Hurricanes' Dominik Badinka: Joins Hurricanes in Round 2

Badinka was the 34th overall pick by the Hurricanes in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft on Saturday.

A native of Czechia, Badinka has bounced around a lot, spending the 2022-23 campaign in Finland before moving to Sweden this past season. He played 33 games with Malmo's SHL club, posting a goal and four points. The fact that Badinka was cut from the Czechia World Junior team isn't a great sign, but there were still some scouts who had him rated as a fringe first-rounder for this draft. Badinka has displayed an ability to make plays in all three zones despite lacking dynamic qualities. He has more offense to his game than his numbers this past season would lead you to believe. If you squint hard enough, you could envision Badinka as a future No. 4 or No. 5 defender for Carolina if everything breaks correctly.