Michal Orsulak
2025-26 Team: Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
Date of Birth: Aug. 26, 2007
Place of Birth: Tremosna, Czechia
Ht: 6-foot-4 Wt: 220 pounds
Catches: Right
Position: Goalie
NHL Draft Eligibility: 2026 second-year eligible
Ranking
Last season, Michal Orsulak was just another goalie trying to find his way in Czechia’s U20 circuit. Playing with HC Energie Karlovy Vary, he put up a respectable .902 save percentage (SV%) and two shutouts over 34 starts despite a losing record. That put him on Czechia’s international radar, and in Spring 2025, he joined the Czechs at the U18 World Junior Championship, where he started three of their five games. However, at every turn, he was outperformed by younger goalies like Tobias Trejbal and Frantisek Poletin. That’s not a good look for a draft-eligible goalie, even for one of the youngest available, and Orsulak wasn’t selected in the 2025 Draft.
However, Orsulak was selected in the 2025 Canadian Hockey League Import Draft by the Prince Albert Raiders, and almost instantly, he became one of the hottest goalies in the Western Hockey League (WHL). In his first eight games with the Raiders, he put up a 6-0-2 record while recording a .918 SV% and a league-leading 1.87 goals against average (GAA), and was named the WHL’s Goalie of the Week in early November. NHL Central Scouting initially gave him a ‘C’ on their Preliminary Watch List, then bumped him up to second among all North American goalies on their Midterm List and stayed there on the Final ranking.
Orsulak finished his rookie WHL season not just one of the best goalies up for the 2026 Draft, but one of the best goalies in the league. Among goalies with at least 10 starts, he had the seventh-best SV% (.907), the second-best GAA (2.22), the fifth-most wins (28), the third-fewest losses (four), and tied for the second-most shutouts (four).
A big reason why Orsulak dominated in the WHL is his size. Standing 6-foot-4, he covers a lot of the net, especially when he gets low. He utilizes a wide butterfly stance that can take away most of the bottom of the net, especially when facing shooters one-on-one, while still having the height and reach to protect the top. Even when he’s on his knees, he completely blocks out the top corner of the net.
Many bigger goalies struggle with lateral quickness, and Orsulak is no different. When he’s in position, he covers the net very well, but if a shooter can pull him away from his spot, he will have a tougher time getting set up because there’s just more of him to move. He compensates for this by committing to his position until the last possible moment. While many goalies use microadjustments and tiny skate steps to keep themselves locked in on the puck, Orsulak stays calm and steady, waiting for the shooter to make the first move. Then, when it looks too late, he can throw down his pads and steal away a scoring chance.
That’s what separates Orsulak from his closest competitors. His calm, patient style forces him to make big, sprawling saves when he’s caught by an unexpected move or a quick pass, and while he has the size to cut off most angles, he can leave a lot of space around him if the shooting angle changes. That style requires a very high level of athleticism, and he’s put in the work to stop not just the initial shot, but multiple follow-up chances with sprawling kick saves and dives across the crease.
There is still a lot of rawness to Orsulak’s game. He can overcommit on desperation saves, pushing him far out of position and leading to an easy goal for the opposing team, and he needs to work on his glove side. But his ability to use his large frame to quickly cut off shooting angles in surprising ways has shades of another great Czech goalie, Dominik Hasek, albeit with a stricter commitment to positioning. While Orsulak is unlikely to reach that lofty ceiling, it should at the very least draw a lot of attention from the NHL on draft day. It just took him a little while longer to get there than some of his peers.
Other THW Draft Profiles
Michal Orsulak – NHL Draft Projection
The 2026 NHL Draft is a weaker group compared to some previous years, and the goalies are in the same boat. It’s unlikely any will go in the first round, but a couple should hear their names called in the next 30 selections. As the second-highest rated North American goalie, Orsulak should be one of the first off the board, somewhere between picks 33 and 64.
Quotables
“Big, tall, large in the net, very confident, loves coming to the rink every single day, and competes. He battles hard. What people don’t see with Orsy is how hard he practices and how hard he competes, and he hates getting scored on. It’s that second, that third, that fourth save that he’s battling to save in practice, and that’s the most impressive part about him. He battles extremely hard for his teammates, and his teammates battle extremely hard in front of him.”
Ryan McDonald, Prince Albert Raiders head coach
“What we did know about Michal is his tremendous work ethic, then once you get to know the kid, he’s a good morning person every day. He’s in the rink early. You know he’s going to have success, he puts himself in that position.”
“Michal is a large goalie who combines his size with great athleticism. Michal can be aggressive and above his crease, or he can play deep, relying on his large frame and reflexes to make the save. His side-to-side movement is excellent as he can easily get his butterfly across the whole net. Through screens, Michal is very good at getting square to the puck, making difficult saves look routine. He stopped multiple breakaways in the first period with patience and not being overly aggressive. The only goal Michal would want back is the eventual game winner, when he was beaten five-hole from a bad angle. Nonetheless, Michal played an excellent game, giving his team an opportunity to win.”
“Oršulák was passed over a year ago, but he is the top available re-entry goalie. He struggled against U-20 competition back home and was, by most accounts, the second-best Czech U-18 national team goalie last year. But he’s having a solid season with the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders (a team with a legit chance at winning the title), and just helped Czechia finish second at the World Juniors. Oršulák is big at 6-foot-4, but he could definitely work on being a bit quicker in the crease.”
Strengths
- Using his size to cut off shooting angles
- Reach and athleticism
- Calmness and patience while facing a shooter
- Using his pads to make sprawling saves
Under Construction/Improvements to Make
- Lateral quickness
- Can struggle to get back into position
- Glove hand needs to be more consistent
NHL Potential
Orsulak is a big, raw goalie who has a lot of potential, but will take some time to reach it. He’s been lights-out in the WHL, finishing tied for second in the league with four shutouts, the second-highest win percentage, winning nearly 78% of his starts, and sharing the lowest goals against per game with fellow Raiders’ rookie Steele Bass. Internationally, he hasn’t been as strong, but still demonstrated a lot of great technical skills and athleticism. He may not be a future NHL starting goalie, but he could become a reliable 1-B goalie, like Joel Hofer or Alex Lyon.
Risk-Reward Analysis
Risk: 3/5 Reward: 4/5
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