Dallas Stars Prospects Selected in CHL Import Draft

On Wednesday the 2013 CHL Import Draft took place with CHL teams selecting European players. This selection allows these teams to control these players CHL playing rights and does not mean that these players will necessarily play in the CHL.

Last year Dallas Stars prospect Ludwig Bystrom was taken 21st overall in the CHL Import Draft by the Plymouth Whalers but chose to remain in Sweden to play.

This year two Dallas Stars prospects, Matej Paulovic and Dmitry Sinitsyn, were selected in the CHL Import Draft 8th and 16th respectively.

Matej Paulovic had spent the past season playing with Farjestad J20 in Sweden but was selected 8th by the Peterborough Petes. Going that high it's possible to assume that he will play in North America next season, though its not guaranteed. It seems very likely however because Swedish Media report that he did not re-sign with Farjestad. If he has his rights owned in the OHL its likely he will be playing there.

If he does go to North America to play it will help develop a picture of a prospect that there is very little information available on.

The selection of Dmitry Sinitsyn by the Regina Pats of the WHL however is a very interesting one. Sinitsyn is currently at U-Mass Lowell and played only 13 games with limited ice time. Moving to the WHL would certainly increase the frequency that he played and the amount of time that he played.

While he might stay in the NCAA its worth noting what this article in the Leader-Post has with quotes from Regina Pats GM Chad Lang:

Ideally, the Pats are hoping for the best of both worlds with their first pick: A player who can contribute right away and be part of the team for at least two years.

"Some of these kids make the adjustment a lot quicker than others," added Lang. "If we had the opportunity in the (18-year-old) group it's an age we're focused on. In saying that, I've had good dialogue with a number of agents in the last week on potentially some (19-year-olds) as well. If we were to look at (an older player), we would need a guy who can step in and contribute, whether that be in our top six (up front) or our top four on the back end. That's the juggling act right now. Big picture, though, we'd like to find a younger guy who can fit into that group and evolve with them."

Looking at those comments it seems that the Pats are very confident that who they picked would have to be coming to the WHL for sure.

This Press Release from the Regina Pats seems to assume that he will be playing in the WHL next year.

"Dmitry is big, strong and mobile defenseman with a big shot who can certainly aid in our success offensively and on the power play," said Pats Senior VP and General Manager Chad Lang. "As a 19 year-old with NCAA experience, he is a mature player we feel will step in comfortably with our group. We are happy to have selected him and welcome him to Regina."