re just naming European prospects who played in the CHL — Novotny did actually play in the top domestic division during his Draft-1 season.

He could have settled with playing in the Czech Extraliga for a Mountfield HK team, that actually ended up finishing fourth in the table, and not really being able to put up a lot of points but have scouts try and peel apart the details of his game. But Novotny went ahead and came to the OHL so that scouts could get a much closer look and his production could pop off.

And that it did. Novotny led the Petes in both goals (34) and points (65) and his 1.12 points per game ranked fourth among all Draft-eligible skaters in the OHL this past season. The numbers are there enough for it to not look so strange of him being a solid first-round talent, but what about everything else?

Pre-draft rankings 

Ranked #14 by NHL Central Scouting (NA Skaters)
Ranked #14 by Elite Prospects
Ranked #18 by The Athletic (Scott Wheeler)
Ranked #16 by Sportsnet (Jason Bukala)
Ranked #18 by Daily Faceoff

Statistics

What’s there to like?

If you needed just a few words to understand Novotny’s whole game, it can be simplified to being a modern power forward that can use his size to get into the inside of the ice and scores goals from high-danger areas but is also more confident in his ability than his thought process.

Okay, that was more than just a few words but we hope that it does just a little bit of the trick.

Novotny consistently showcased his size and physical tools while in the OHL this past season. By taking a step down in the level of play and facing off against his peers instead of grown men in Czechia, he is able to be that bully in a productive way. It was never purposeless aggression or physicality for Novotny, but he used his body to his advantage to make an impact in all three zones of the ice.

By either clearing up space and protecting pucks in the offensive zone, or going heavy on the forecheck and disrupting a breakout, Novotny really showcased how he could turn into that type of winger that just excels in so many small areas of the ice and could be beloved by coaches in the NHL. If I were to personally put a stamp on him and maybe make a comparison to the modern NHL — while it is not a preference, since every player is slightly unique — Novotny is build from an Alex Tuch mold. The type of player that really makes your team better on both sides of the puck and if they are not getting on the score sheet or even gets any possession of the puck, is still making an impact.

But it’s not all rough-and-tumble play like we expect from some grinders. There is plenty of soft skill that can make him a top-six winger in the NHL, or at the very least a scoring threat in the middle six on a very good team.

If you catch Novotny on a good day, there is really no thinking what his ceiling could be. He fits the profile of everything that you want: Size, speed, skill, and work ethic on and off the puck. While other winger prospects might draw concerns of their game translating to the NHL, or is too small or not crafty enough, Novotny just has a total package that screams playing at least 200 or so games in some role in the big leagues. He might not be your best player, or he might just sink into being someone like Marcus Johansson on the third line of a contending team a decade from now, but he’s going to make some sort of impact on a whole lot of nights.

What’s not to like?

Enough of the glowing praise, because there are some aspects of Novotny’s game that some might not really like.

For all the physicality that he has, he uses it in a more scoring-oriented way and a more thoughtful way. While sometimes, if a player is that aggressive on the forecheck or is using their body that way, then they are expected to also be able to muck it up and have that edge to their game to then be labeled as a power forward. Maybe we can say the Tkachuks ruined it for him, that he can’t just now be a Blake Wheeler-esque big-bodied winger that doesn’t really drop the gloves that often. Of course Wheeler is a lofty goal, but someone made from that archetype.

In general, Novotny is a do-before-think type of player. He has so many of the physical tools that most prospects dream of having, but the execution isn’t perfect yet. There is an inconsistency issue with the 18-year-old winger but while we see that as a negative right now, that can be ironed out as he develops further and it wouldn’t surprise us if he’s seen as someone who should’ve probably been drafted higher.

How would he fit in the Flyers’ system? 

Adding Novotny to this current Flyers prospect pool would set them up fairly well. Sure, he’s not the center or defenseman that they could use, but considering that Denver Barkey and Alex Bump look to have made the NHL on a full-time basis, the next wave of offensively gifted players for the Flyers might not come in all that strong, with Max Westergard and Jack Murtagh being the most offense-oriented players coming up and they are years and years away.

