Standing At 6-foot-7 & Carrying His Father's Name, Miroslav Satan Jr. Welcomes The Pressure As He Writes His Own Story With The Capitals

ARLINGTON, V.A. — To close out the month of June, Miroslav Satan Jr. was at home, sitting on the couch with his dad — Miroslav Satan is a renowned NHL alum in his own right — and tuning into the 2024 NHL Draft with little expectation, not necessarily expecting to go in this year's draft.

Then, his name rang out at The Sphere and through the TV; he was taken by the Washington Capitals, who traded back into the seventh round to take him with the 212th pick.

"It kind of surprised me," Satan admitted. "It was a very nice surprise, we were all jumping around, we were happy... (my dad and I) just kind of stood up and hugged a nice little wholesome moment."

For the Capitals, they see a lot of upside with their late-draft gamble.

"There's potential that we see long-term," president of hockey operations Brian MacLellan said. "It'll probably take a long time, but we thought it was worth it to do that."

And for Satan, it's a big reward as he eagerly follows in his father's footsteps and hopes to make just as big an impact as his dad did over 14 years in the NHL.

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Satan was born in Buffalo while his dad was playing with the New York Islanders in 2006. He got on skates for the first time when he was three or four years old with his dad, and from there, he found his love of the game.

"All I wanted to do, I didn't even want to skate. I wanted to sit in the crease and just rebound pucks all practice," Satan laughed. I kept complaining my feet hurt, but eventually that (led to sticking with it)."

Around the time he was ready for secondary school, hockey took Satan and his family back overseas to their home country of Slovakia. The travel was a bit hectic, but for Satan, it was helpful in shaping his hockey development, as Slovakia is where things really took off.

"It's been good. You get to see a lot of places and you kind of get used to it," Satan said. "A lot of new learning curves and experiences and you just bounce off and learn."

Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, putting a dent in Satan's journey. While the family was at home quarantining, Satan was left without ice time and had no other option except to train at home and eat.

"It was weird for everyone," he acknowledged, not using it as an excuse.

The pandemic also saw Satan undergo a significant growth spurt in a short amount of time, and before he knew it, he was towering at 6-foot-7.

"You definitely feel it, but you kind of get used to it," Satan said. "It's been a learning curve."

When the rinks reopened, Satan had to adapt to his new height, as he had to work on new angles with the puck and adjust to the game from a completely different perspective.

All the while, there was pressure to live up to his father's name — the same exact name that was bestowed upon him.

"There's always pressure, but you kind of get used to it," Satan said. "I was used to it my whole life growing up, obviously. You want to live up to your dad."

There's more to Satan, though, than his father's name and 6-foot-7 frame. He is able to strip opponents of the puck and goes hard on the forecheck, and he can win battles and play a solid two-way game. His skating needs work, but it's coming along.

"I bring speed, good forecheck, good net drive and also some good offense," Satan said. '"We can score, we can create opportunity."

At Capitals development camp, the 18-year-old also showed off his shot and worked a lot with Wendy Marco on his skating. His father, meanwhile, watched from the bleachers at MedStar Capitals Iceplex.

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Satan will get to continue to adapt to the North American game this season, as he'll play in the USHL for the Chicago Steel. He wants to continue to improve in a number of areas and again stressed the importance of catching up to his size.

"My whole coordination. I grew a lot in the past two years, so getting everything settled in and regaining some of my skills and getting faster obviously," Satan said. "I want to get a lot stronger."

At the end of the day, though, Satan couldn't have been happier to land in D.C., as he grew up watching Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals and now finds himself in the same spot. Now, it's up to him to earn the chance to play alongside those big names in the coming years.

"It's been great. It's like a sort of dream come true. The one side of the story, I'm very happy to be here and work on myself, get better," Satan said. "The other side, I realize that it's only halfway of the work done, so I'm very happy to be here."