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FN Draft Profiles: Adam Goljer is a talented Slovak defender
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Photo credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Ryan Pike
May 20, 2026, 12:00 EDTUpdated: May 20, 2026, 01:04 EDT
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The hockey world is a bit topsy-turvy lately. Some of the traditional powers are having some challenges, while some less established nations are taking big leaps forward.
One of the countries that’s emerging as a source of excellent young hockey players is Slovakia. The top Slovak prospect in this year’s draft is defenceman Adam Goljer, who spent this past year playing against grown men and hasn’t yet celebrated his 18th birthday.

Scouting report

A product of Trencin, Slovakia – the same hometown as Flames 2023 first-rounder Sam Honzek – Goljer is a right shot defencemen listed at 6’3″ and 194 pounds. He’s a mid-June birthday, so he’ll turn 18 just before draft time.
Goljer has played almost exclusively in his home country, primarily playing for teams from his hometown, within the HK Dukla Trencin system. He bounced around a bit in 2024-25, playing for Trencin’s under-18, under-20 and their senior men’s team, and also being loaned to Team Slovakia’s under-18 and under-20 teams – Team Slovakia is a selects team, not to be confused with their national team. To add to the fun, he also played for their national under-18 team at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and the Under-18 Worlds.
This season, Goljer played pretty much exclusively with HK Dukla Trencin’s Extraliga team, aside from a brief stint with their under-20 team during the playoffs. He also played for the national team at the World Juniors, the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and Under-18 Worlds. He captained their Under-18 Worlds team and was named the tournament’s top defender and helped them win a silver medal.
In his May breakdown of the Under-18 Worlds, Sportsnet and Pro Hockey Group’s Jason Bukala had this breakdown of Goljer’s tournament:
Most of the games at the tournament were played at a breathtaking speed, and I was interested to see how Goljer would adjust to that speed. There have been moments this year when I had some concern about his small area agility and open ice pace, but he definitely put my concerns to rest at this tournament.
Goljer’s hockey sense stood out for me. His routes to defend and kill plays defensively, combined with his puck management on the power play, were mostly sound. I’m projecting Goljer will be selected in the back half of the second round at the draft.
Over at Daily Faceoff, our pal Steven Ellis had this assessment in his April rankings:
I know I’m higher on Goljer than most, but I’m a real believer. He’s raw, but that’s fine because there’s some solid upside. At 6-foot-3, he has size. He also plays with a ton of confidence, allowing him to consistently attack and defend strongly against older competition in the top Slovak league. Playing close to 20 minutes a night against men is no small feat for a 17-year-old, no matter the league. I like his gap control, his proficiency as a passer, and the pure power he plays with. I think he can get a bit antsy and make mistakes with his defensive reads under pressure, and his foot speed needs work. But there’s raw talent there.

The numbers

In 43 games in the Slovak Extraliga, Goljer had 11 points. He led all under-18 players in his league in games played and points.
He also had zero points in the World Juniors, three points in the Hlinka Gretzky Cup and five points in the Under-18 Worlds.

Availability and fit

The Flames have several impressive right shot defenders in their system. While Goljer would add another player to a position of strength, until the Flames’ NHL roster is jam-packed with high-end right shot defenders, Goljer still offers a skill-set the team needs and values.
In terms of availability: he’s generally seen in the scouting consensus as a late first-rounder or an early second-rounder. Considering that the Flames have the Vegas pick late in the first round and four second-rounders, he seems like someone that could definitely end up a Flame by the end of draft weekend.

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