Blue Jackets select Daňo in the first round

For the first time in eight years, a Slovak player was taken in the first round of the NHL Draft, as the Blue Jackets made Daňo, who scored 7 points (3+4) in 41 games with HC SLOVAN in the 2013/2014, their third selection of the first round. 2005 was the last year that saw a Slovak player go in the first round, with Buffalo selecting Marek Zagrapan 13^th overall, while 17 picks later, the Tampa Bay Lightning selected current HC SLOVAN Bratislava defenceman Vladimír Mihálik.

Speaking after the draft with yahoo.com, Daňo said, 'I am pleased to be selected by Columbus. It’s very good for me. The Blue Jackets have good players, and there is also Slovak Marián Gáborík.'

The eighteen year old, born in Eisenstadt, Austria, and the son of former Slovak national team forward Jozef Daňo, said that the Blue Jackets began to closely monitor him following their acquisition of Marián Gáborík in the 2013 NHL season. 'I know him. Both of us are from the same city,’ were the words of Marko Daňo, with both players having started their hockey careers with HK Dukla Trenčin.

Daňo, who made it into the Slovak national team for the IIHF World Championships following his impressive performances for HC SLOVAN in the 2012/13 KHL season, had question marks over his ability to handle the rigours of the NHL due to his relative small size (181 cm, 83 kg). However, Daňo believes that he has all the tools necessary to thrive in North America. 'In the KHL I play against men, so I’ve dealt with it already. I am not very tall, but I have good puck control and I can make good passes’, were the words of Daňo, and the Trenčan has already proved, not just in the KHL but also on the international stage that this is true. In the interview with yahoo.com, Daňo also confirmed that he is open to the opportunity to play in the AHL, if he fails to make the Blue Jackets’ NHL roster out of training camp.

The Prudential Center in Newark was host to the 51^st NHL Draft, and this year saw four Slovaks selected, a vast improvement after no Slovaks were picked in the 2012 Draft. With the penultimate pick in the third round, the Boston Bruins selected Peter Cehlárik, who played last season in Sweden with Luleå. Martin Réway and Matej Paulovič were selected in the fourth and fifth rounds respectively, with both players already having been drafted by HC SLOVAN in the 2012 KHL Entry Draft. Réway, who played last season for Gatineau in the QMJHL was drafted by Montreal, while Dallas selected Paulovič 149^th overall.