Thus far this season Leonard has 75 points (41 goals, 34 assists) and is a +64 in 47 games for the U18 National Team Development Program; he had 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists) in 4 games in the 2022 U18 5 Nations Tournament, and another 7 points (4 goals, 3 assists) in 4 games at the 2023 U18 4 Nations. Dvorsky had 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists) in 10 games earlier this season at the U20 level in Sweden, and has 14 points (6 goals, 8 assists) and is a -19 in HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s 2nd-highest professional league (in all fairness, he plays for AIK, and they are a 10th-place squad which has been outscored by 30 goals). Also, Dvorsky tallied 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) and had an even rating for Slovakia at the 2023 world juniors.
Although rated essentially evenly in most mock drafts, I’m giving a slight edge to Dvorsky. Not only does he a have a size advantage (6’1″, 200 lbs. versus 5’11”, 180 lbs), Dvorsky has a reputation among scouts to have an impressive element of power to his game. This bodes well for making the jump to the National Hockey League. Also, his play at this year’s world juniors helped pave the way for the surprisingly competitive Slovaks. This in no way is intended to discredit Leonard’s performance this season, as he plays at a pace and skill rarely seen. Two outstanding players, and I wish both of them well.