‘Just Keep Working Hard’: Samuel Honzek Reflects on 1st Round Selection
Samuel Honzek knows size and skill can only get you so far.
While those two attributes certainly played a factor in his first-round selection in last month’s NHL Entry Draft, the 6-foot-4, 195 lb. forward knows that signing his entry-level contract earlier this week with the Calgary Flames is just the beginning of what will be a long journey.
“There’s still lots of work in front of me,” the Vancouver Giants forward said from his home in Trencin, Slovakia. “I have to just keep working hard because this is just, I would say a fresh start for me, and there’s still a long way for me [to go].”
The towering forward came over to North America last summer after being selected 10th overall in the 2022 CHL Import Draft.
With 13 points in his first 11 games, it didn’t take the Slovak long to get acclimatized to playing in the Lower Mainland. He really caught fire in November, when he recorded seven goals and 13 assists for 20 points in just 10 games. But it was more than just his point totals – 56 points in 43 games by season’s end – that he thinks caught the Flames attention.
“I developed lots of areas of my game [this season] – I think I kind of became a little bit of a pro [style] player,” Honzek said. “I think they’re really excited about my shot and my size and my skating… and I think maybe even that I’m a good leader in the locker room and on the ice, so I think those are the reasons why I was picked.”
So what was it like to hear your name called in the first round of the NHL Draft, back on June 28?
“It felt unreal. I think this one moment, I wish everyone could feel it,” Honzek said with a big smile. “I was just trying to act normal. Don’t like fall down the stairs or something.”
Honzek said there were definitely some things he didn’t process in the moment.
“[Giants teammate] Jaden Lipinski was there, he hugged me and I didn’t even know I hugged him because it was so crazy, my emotions,” he said. “After the photos were done, when I walked off the stage, then I kind of realized ‘Oh I have a jersey on and it’s Calgary.'”
Honzo's #NHLDraft night – a whirlwind and he wouldn't have it any other way. pic.twitter.com/LpIwgVkbzm
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) June 29, 2023
Calgary was indeed the team that picked not only Honzek, but also Lipinski the very next day, with the 112th overall selection.
“Honestly I was telling my dad, ‘listen, now imagine [if] Calgary picked another Giant, just imagine that.’ I told my dad this exactly before their [fourth] round pick,” Honzek said. “Then Jaden was called, I was like, ‘oh my god’, like we were freaking out. So it’s really cool. And I think it’s really good to have him there and in the same organization…I’m happy for him.”
Honzek was one of eight Slovakian players to be selected in the draft. He was one of just two first-round picks, along with Dalibor Dvorský, who went 10th overall to the St. Louis Blues. Last year, three Slovaks were picked in the first round, including the first and second overall picks.
This recent wave of Slovakians carving a path to the NHL has Honzek excited to maybe one day play against some of his fellow countrymen.
“It was obviously really good to see them get drafted and also I’m really happy that everyone got drafted by different teams,” he said. “Not many guys on the same team, which makes more Slovakian players on different teams. So I’m kind of happy that maybe I can play everyone…if I’m in the NHL in a couple years, then we can play each other a lot. So that’s a good thing.”
The very next week after the draft, Honzek attended his first NHL development camp, along with Giants teammate Lipinski and 36 other prospects.
From July 5-11, players participated in on-ice sessions, including small area games and skill work, plus a 3-on-3 tournament. The team also took everyone to Sulphur Mountain in Banff and let them ride horses as part of the Calgary Stampede.
While his favourite off-ice moment was the horseback riding (it was his first time), Honzek said the coolest on-ice memory was when he got some advice from Flames legend and first ballot Hockey Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla.
“He said I had a really good shot and I can build on it, and gave me some tips to improve,” Honzek recalled. “He said he would like to see me come back to main camp doing those things he told me.
“That’s something you can really take to your heart and work on. It was really for me a pleasure to meet him.”
CALGARY, AB – JULY 6, 2023: The Calgary Flames Development Camp at Winsport on Thursday. (Photo by Jenn Pierce/Calgary Flames)
Currently home visiting family in Slovakia, it won’t be long before Honzek heads back to Calgary and gets back on the ice.
There, he and Lipinski will both take advantage of training resources they wouldn’t have had access to before getting drafted.
“It will be probably five days a week: workout off the ice in the gym, as well as ice practices with our skating coach,” Honzek said. “It’s going to be just focused on our development and strength and skating and that stuff, so I think it’s going to be good to be there. They can keep an eye on us and you know, kind of track and help us to develop [how] they want. So I think it’s a good thing and I think it will help me.”
