Rangers use several draft picks for tough, gritty centermen
Adam Sykora, 63rd overall pick by the Rangers, poses for a portrait during the 2022 NHL Draft at Bell Centre on Friday in Montreal. Credit: Getty Images/Minas Panagiotakis
MONTREAL — The Rangers went to the 2022 NHL Draft without a first-round pick. But they had a plan.
Draft centers. And make sure they’re gritty and physical.
“There’s always a premium on centers,’’ director of player personnel and amateur scouting John Lilley said Friday after the Rangers made six picks on the second day of the draft at Montreal’s Bell Centre. “We targeted a few centermen along the way, and the way the list fell, those were the players we selected.’’
With their first pick of the draft — their own second-rounder and the No. 63 selection overall — the Rangers took 17-year-old forward Adam Sykora, a center/left wing from Slovakia who was one of four Slovaks taken in the top two rounds. Three were taken in the first round, with winger Juraj Slafkovsky going No. 1 overall to the Montreal Canadiens, defenseman Simon Nemec No. 2 overall to the Devils and winger Filip Mesar No. 26 overall to the Canadiens.
“I’m so proud of the guys,’’ said Sykora, no relation to former Devils forward Petr Sykora. “The best draft for Slovakia. And I tried to enjoy the time with them.’’
Sykora, who had 10 goals and seven assists in 46 games for HK Nitra of the Slovakian pro league, played for the Slovakian team at the World Championships in Finland. He had two goals and an assist in six games at the tournament.
“What a special kid,’’ Slovakia coach Craig Ramsay told The Associated Press. “I was so happy I took him as a 17-year-old [to the tournament]. He didn’t play the first two games and then he stepped in and played so hard. When he scored his first goal, the whole bench went crazy because he’s such a great kid.’’
He may be a great kid to his teammates, but the 5-11, 174-pounder probably won’t be well-liked by opponents. His favorite NHL player is Boston Bruins pest Brad Marchand, who is one of the most hated players in the league because of his chippy play and snarky trash talk.
“I really like Brad Marchand . . . because he’s like a rat and he isn’t scared of bigger players,’’ Sykora said.
Asked if he is a rat like Marchand, he laughed. “I try to play that way,’’ he said.
In the third round, with the 97th pick overall — acquired Thursday from the Colorado Avalanche in the Alexandar Georgiev trade — the Rangers took 18-year-old Bryce McConnell-Barker, a 6-1, 193-pound center with the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League. McConnell-Barker, who had 23 goals and 26 assists in 68 games, described himself as “a two-way centerman.’’
“I’d say I’m really good defensively in my own zone, and offensively I can also produce and put up points and score goals and make nice plays when I need to,’’ he said.
With their fourth-round pick (No. 111), the Rangers chose 6-2, 191-pound center Noah Laba from the Lincoln Stars of the USHL. And with their two fifth-rounders — one their own and the other coming from Colorado in the Georgiev trade — the Rangers took 20-year-old defenseman Vittorio Mancini of the University of Nebraska-Omaha and left wing Maxim Barbashev, the brother of St. Louis Blues forward Ivan Barbashev.
Barbashev, a 6-1, 183-pounder, said he tries to model his game after his brother’s, and Lilley said he plays “a hard game.’’
“He plays a physical game, north-south,’’ Lilley said. “We’re excited to get his physicality and his heaviness.’’
The Rangers’ final pick, in the sixth round, No. 191 overall, was 20-year-old Harvard center Zakary Karpa, whose father, Dave, played for the Rangers for parts of two seasons in 2001-03.
2nd round (No. 63): Adam Sykora
Position: C/LW. Shoots left
Height: 5-11
Weight: 174
Date of Birth: September 7, 2004
2021-22: Nitra (Slovakia). 46 games, 10 goals, 7 assists. 6 penalty minutes
Scouting report: Physical, two-way forward who plays a physical game despite modest size. Emulates Boston Bruins winger Brad Marchand, who he says, “plays like a rat.’’
3rd round (No. 97): Bryce McConnell-Barker
Position: C. Shoots left
Height: 6-1
Weight: 194
Date of Birth: June 4, 2004
2021-22 Team: Soo Greyhounds (OHL). 68 games, 23 goals, 26 assists. 14 penalty minutes.
Scouting report: Strong defensive center has a good shot, good speed, and a good work ethic. Emulates Boston Bruins C Patrice Bergeron and Tampa Bay forward Ondrej Palat.
4th round (No. 111): Noah Laba
Position: C. Shoots right
Height: 6-2
Weight: 192
Date of Birth: August 4, 20
2021-22: Lincoln Stars (USHL). 50 games, 15 goals, 24 assists. 115 penalty minutes.
Scouting report: Another physical center. Headed to Colgate University in the fall.
5th round (No. 159): Vittorio Mancini
Position: D. Shoots right
Height: 6-3
Weight: 216
Date of Birth: May 26, 2002
2021-22 Team: Nebraska-Omaha (NCAA). 38 games, 0 goals, 5 assists. 26 penalty minutes.
Scouting report: Twenty-year-old played two seasons of junior hockey for Frolunda in Sweden, before returning to the USHL. Will stay at Nebraska-Omaha in 2022-23.
5th round (No. 161): Maxim Barbashev
Position: LW. Shoots left
Height: 6-1 Weight: 183
Date of Birth: December 18, 2003
2021-22 Team: Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL). 69 games, 15 goals, 27 assists. 66 penalty minutes.
Scouting report: Physical, body-banging forward and tough-to-move net-front presence. Good passer with a good shot, but needs to improve his defensive game.
6th round (No. 191): Zakary Karpa
Position: C. Shoots left
Height: 6-2
Weight: 185
Date of Birth: March 25, 2
2021-22 Team: Harvard (NCAA). 33 games, 6 goals, 6 assists. 6 penalty minutes.
Scouting report: Physical, two-way center. Dad Dave played a couple seasons for the Rangers in the early 2000s.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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