This is one of the craziest stats of the season. On February 7, 80 recruiters from the National Hockey League (NHL) attended the Swiss League match, the second division championship of Swiss hockey, between HC Thurgau and Winterthur. The press box at the Güttingersreuti, the ice rink in Weinfelden, was too small to accommodate them all and some followed the match standing in the middle of the audience. All these “scouts” were there to observe Simas Ignatavicius, an 18-year-old striker that Genève-Servette sent to Thurgau during the three weeks when the National League was on break due to the Olympic tournament.
There are many other very surprising things in the journey of the season’s revelation: born in Memphis, Tennessee, Simas Ignatavicius left Vilnius, Lithuania and his family at the age of 13 to settle in Geneva. His parents and his sister joined him 2 years ago but he could leave them again this summer. The reports from all these recruiters will be used to determine his place during the draft from June 27, this large exchange for new players where the franchises of North American sports leagues do their trading. The players do not have a say, they can find themselves in Las Vegas or in Winnipeg, in a top team aiming to win the Stanley Cup or in an “organization” (that is the established term) at the bottom of the rankings. The important thing for them is to be “drafted” (chosen). Simas Ignatavicius could be in the first round, a privilege reserved for the most promising.
