As the 2024-25 scouting season begins to hit its stride, a lot of conversation will naturally gravitate towards the big names that should highlight the year’s first round. So as a change of pace, let’s look at the guys that are fighting to enter this conversation or proving interesting outside of it.
Victor Eklund
If there’s one player who defines “undervalued” to start the year, it would have to be Victor Eklund. He’s fighting to stay in the first round of many early mock drafts which is a mild shock considering the resume he’s stockpiled coming into this season. Making his Allsvenskan debut for Djurgårdens and being an effective and productive player for their playoff run, landing a top 6 spot on the Swedish U18 roster and being a point-a-game player across his international performances. But it’s not just the what with Eklund, it’s the how. He’s one of the most dynamic forwards the draft has to offer. A master of deception, Eklund has proven apt at throwing changeups with his pace, throwing feints with his body, and having the hands to never lose himself doing so. Layer that in with his blistering speed and you have a nightmare for defenders. Particularly in transition, where it is far too common to see Eklund pull defenders out wide just to hit an open man in the middle of the ice.
For all he brings to the table, one would imagine a player of Eklund’s caliber to score more then he does. Results have been hard for him to come by jumping through 3 levels of play last season, especially after a tough start to the year. However, it’s not at all dissimilar from his brother William’s trajectory before his draft year. Rarely, do two brothers really feel like copies of each other, but William and Victor do bring a lot of the same patterns and skills to the table. Coming out of the gate hot will be his first hurdle, but do not be surprised if Victor skyrockets up the draft boards like his brother before him.
Milton Gastrin
Last year, we saw how highly teams valued workaholic centers such as Jett Luchanko and Cole Beaudoin; Milton Gastrin seems to be cut from the same cloth. He was the engine of the best line at the tournament with himself, Viktor Klingsell and Ivar Stenberg while bringing a notable intensity to the center role that should make scouts salivate. He’s dauntless, never gives up on a play and loves to charge the net. Gastrin’s got a good athletic profile too, bringing respectable size and speed to keep up with the Hlinka’s best. The one thing holding him back might be some average on-puck skill, he’s not going to wow you with his creativity; but what Gastrin brings is effective, intelligent and oppressive hockey. There will always be a need for role players in the NHL.
It was initially a surprise when Gastrin was named the captain of the Hlinka team too, especially considering how many star players this roster carries. However, Gastrin’s consistently shown himself to be a leader by example on the ice and it clearly resonated with the Swedish coaching staff before the tournament even began. Nobody is questioning that decision anymore. He’s got the characteristics of someone who can be in the first rounds radar.
Arvid Drott
Speaking of risers, Arvid Drott caught me by surprise as a staple in the Swedish middle 6 that played with significant pace in his game. He has been soaring on the Swedish ladder and has seemed to finally crack the Djurgårdens J20 team after respectfully tearing apart both J18 levels being one of the best goal scorers in both Region and Nationell leagues. He’s been relatively hidden on the international scene so it’s great to see what was a breakout performance from him.
Similar to Gastrin, Drott brings a lot of the same pace and physicality that pops off the screen, but Drott fits the role of a more traditional power-forward winger. He gets his entries and immediately goes to battle whether it be in net or in the corners. He was quite good at both but his ability to find separation in the neutral zone before exploiting his gap as he got past the blueline was absolutely essential in a roster that largely struggled to do much on that front.
Drott’s current issue is that the consistency in his intensity tended to waver. Understandable considering he was still 16 at the time of the tournament, and it was his first foray against some of the best talent in his age group. If he can tap into his strengths more often, look for him to make a lot of noise really quickly.
