2022 NHL Draft: Devils Pick Petr Hauser at 141st Overall in the 5th Round

At 141st overall, the New Jersey Devils selected right wing Petr Hauser from HC Sparta Praha in Czechia. According to his Elite Prospects profile, Hauser is a large right wing at 6’4”, 207 lbs. He was born on September 19, 2003 thus making him one of the older players in this year’s draft. He is from Plzen, Czechia and came up through the HC Plzen system where he was over a point per game at the U16 and U17 levels. He moved to HC Sparta Praha in 2020-21 and has played for their U20 team the past two seasons. Last year, he had 25 goals and 34 assists for 59 points in 41 games. He also made his professional debut with HC Stadion Litomerice in the Czech 2nd division where he had a goal and an assist in 15 games. He led his junior team in scoring with 59 points. Among U19 players in the Czech U20 league, Hauser ranked tied-6th in scoring with those 59 points. His 1.44 points per game rate ranked 5th overall. The Hockey Prospecting model has gives him a 12% Star Probability and 45% NHLer Probability.

The Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League drafted him 62nd overall in the 2022 CHL Import Draft. Here’s what general manager Dave Drinkill had to say about Hauser thanks to MLive:

“There’s a chance he’ll be drafted in the later rounds,” Drinkill said. “He’s a big kid who can score and is really competitive. He has some rough edges that will need to be smoothed out, but there’s a rawness to him that scouts really like, and we really like. There’s potential for an NHL team to pick him this year … he’s a competitive big kid with size who can move.”

Here’s a highlights package from Czech Prospects:

Here is what Recruit Scouting had to say about Hauser who they ranked 170th:

Petr Hauser is a big bodied Czechia player who I have enjoyed watching this season. I believe he’s an easily translatable player for the pro leagues, but his potential is still somewhat low. Hauser reminds me of a 3rd or 4th line player who will be able to play on the second power play unit, using his size, positioning and shot to get the dirty ‘in-low’ goals. Hauser can play physically as well, showing that he can be the grit some teams may need.

“Hauser is a very mature player for his age. And not only because of his size, but he’s also very reliable with the puck and he is finding the right decisions. He has a hard shot and also pretty decent vision, especially in the offensive zone. His overall skating can definitely get better” – Jakub Hromada

I’m still trying to find more information about Hauser but my initial, quick reaction is that I’m fine with the pick considering it’s the 5th round. I do wonder how much being one of the older, larger, and physically stronger prospects played into his dominance at the U20 level. Regardless, it seems like the Devils are betting on his upside to perhaps turn into a power forward down the road. He adds some depth to the Devils prospect pool at wing and I’m interested in seeing how he develops.

That is my initial reaction to the Devils selecting Petr Hauser. I’ll keep adding more information about Petr Hauser to this post as the day goes on. For now, I want to know your reaction to the pick. Please vote in the flash poll that will end tonight. What do you think of Petr Hauser as a prospect? Do you agree with taking them at 141st? Leave your comments below and thank you for reading!