Peterborough Petes Alumnus Signs Three-Year Entry-Level Contract With Vancouver Canucks

Less than two months after being drafted to the NHL, Peterborough Petes alumnus Adam Novotný has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks, announced on Tuesday.

Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Petes.

Novotný was originally selected by the Vancouver Canucks in the first round, 24th overall, in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft on June 26 in Buffalo, N.Y. He was the first Pete to be taken in this year’s draft.

“Character, compete and a winning mentality, those are three of the things we really appreciate about Adam’s DNA,” said Ryan Johnson, Canucks general manager. “It was a small sample size, but he showed us a lot at our development camp last month in Abbotsford. Besides his strong skating, puck control, and quick release, Adam was relentless in his pursuit of the puck and battled very hard in each drill.  A coachable and honest player, his leadership qualities were also noticeable, and you could tell right away how committed he is to try to do thigs the right way. We are very excited to have Adam sign his ELC and we look forward to working with him in the years to come.” 

A native of Kobylice, Czechia, he was originally selected eighth overall by the Petes in the 2024 CHL Import Draft.

Since 2002, he has been one of four Petes to record 30+ goals and 65+ points in a draft-eligible season, joining Nick Ritchie (2013-2014), Matt Puempel (2010-11) and Eric Staal (2002-03).

In his last season with Peterborough, he scored 34 goals, the second-best behind Kieron Walton. He was fourth on the team with 31 assists and second with 65 points in 58 games. He tallied one assist in six playoff games.

Two seasons ago, the 2007-born forward featured in 41 games for Mountfield HK in Czechia’s top professional league, scoring one goal and adding two assists for three points.

He also featured in 10 playoff games for Mountfield, scoring twice. In 2023-24, Novotný played in 48 games for Mountfield HK U20, scoring 32 goals and adding 27 assists for 59 points. In 2023, Novotný made his debut in the Czech Extraliga with Mountfield, scoring in his first game and becoming the youngest player to score in the league at 15.

Novotný has also represented his home country of Czechia on the international stage, including the 2024 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup (silver), the 2025 U18 World Championships and the 2025 (bronze) and 2026 (silver) World Junior Hockey Championships.  

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