Atte Joki
Being optimistic for a Finnish prospect this year was a very, very, very, very tough task… until I watched Atte Joki. Now he may not be the fastest skater and he may not be the most skilled player on the ice, but this dude WORKS and BATTLES and WORKS and WORKS… and WORKS at every given opportunity. He reminds me a lot of a personal favorite from last year in Heikki Ruohonen, who like Joki was similarly lacking in the footwork department but made up for it with an intense, energetic game. Joki brings a very similar FIWB attitude. Like Ruohonen, he also brings some keen hockey sense and an understanding of when to throw caution to the wind. It largely didn’t result in much at the Hlinka, but there was a pattern in the way Finland scored their goals. And by pattern, I mean Joki was involved in over half of the teams’ total goals this tournament (don’t look up how that happened).
Is this all a desperate attempt for me to find something salvageable in the 07 Finns? Maybe. But, with them being this weak, eventually someone has to take the reigns. At the Hlinka, there is no doubt that it was Joki. He is still quite young and if he can bring his skating up a notch, he can be an impactful energy player who may unlock some yet discovered offensive potential. He’s at the very least earned himself a second look in my books.
Matej Pekar
The words you heard around a lot of the Czech Hlinka team is “speed” or “pace” or another synonym for fast. While Adam Benak was the poster boy, Matej Pekar was every bit his equal in embodying the idea. Pekar’s speed isn’t as dynamic as other players, but he is a lot more calculated in its application. At times, this leads to Pekar being behind play more then he should and tending to play quite safe with the puck. What it ultimately builds to, however, is a player that highlights how the player values effectiveness in the application of his skillset. For Pekar, this usually means being a total pest. He hounds players on the forecheck because he has the mobility and tenacity to challenge defenders, he uses his speed to win races to what should be contested pucks. Sprinkle in some decent playmaking ability and you have a very interesting, versatile player.
This profile may bring some eyes to him, but as an undersized player, Pekar will need more then to simply be smart and skilled. Which is why I find it so impressive that he’s already taking steps to work on being a more physical player. He’s really amped up the focus on positioning his body after receiving the puck. This hints that Pekar understands what he’s going to need to do to be a pro and already has a plan in place. Keep in mind that he is the second youngest player in this draft class, the runway he has is massive. The potential for growth with Pekar, that whether he becomes more dynamic, or more practical or brings another intriguing developmental option to whichever NHL team may choose to draft him. The profile Pekar has built for himself provides ample room for optimism and it should make him a fun player to follow this year.
Mikkel Eriksen
Going from the runner-up, let’s talk about the actual youngest player in the draft class in Mikkel Eriksen. The Norwegian is a natural center and is wired like one too. He is remarkably mature in his position and managed to stand out on the Norwegian u18 team amidst play never really going through him. He’s a natural two-way player and never really seemed out of place in any zone. Chances for him were scarce, but he regularly found his options by being adept at getting pressure off of him. Whether it was using his edges or making a quick slip pass to a teammate, Eriksen naturally developed play with ease. Eriksen especially shined when he got the rare opportunity in the offensive end. He was regularly able to find looks and really drove the bus for a Norway team that largely focused on wingers attacking off the rush to create. As if it was natural, his ability to find the center of the ice continued to remain a strength and he managed to test goalies regularly by forcing play to shift direction constantly.
If anything, Eriksen is center driven to a fault, and will struggle when he has to play outside his role when play breaks down or a teammate is out of position, which was an unfortunate regularity in the hockey he finds himself in. But having a less ephemeral position in Färjestad may lead to Eriksen having more freedom to explore the way he approaches the game and most importantly more chances in the offensive zone. An interesting prospect for a player who feels like hasn’t shown us his best yet.
Bonus: Filip Ekberg
While Ekberg isn’t technically a “European” prospect anymore, hooolllyyyy is Ottawa getting a good one. Size schmize, Ekberg is probably one of the best route finders in this class. The way he exploits gaps in defenses and finds ways to squeeze between them with variations and mixups in transition. It takes an insane amount of creativity to see the things that he sees and he does it all at top speed (which is remarkably fast). This Ottawa based scout could not be more excited to see him live.