SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Hockey Club selected Czechia standout Ales Cech with the No. 153 overall pick during the fifth round of the 2024 NHL Draft.
The 62nd NHL Draft was held at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada from June 28-29.
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Cech was the seventh defenseman selected in the fifth round.
With the 153rd pick, the Utah Hockey Club selects Ales Cech 🩵 #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/TueSvqUmaE
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) June 29, 2024
Last year in the Czechia league, Cech recorded seven points with seven assists.
He also represented his country on the Czechia U20 team and posted three points in 16 games.
Utah Hockey Club entered the draft with 13 picks, including No. 6 overall in the first round.
Round 1: Friday, June 28 at 5 p.m. (MT)
Rounds 2-7: Saturday, June 29 at 9:30 a.m. (MT)
It's officially @NHL Draft week! 🏒#NHLDraft #NHL #UtahHC https://t.co/1CWbFjgqfU
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) June 23, 2024
Rounds 2-7: NHL Network and ESPN+
In April, the NHL announced the addition of Utah as the league’s newest franchise under Ryan Smith and Smith Entertainment Group’s ownership. As part of the transaction, players and personnel from the Arizona Coyotes were transferred to Utah. The Coyotes became an inactive franchise following the move.
On June 13, the team officially closed its deal with the NHL and took on the temporary name Utah Hockey Club. The team’s permanent nickname underwent a second round of fan voting and will be announced in the future.
The club will wear sweaters with “Utah” on the front during its inaugural season in 2024-25. Utah HC has primary colors of rock black, salt white, and mountain blue.
Utah Hockey Club will open its seven-game preseason schedule against the St. Louis Blues at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. Utah HC’s first preseason game at home will be against the LA Kings on September 23.
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Kyle Ireland is a Utah Hockey Club Insider for KSLSports.com. Follow him on X (@kyleireland), Threads (@kyleirelandksl), and Instagram (@kyleirelandksl).
