Born in Italy and raised in Switzerland, Luca Sbisa now calls Canada home. Although having spent the bulk of his life in Switzerland, Sbisa is in no doubt that he made the appropriate decision to move to Canada and join the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League, particularly given that he is on the verge of becoming a prized possession of an NHL team at Friday’s entry draft.

“I can't imagine where I would have been (in terms of hockey) if I stayed in Switzerland, but one thing is for sure, coming over to Canada was the best decision in my life,” said Sbisa, who represented Switzerland internationally at the 2008 World Junior Championships and the 2007 Under-18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial.

Once Sbisa discovered (through his agent who found out on the internet) that he was drafted 69th overall out of 72 skaters in the 2007 CHL Import Draft, he decided that it would serve him best to leave Switzerland and learn the North American style of play. And Sbisa has done just that.

Ranked 11th by ISS and 12th by CSS, Sbisa is a solid two-way converted defender who has the uncanny ability to know when to support the rush, carry the puck, or make the outlet pass. In addition, playing in North America for a year has helped Sbisa develop a physical aspect to his game. However, not only has playing in Lethbridge assisted the Swiss defenseman on the ice, it has also helped him mature as a teenager.

“I really realized what kind of a player I am and what style of hockey I see myself playing in the future,” said Sbisa, who recorded 15 points in 19 playoff games with Lethbridge. “Being on my own for almost a year helped me become more independent as a person as well.”

Now only two days away from the draft, Sbisa admits that he has given the rankings a peak, but knows that they’re only rankings, and that predicting the outcome on Friday is really nothing more than a crap shoot.

“During the season, I tried to stay away from all that stuff regarding the draft to concentrate fully on hockey,” said Sbisa, who will be leaving for Ottawa with his parents and agent on Thursday. “Now I take notice of some stuff and yes I saw the rankings; obviously I would like to go somewhere near [11th] but at the draft, you never know what’s going to happen so I'm ready for everything.”

Sbisa shouldn’t get too comfortable in his seat on Friday, because he does have an outside shot at cracking the top ten. If the Vancouver Canucks feel the need to draft a defenseman with their first round selection at tenth overall, Sbisa – who has drawn several comparisons to Alexander Edler – could very well be their guy. However, with the superfluity of skill in this year’s draft class, it’s likely that Sbisa will fall to the 12-20 range, which is still a significant feat. According to Sbisa, 27 teams interviewed him at the recent NHL Draft Combine; clearly he’ll be a hot commodity come draft day.

After having played in Lethbridge for only a year, Sbisa has developed a soft spot for Canada, and would be thrilled if one of the six Canadian teams selected him.

“That would be amazing; I saw how big and how much hockey means for Canadians,” he said. “I would really be happy to get picked by any of the Canadian teams, but at the end that’s just a little extra because I just want to play in the NHL.”

On Friday, Luca Sbisa will become one step closer to achieving his goal.

Farhan Devji is the author of a hockey based novel, “The Hockey Farmer.” For more information, visit thehockeyfarmer.ca.tp.