Matous Kucharcik — 2025 NHL Draft Prospect Profile

Outside of the offensive zone, Kucharcik plays a strong defensive game. When he is fully engaged in the play, he uses an active stick and his vision to help place himself in the right position to break up a play and to help support his defensemen. The biggest concern with his defensive game is that his size and motor limit him a bit. He’s not built to go into the corners or along the boards and battle it out with opponents, and he tends to struggle to stay engaged in the play.

Kucharcik had a solid showing for Czechia at the Under-18 World Championship, playing on the Czechs’ top line while also looking strong on the power play, even though he only recorded one point in the tournament. If he can bulk up frame-wise and become more of an engaged player at both ends of the ice, he will make an NHL organization happy that they took a chance on him in this year’s draft.

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Matous Kucharcik — NHL Draft Projection

Kucharcik will likely hear his name called in the middle part of the draft, most likely in the fourth or fifth round. His defensive game could help him get picked earlier than expected, but the inconsistency with his play should see him be selected in either of these rounds.

Quotables

“Standing out with his size and puck possession ability, Kucharcik supports play well on both sides of the puck and displays flashes of skill that suggest untapped upside. He’s consistently on the defensive side of the puck, showing strong instincts in his own zone and a willingness to block shots and disrupt plays with an active stick.” – Kohen Willis Dengler, FC Hockey (From ‘Pardubice Jr vs Slava Jr’, FC Hockey – 3/19/2025)

“Skating-wise, he isn’t impressive, playing a low-paced game and lacking explosiveness. He had some nice deceptive moves to gain pace and made some nice plays on the power play where he played in the right circle. There were some playmaking flashes there I liked. Kucharcik could be an interesting player for the later rounds in the draft. His lack of pace makes the projection risky but at the same time, he is a smart player with good size.” – Lassi Alanen, Elite Prospects

Strengths

Under Construction- Improvements to Make

NHL Potential

Kucharcik has shown flashes of being a dependable two-way player in Czechia. If he can continue to work on his consistency and work ethic, there is a chance he can develop himself into a bottom-six player for an NHL organization.

Risk-Reward Analysis

Risk: 3/5 Reward: 4/5

Fantasy Hockey Potential

Offense: 5/10 Defense: 6/10

Awards/Achievements

Matous Kucharcik Stats

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