It was quite the night for Stanislav Svozil on Thursday.
The defenceman made his National Hockey League (NHL) debut for the Columbus Blue Jackets against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Svozil’s debut began with the traditional pre-game lap for a player taking part in his first game in the NHL.
Stan the man takes his first steps onto the ice in the NHL #LegendsInTheMaking pic.twitter.com/C6lgaWZsiH
— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) April 13, 2023
It didn’t take the Prerov, Czechia product long to land himself on the stat sheet. Four minutes into his first game, Svozil received his penalty, a holding call.
In the third period with the Blue Jackets looking for an equalizer, Svozil would register his first career NHL point on Emil Bemstrom’s game-tying goal.
FIRST NHL POINT ALERT pic.twitter.com/clNbWK609J
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) April 14, 2023
Columbus would go on to win the game in overtime.
Svozil will have another chance to add to his totals on Friday as the Blue Jackets conclude their season against the Buffalo Sabres in a game that was previously postponed due to weather issues.
One of the first questions the Regina Pat defenceman was asked in Columbus was the possibility of reuniting with Connor Bedard in the professional ranks.
#CBJ Stanislav Svozil beyond thrilled to make his #NHL debut tonight vs. Pittsburgh. Asked if he’s joked with former @WHLPats teammate Connor Bedard about playing together again next season, Svozil said:
“I didn’t joke about it. I was serious.”— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) April 13, 2023
