In recent years, the Calgary Flames have built a prospect pool that has been highly respected in the competition. Copied by the obvious in Zayne Parekh and the recently set up Cole Rschy. The swimming pool of the Flames is aged to great depth in the system. While a majority is happy with the prospects that the flames have, one that has fueled controversy in Samuel Honzek.
Honzek had debates around him, stem from the moment he was drawn up. Is seen as a safer choice in a concept with tons of high upward prospects was the first factor. Now, with injuries, making the opening night schedule and what Zo-Zo Production, Honzek is the subject of many conversations around the flames.
Honzek’s career so far
Honzek went to Noord -America from his home country of Slovakia just in time for his design year. He would become a member of the Vancouver Giants and serve as one of the top players in the team. Honzek fought with injuries during the season, but ended with 56 points in 43 games. The combination of size, raw skill and good production slots Honzek to be in the first round of the first round of the 2023 design. With the 16th overall choice, the Flames would run to the stage and select Honzek.
After he was set up, Honzek would go back to the WHL. He was ready to be the most important attacking weapon for the Giants and would certainly take steps, especially to the middle. Unfortunately, Honzek would be injured in a preview match against the Edmonton Oilers. The injury brought him offside until the end of November in 2023. In general, Honzek would only play 33 games, never completely recovering from his injury. He would produce 31 points in those games.
Honzek would follow his disappointing season with a number of great signs. With a huge preseason performance, Honzek made the opening night schedule of the Flames of the 2024-25 season. Honzek was again injured in his fourth game. On return 13 days later he played another game. Honzek saw a bit surpassed for the NHL level and was sent to the AHL to play for the Calgary Wranglers. Honzek would score his first professional goal in his seasonal debut for the Wranglers. In the next 40 games he scored 18 points until he broke his ankle and was sidelined for a month. When he returned from the mentioned injury, Honzek would hit a bit of a malaise with only three points in 12 games.
Honzek is a prospect with which you must be patient
Injury
Look, should Honzek be further ahead of his production? Probably. But is it time to completely write it off? Not at all. Honzek has not had a career that sails smoothly. Since his concept year, Honzek has been given an unfortunate injury every season. Sometimes, even several injuries per year. Is it fair to worry, especially about his sustainability? Absolute. However, the Flames went this chance when they set it up. Taking a prospect that has sustained a terrible Achilles with a difficult recovery will always be at risk. He was sidelined for two months and missed crucial development in his concept season. The Flames decided to believe him, despite the high risk of continuous injuries.
In the past three seasons, Honzek has missed the crucial time in his development. About 25 games in his concept year, about 30 games the following year and 15 games this previous season. That is in the reach of 70 missed competitions in the most important years of development! There is a reason why Honzek could be behind the production of production. Players do not fully cure completely of injuries and Honzek is no different. He is certainly injuries that get stuck, and a consistent annual injuries will never help.
A chance to rebound
It is fair to look at the development of Honzek so far and to be disappointed about it. But you have to weigh why it could get some disappointment. Moreover, he is only 21 years old. Honzek still has time to rebound and to get himself back on the right track.
Heck, Connor Zary had a similar first taste that was considered faint, while he was only a few months older than Honzek. Then he returned the following year in a big way and then won our heart the following year. Zary had a better junior production, but we still have to give Honzek the same chance to bounce back, hopefully completely healthy.
I think if Honzek will have such a season next year, a panic can start to establish what Honzek can really be. But next season still has to come, and until that time we have to be patient. It was really lost in time that Honzek had a large preseason that brought him a place on the opening night schedule. Something that nobody predicted. He was ready for a strong year until the injury derailed him again.
Potential is still at Honzek
Temper expectations
Something about Honzek is that he would never be expected to have a super high potential. He should not be someone who took you on the 16th in general and then played your franchise price. The common consensus was that he fitted in the bill of a Middle Seat attacker, perhaps someone who reaches the top six. He was too and is still an incredibly raw prospect. I always thought there was a chance that Honzek could be a top-line forward, but he should almost be perfectly developed because of how raw his skills were. Now it seems that it is out of the window, but he still has his way to that Middle Seat projection.
It is not like the 16th general pick has a broad history of making great players. There are a number of great players such as Dave Andreychuk, Markus Naslund, Vladimir Tarasenko and Mathew Barzal, but most 16th general picks are in that middle-six reach. The issue that people had with the Honzek selection was that they liked other prospects more. I was guilty of this, but now it is two years ago and the Flames have developed their prospect pool enormously. All that can still be done is Honzek full trust and patience.
The skill is still there
It was said that Honzek pronounced the skill of a lanky force. A good shot, good play, good hands and a strong attitude. Many said Bulken would be a great step for Honzek. Much of this is still the same today. Honzek still has characteristics of potential in his shot, passing, hands, puck protection and attitude.
An area where I believe that Honzek has taken considerable steps is in his skates. This really turned out to me to me in the preseason. He moved with much more pace and speed, which was well mixed with his reinforced posture. I think this can really be seen at its peak-reel goal. Playing with a high consciousness to attack the puck with speed, then to be in a one-on-one situation and to load around the opponent with strong legs for the goal. This improved skating, mixed with his puck protection and hands, is what I believe it is the goal for Honzek to succeed.
Many of these characteristics still showed in Honzek’s little Stint in the NHL. He was surpassed, and it became clear that what Ahl was the path. Nevertheless, he skated with confidence and had successful attempts to use his body in effective ways. Both were great things to see for a prospect that came from a big injury.
It is not yet necessary to completely panic
Samuel Honzek has always been a prospect that caused a conversation between Flames fans, from the moment he was drawn up. His career has not been the most beautiful, plagued by injuries. It left him in a place where some have been disappointed in the development they have seen. However, this was a chance that the flames were willing to set him up.
For some, things can look bad, but there is still a lot of time for Honzek to get back on the right track. The positive points of his game have done quite a good job by wearing the big competitions, even with some improvement in his skates. It even flashed in the NHL games where he was surpassed.
Panic is not yet necessary when it comes to Honzek. There is a small chance that a player will immediately bounce back from injury, and we saw that with Honzek. There is a solid chance that Honzek has not been completely healthy since his concept year. He has the timeline to recover and to fully set himself on track and to let the worries wash away.
The expectations must also be tempered. He was never really a prospect with a high ceiling and was seen as a safer choice. That should make it much easier to tolerate a mediocre production line to date. And it is also not as the skill is blurred. To be honest, he has more skill than when he was drawn up. With everything that is being considered, Honzek is a prospect that we must be patient.
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