Tomas Galvas
2023-24 Team: Bílí Tygři Liberec (Czechia)
Date of Birth: Feb. 11, 2006
Place of Birth: Zlin, CZE
Ht: 5-foot-10 Wt: 148 pounds
Shoots: L
Position: Defenseman
NHL Draft Eligibility: First-year eligible
Rankings
- NHL Central Scouting (European Skaters): 29th
- Dobber Prospects: 41st
- THW’s Baracchini: 56th
- THW’s Horn April Rankings: 67th
- Recruit Scouting: 38th
- THW Horn: 53rd
- Elite Prospects: 48th
- FC Hockey: 56th
- TSN Craig Button: 42nd
- Draftprospectshockey.com: 46th
When you look at the height and weight for Tomas Galvas, you might wonder how a prospect who weighs just under 150 pounds is one of the top prospects in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. While he may be undersized, Galvas has many positive characteristics in his overall approach and play despite being undersized. He’s a smooth skater who can create time and space for himself at both ends of the ice with his shiftiness. This comes in handy when his high-motor style of play gets him into some trouble.
Galvas is fast and very sharp on his edges. He complements his skating with great hands, and when the two are working in harmony, that makes him a very effective player. He can walk the blue line and support the offense with relative ease, activating with smart, well-timed attacks into the offensive zone.
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Even though Galvas is undersized, he knows how to work within his frame and doesn’t get pushed around like other smaller players. He is a smooth-skating blueliner who understands how to move the game’s pace to a higher level, putting opponents in compromising positions. He uses his skating in all facets of the game, whether winning a puck race on retrieval or closing the gap while defending the rush. He is willing to join the rush, penetrate the offensive zone, and present teammates with a passing option and constant movement in the attacking zone.
As a last-minute replacement for Team Czechia at the 2024 World Juniors Championships, Galvas did not disappoint and made an excellent impression on scouts. In their Bronze Medal Game against Switzerland, Glavas used a nifty backhand pass to Jiri Kulich for the game-winning goal. He had two assists and was a +2 for the tournament.
Other Draft Profiles
Tomas Galvas – NHL Draft Projection
In spite of his slight build, Galvas is likely to be taken in the second round. The younger brother of Blackhawks 2023 fifth-round selection, Jake Galvas, Tomas competes with confidence and has no problem handling the puck, which could lead teams to take a shot with him late in the first round. Part of this may be due to his play at the World Juniors, where he displayed good footwork, outstanding composure, and didn’t wilt under pressure.
Quotables
“Galvas possesses an extra step that allows him to create separation from the opposition, making his overall skating ability a significant strength. He demonstrates intelligence in his positional game, fearlessly jumping into offensive opportunities when they arise. His excellent vision up the middle of the ice and ability to anticipate pressure result in accurate passes to his defensive partner.” Steven Pratas, Dobber Prospects
“He has the understanding and compete level, generally, but perhaps not the full physical characteristics to execute how he wants to defend at this stage of his development. There are also issues with boxing out opponents in front of the net. This, potentially, will be course corrected simply by physically maturing and adding strength. Battling the size element and defensive issues is some offensive upside. Glavas isn’t shy to work himself down low deep in the offensive zone to orchestrate or continue scoring forays, and can be deceptive in his offensive generation with his slick hands and edgework. This element of his game doesn’t come without its own hiccups, however, as his risk-reward analysis on the fly could use some refinement.” Aaron Vickers – FC Hockey
“Tomas Galvas is a solid puck moving defenseman, who does an excellent job in keeping the puck secure with traffic at his side. He won’t force the puck into tight pressure deliberately, but has shown that if he is encountering multiple attackers that he can keep his feet and hands moving to secure the puck and position it away from the attackers before chipping it off the boards. Galvas does a good job of using an active stick to trap attackers and force them to dump the puck in the neutral zone and take away potential shooting / passing lanes in his own zone. He has an excellent power stride that he will use to get himself into position to defend should be a bit too far away from where he needs to be.” Josh Tessler – SMHAT Scouting
Strengths
- Decision-making on offense
- Skating agility and edgework
- High intelligence
- Puckhandling
Under Construction – Improvements to Make
- Size
- Physicality
- Defensive consistency
NHL Potential
Galvas will have to add some bulk to his frame if he is to skate in an NHL game. He has all the other tools needed to reach the NHL level, and teams are definitely intrigued by his overall skating ability. A player with such good vision up the middle and ability to generate offense has a place on an NHL roster. He may take a few more years to mature and get acclimated to the North American style of hockey. Still, Galvas has the chance to be a productive NHL player, possibly in the mold of another undersized defenseman such as Jared Spurgeon.
Risk – Reward Analysis
Risk- 3/5, Reward 4/5
Fantasy Hockey Potential
Offense- 6/10, Defense 6/10
Awards/Achievements
- Czech Extraliga Most Points by U18 Junior
- Hlinka Gretzky Cup Silver Medal
- U20 WJC Bronze Medal