The Voltigeurs' netminder had a strong QMJHL rookie season, posting a 26-10-2 record.
We've now officially hit under a week to go until the 2026 NHL draft, and the focus has now almost fully shifted to the draft floor in the hockey world.
Today's draft profile is on Jan Larys, a Czech import goaltender that had a very strong rookie season with the Drummondville Voltigeurs, and has played his way into draft consideration.
Larys, 18, posted a 26-10-2 record with the Volts this season, sporting a .908 save percentage and 2.86 goals-against average.
Jan Larys should hear his name called at some point in the middle rounds of this year's NHL draft. (Photo: Ghyslain Bergeron)While the playoffs didn't go quite as well for the 6-foot-3 netminder, it was his first taste of the postseason at this level and a five-game sample size where the whole team struggled probably isn't the fairest way of evaluating him.
The Ostrava-born Larys grew up in the HC Prouba system in his native Czechia, before switching to HC Vitkovice in 2024-25. He's featured at the youth levels for his country between the age groups of U16-U18, and will likely be in consideration for the World Juniors team next year.
Drummondville saw enough in the goalie to take him in the first round of the 2025 CHL import draft, and got him to come over to North America where he took over as the team's starter this season.
Larys' strengths are his positioning and rebound control. He's able to stay fairly deep in his goal, trust his size and frame and be square to shots.
While he may not be the most technically masterful goalie, he's solid enough in those aspects and can get a strong push when needed. Overall, he brings a lot of things to the table that are appreciated in a modern goalie, and has a solid statistical backing to him as well.
The downsides come down to a lack of elite play, particularly in big moments. While his record was great and his stats solid behind an over-performing Voltigeurs team this past season, Larys definitely didn't have the playoffs he or scouts would've wanted, and he's struggled at times internationally as well.
There could be some concern that he was just hidden behind a very good Drummondville defensive scheme in 2025-26, and got exposed when it mattered most.
Still, that would seem like a harsh criticism, because there definitely were some games Larys stole and won on his own accord, and he is still a fairly young goaltender.
Some places have him ranked higher than others, and nobody has him higher than NHL central scouting, who ranked Larys as their 5th-best NA goaltender in this draft.
It should be expected for the Czech goalie to be selected at some point during the middle rounds of this year's draft, by a team looking for a solid goaltender with a good base of tools and stats.
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