Blues sign 2023 first-round pick to three-year deal

Dalibor Dvorsky, a 2023 top-10 pick, has another major career milestone under his belt just a few weeks after the draft: his first NHL contract. The St. Louis Blues signed their 10th overall selection to a three-year, entry-level contract today, per a team release.

The team did not disclose contract details. However, it’s important to note his signing doesn’t mean he’ll be playing in North America next season – as expected; he’ll be loaned back to SHL club IK Oskarshamn to honor the first year of a two-year deal he signed with them before the draft, reports Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland.

CapFriendly also confirms Dvorsky is eligible for an entry-level slide twice, given his signing age of 18, meaning a full-time loan to the SHL this season would kick the beginning of his ELC to 2024-25 (or later, if he plays less than 10 NHL games again in 2024-25).

It’s likely Dvorsky is ready for some NHL looks after an additional year of development in Europe, though, and this upcoming year should likely be Dvorsky’s last in the Swedish professional circuit. The Slovak national spent most of his development from 2016 onwards playing in Sweden, where he registered 14 points in 38 games playing in the second-tier pros for HockeyAllsvenskan club AIK last season.

His draft stock varied a bit throughout the season, as his Allsvenskan production didn’t quite live up to the tantalizing flashes he showed when playing against his own peer group in Swedish juniors and internationally. Still, few Blues fans should complain about landing him at 10th overall, and today’s signing could very well begin a long tenure in St. Louis as a top-nine fixture.