Alex Čiernik navigating the "ups and downs" of shifting teams and priorities in his draft year

(Editor's note: The following is a guest post by Martin Jansson on HockeySverige that has been translated for EP Rinkside. You can read the original article in Swedish by following this link)

German-born, Slovak forward Alex Čiernik is expected to go in the second round of the 2023 NHL Draft. We've ranked him at No. 50 on our January ranking on Elite Prospects.

Even so, the 2022-23 season hasn’t gone the way Čiernik had hoped. The plan was to play a substantial role with Södertälje SK in HockeyAllsvenskan, the Swedish second-tier professional men's league, but instead, he was sent on loan to Västervik.

It’s still the HockeyAllsvenskan – but Västervik has been the worst team in the league. Södertälje, meanwhile, has proven themselves to be one of the league's better sides. Maybe even a team with an outside chance at earning promotion to the SHL for next season.

What follows is a question-and-answer style interview with Čiernik about his transition to the HockeyAllsvenskan, the draft, and a whole lot else: