St. Louis Blues draft forward Dalibor Dvorsky No. 10 overall in 2023 NHL Draft

The St. Louis Blues drafted Slovakian forward Dalibor Dvorsky No. 10 overall in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft on Wednesday.

Dvorsky is considered one of the top European skaters in this year’s draft and will immediately become one of the top prospects in the Blues organization.

The 18-year-old has played with AIK against seasoned professionals in Sweden’s second tier of hockey for the past two seasons.

Dvorksy’s size (6-foot-1, 201 lbs) and well-rounded offensive skill set have intrigued teams throughout the scouting process. He has a strong shot and creative streak on offense that could make him a solid second-line center in the NHL.

“He had his up and down moments this year, but the highs were really high,” Daily Faceoff’s prospect analyst Steven Ellis said. “Internationally, he’s always a standout. He’ll spend the next two years in Sweden, where I think he’ll be able to work on his consistency and scoring touch.”

Knocks on Dvorsky are his skating and ability to create chances for himself; his tools give him a high floor, but scouts are unsure whether the forward could evolve into a true top-line player.

The Blues have plenty of time to figure that out: despite his 6 goals and 14 points in 38 games for AIK last season, Dvorsky only turned 18 earlier this month.

Most outlets graded Dvorsky as a top-ten prospect leading up to the draft because of his high floor and well-rounded game.

If Dvorsky can show more of the confidence that netted him 8 goals and 13 points against the best prospects in the world at the IIHF World Juniors earlier this season, his ceiling has plenty of room to grow as well.

St. Louis may not have drafted one of this draft’s most eye-popping forwards; if they have locked in a reliable future top-six forward in Dvorsky, that will not matter.