Predators Select Six Players in 2021 NHL Draft

Nashville, Tenn. (July 24, 2021) - The Nashville Predators made six selections in the 2021 NHL Draft from the team's draft headquarters at Bridgestone Arena, taking three forwards and three defensemen.
"We were very pleased with the way this year's draft went," Predators Assistant General Manager/Director of Scouting Jeff Kealty said. "Before the draft we tried to implement a strategy and go into it with that in mind, and we felt we did that. We're very excited about everyone we picked."
The draft's first night saw the Predators take two players in the first round for just the second time in franchise history and the first time since 2008.

With the 19th overall pick, the Predators selected forward Fedor Svechkov from Lada Togliatti of the Russian second league. Svechkov, 18 (4/5/03), was the sixth-rated European skater in NHL Central Scouting's pre-draft rankings and is the second consecutive Russian-born player selected in the first round by the Predators after the team picked goaltender Iaroslav Askarov at No. 11 overall in 2020. The 6-foot, 179-pound forward spent most of the 2020-21 campaign with Lada Togliatti, where he tallied 15 points (5g-10a) in 38 games; he also produced at a point-per-game pace for Togliatti's squad in the Russian junior league, tallying 15 points (4g-11a) in 15 contests. Internationally, the Togliatti, Russia, native helped his country earn a silver medal in the 2021 World U-18 Championship. Playing at center in the tournament, Svechkov was fourth on his team in points with 10 (4g-6a) in seven contests. He is expected to skate for the KHL's SKA Saint Petersburg alongside Askarov in the 2021-22 season.
"We knew about Fedor heading into the World U-18 Championship, but he really caught our eye in his first game there," Predators Chief Amateur Scout Tom Nolan said. "He's a big kid and stays over pucks - it's almost like he has Velcro on his stick, he never loses the puck. We're excited to have our development staff get over to Russia and work with him at a closer level as he progresses in all three zones of the ice."
Later in the first round, the Predators acquired from the 27th overall pick from the Carolina Hurricanes for the 40th and 51st overall picks in the 2021 NHL Draft and selected forward Zachary L'Heureux. The 18 year old (5/15/03) is a product of the QMJHL's Halifax Mooseheads, where in the 2020-21 campaign was second among team skaters in points (39), goals (19) and penalty minutes (47) and was fourth in assists (20). It was the 5-foot-11, 196-pound forward's second full QMJHL season; he tallied 53 points (20g-33a) in 55 games as a rookie in 2019-20 with the Moncton Wildcats. In addition to skating for Canada at the 2019 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, the Montreal, Que., represented his province at the 2019 Canada Winter Games and scored the game-winning goal in overtime of the championship game vs. Ontario.
"We were very high on Zachary, and the reason is simple - he brings something different to the game," Predators North American Amateur Scout J-P Glaude said. "He has got a unique package of skill, grit and character. He's hard to play against and he'll be there for his teammates. We felt players like him are hard to find, and when you add in the skills he has, we are pretty excited to have been able to draft him."
The Predators made another trade in the third round, sending the 83rd and 147th overall picks in the 2021 NHL Draft to the Hurricanes for the 72nd overall pick, which was used to select defenseman Anton Olsson from Malmö of the Swedish Hockey League. Olsson, 18 (1/26/03), skated in his first full SHL season in 2020-21 and appeared in 39 games, the second-most among league U-19 blueliners, while adding four assists and a +2 rating. He also dressed in seven games for Malmö's squad in Sweden's junior league, where he posted four points (1g-3a). Internationally, the Helsingborn, Sweden, native recorded three assists in seven games for his country at the 2021 World U-18 Championship, earning a bronze medal and a top-3 player on his team nod.
"Our organization really liked his play, and we felt we needed to be aggressive to trade up and get a player we really liked," Predators European Scout Lucas Bergman said. "He's a high character kid, a two-way defenseman who is a very good skater. He makes a terrific first pass and can join the rush, which is something we're looking for him to do even more as he gets older."
Nashville selected defenseman Ryan Ufko from the USHL's Chicago Steel with its first of two picks in the fourth round (115th overall). Ufko, 18 (5/7/03), is currently attending USA Hockey's World Junior Summer Showcase before entering his freshman season at UMass Amherst in the fall. The 5-foot-10, 181-pound right-shot blueliner won the USHL's Clark Cup with Chicago in the 2020-21 campaign after posting 39 points (10g-29a) in 53 games, a 30-point improvement from his first season in the league (2g-7a). Ufko, a Smithtown, N.Y., native, earned USHL First All-Star Team honors for his performance with the Steel last season.
"He's an undersized, agile-skating, smart, puck-moving two-way defenseman," Predators North American Amateur Scout Dave Westby said. "He has a really high hockey IQ. He can go back and get pucks and make a smart first pass; he can also run the power play and get shots through. In his defending, he's really hard to play against, and we're happy to have him."
With their second pick of the fourth round (124th overall), the Predators selected 6-foot-4 defenseman Jack Matier from the OHL's Ottawa 67's. He only skated in seven games this season - all coming at the 2021 World U-18 Championship - due to the OHL canceling its campaign, and is a year removed from posting nine points (9a) in 56 contests as a rookie with Ottawa in 2019-20. The Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., native helped lead Canada to a gold medal in April's U-18 tournament, recording an assist and a +1 rating. His father, Mark, won two OHL titles and a Memorial Cup during a three-year tenure with Sault Ste. Marie from 1990-93.
"He addresses one of our needs as a big, 6-foot-4 defenseman who is mobile and effective in his defending style," Predators North American Amateur Scout Matt Paton said. "He's hard to get around, blocks shots and plays hard on the penalty kill. He wasn't able to play in the OHL this past season, but we saw him at the U-18 tournament and loved his size and skating ability. He's a great asset for us moving forward."
Zurich, Switzerland, native Simon Knak was chosen with Nashville's sixth and final pick of the 2021 NHL Draft at 179th overall (sixth round). Knak, 19 (1/27/02), split the 2020-21 campaign between the WHL's Portland Winterhawks and the Swiss National League's HC Davos, appearing in a combined 49 games. He made his National League debut skating for Davos, where he posted eight points (3g-5a) in 25 appearances; then spent the remainder of the season with Portland and tallied 29 points (16g-13a), five shy of matching his career high of 34 (9g-25a) set in 2019-20 in 25 fewer games played. The 6-foot-1, 194-pound forward has twice competed at the World Junior Championship for Switzerland, most recently in the 2021 version of the tournament. Knak was named one of his country's top-3 players in the competition after captaining his squad and recording a goal in four contests.
"We were pretty happy to get him, especially as late as we did," Predators North American Amateur Scout Glen Sanders said. "He's a very strong power forward who drives the net. With all the culture-type things we've trying to do with this draft, we wanted someone who has character and will, and he has all that."
The Predators' hockey operations staff now turns their focus to the start of free agency, which begins on Wednesday, July 28 at 11 a.m. CT.