Novotny would be able to be instantly at the top of that pile of players and wouldn’t even be banging on the door to the NHL for a couple years from now. And by then, maybe the Flyers traded away two or three wingers to address holes elsewhere on the roster, or some young players really didn’t pan out like they expected. And it only benefits them more that Novotny really plays a modern Flyers style of game.

Could the Flyers actually get him?

There have been a few mock drafts that have the Flyers selecting Novotny with the 21st overall pick, so it is certainly possible. It all depends if there are other teams above them that truly believe in the raw power skills and his ability to make them translate to the pro level.

And, the elephant in the room is that he is a winger. While we can always say just to draft the best player available, it could cause some pause in the Flyers front office if they were to use this pick on a winger while there still remains a sizeable hole for a high-potential center or solid defenseman prospect to add to the blue line pipeline. But, Novotny could be a heck of a player right when the Flyers could use some more scoring talent coming through.

Anyways, yeah, it’s possible.

What scouts are saying 

“Novotny is one of the biggest rollercoaster rides of the year for me. For long stretches of games until recently, I was wondering what the heck happened to him after coming across the pond. It seems that a quick run to another successful World Junior tournament playing a significant role rebooted his “try hard” meter because the last few times I’ve seen him, he’s simply been outstanding. Dynamic, aggressive, making great forechecking reads, generating a ton of offense from scoring areas, chipping in through the neutral zone off the puck well, there’s plenty to love. His puck carrying results leave a lot to be desired, skating into pressure and trying to do too much himself with 50% of his attempts being carries with under a 50% success rate. Novotny, like others in this tier, is about his potential if he hits. Like others, the shot selection and defensive zone involvement needs improvement, as does his hockey sense through the neutral zone, but he’s one of a small handful of players who can seize a possession and dominate his competition, chaining play after play together generating excellent offensive results when all is said and done. I’ve got a few more games to watch and track of him, so there’s still room for him to shift around, and it may be somewhat significant, but the best moments are so, so good. I’m just constantly reminded of supremely individually talented wingers who need some development in the finer details like a Noel Gunler, and worry there’s a similar case in Novotny, but past traumas can’t prevent current excitement. If I get hurt again, so be it, and I can see how it might happen, but Novotny has taken a turn for the better in my experience, and the excitement in his game is worth betting on.”
–Will Scouch, scouching.ca

“Novotny is a 6-foot-1, pro-built winger with a short but very powerful skating stride and legit speed. He’s also decently skilled offensively and plays the game with confidence as a shooter. He’s already strong, sturdy and stocky, with a thick lower half built to absorb bumps and play through contact. He has a feel for the game and enough smarts on and off the puck, with a good sense of where to be and go, though those attributes are more average. He can drive the net and make plays to the interior for himself, but also functions well off his linemates as a catch-and-release, push-and-pop type. He has a pro curl-and-drag wrister and good hands in tight to his body. He can make plays off his backhand. He breaks up plays and works. He’s committed to playing the right way and supporting the play in the right spots. He’s just a good player, and he plays a competitive game for a young player. There’s a lot to like about his combination of tools, and he’s going to have a long pro career. He’s a player, and his shot generation has been really strong across levels. Some wonder if he has enough playmaking/IQ to be more than just a 20-goal, 40-point middle-six winger, but I think he can become a valuable version of that player and belongs in the teens of this class. I do wonder if he’s a little maxed out. I did think about having him a little higher here, though, and do like the player, as most do.”
–Scott Wheeler, The Athletic

Next up is yet another very fast riser in the 2026 NHL Draft, as he is now someone who has been mocked to go in the top 10 despite not being ranked there until just the last few weeks. It’s Wyatt Cullen of the U.S. National Team Development Program.

“He’s an offensive thinker who can pull you in with his blend of footwork and stick work and then beat you one-on-one the first time or open you up to put a puck into space for a teammate on the next. He has inside and outside edges in full control. He has deception. He can be direct or play out wide. His eyes are always up. And while there are times when he can play one-on-one too much and turn pucks over, you want him playing with freedom because he can make the big play.”
-Scott Wheeler, The Athletic

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