Swedish Prospect Review
At the start of this season, an exciting crop of young junior stars were looking
to make their mark in the Swedish Elitserien, and take over a league that has
Advertisement
been dominated by veterans for more than a decade. As the season approaches
the midway mark, here is a look at how some of the youngsters have fared so
far.
Click Here to view this Link.The
Vancouver Canucks selected Nicklas
Danielsson as the 160th player overall in this summer's draft, and Danielsson
didn't disappoint anyone during his preseason campaign with Brynas. However,
he was unable to carry his strong play into the regular season, struggling to
keep a spot in the roster for the first two months. But with three goals in
his last six games, it appears that the quick and creative winger might be on
the right track after all.
Click Here to view this Link.A
whole nation was surprised when 22-year old defenseman Johnny
Oduya was selected for the first stage of this year's Euro Hockey Tour.
Although Oduya had some problems adjusting to the intensity of international
hockey at times, he did manage surprisingly well considering he is only making
his SEL debut with Djurgarden this season. The Washington Capitals draftee was
projected as one of the main candidates for the SEL Rookie of the Year Award,
won last season by Atlanta draftee, Tobias
Enstrom.
Oduya has experienced some ups and downs in his game thus far, and hasn't delivered
much offensively, which is partially due to being paired with Slovak run-and-gun
defenseman Richard Lintner. Oduya has, however, played very responsibly in his
own end, and occasionally displays a mean streak that is seldom seen in the
Swedish Elite League.
Click Here to view this Link.Another
player who enjoyed some success in the preseason was Frolunda's 18-year-old
winger Loui
Eriksson. A second-round selection of the Dallas Stars this summer,
Eriksson impressed with his quick acceleration, excellent hockey sense and instinctive
goal-scoring touch, and has continued to excel in the regular season, notching
five goals so far, second only to Toronto prospect Alexander Steen among junior-aged
SEL players.
Lulea defenseman Johan
Fransson was projected to be drafted early in the 2003 NHL Draft, before
a persistent groin injury turned his season to mayhem. Fransson elected to opt
out of the draft, with the hopes that a solid performance in 2003-04 would improve
his odds of being a first-rounder in 2004. The strategy seems to be working.
The opportunity presented itself when Lulea lost three of their top defensemen
to injury, and Fransson was quick to grab the ball and run.
Exhibiting a maturity beyond his years, the 19-year-old has amazed with his
poise, creativity and natural skating ability, and has rapidly become a new
fan-favorite in Lulea. He has also proven that he can stand up physically at
this level, and isn't afraid to use his body to get the work done.
Steen has already managed to outgrow the 'future talent' label, and
is now a star player in the SEL. Steen has 7 goals and 11 assists in 21 games
so far, already surpassing his rookie totals from last season (45-5-10-15).
The secret behind Steen's breakthrough has been improved upper-body strength,
which has increased his effectiveness in traffic, and better decision making,
as his ability to read the game is maturing at a rapid rate. A solid, well-rounded
centerman loaded with talent, Steen works hard at his job every night, and gives
equal attention to his offensive and defensive duties.
Click Here to view this Link.The
other highly-touted, second-generation Swedish prospect, Robert
Nilsson, hasn't been as fortunate as Steen this season. Nilsson suffers
from playing under a defensive-minded coach, who prefers to minimize any amount
of uncertainty on the ice. And Robert Nilsson certainly can bring some uncertainty
to the table, as he occasionally makes bad decisions in his innate quest to
be creative and showcase his elite puck skills. The result has been limited
amounts of ice-time for Nilsson and a tenuous situation for Leksand's coach,
a good candidate to get ousted between now and the end of the season.
But despite Nilsson's current predicament, he has noticeably improved his overall
skating this season and looks quicker than ever on the ice. Consequently, it's
only a matter of time before he is let out to play.
Rising from obscurity
Johansson, a ninth-round pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 2002, has definitely
seen his stock rise dramatically this season. The 19-year-old has earned a spot
at center with the defending champion's, Frolunda, and performed admirably.
Blessed with good size, mobility and impressive hockey sense, Johansson is probably
Sweden's best-kept secret, as teammates' Steen and Eriksson tend to steal most
of the headlines when Swedish prospects are discussed.
Expect to see a lot more from Johansson in the future, as he is an intriguing
package of smartness and skill.