Photo credits: Tellerreport
The new season has already begun. Well, at least somewhere. European leagues are in progress and especially in Sweden, there is a lot to see. Young guys, 2021 Draft eligibles, are stepping up to the men’s level or they’re playing very dominant roles in U20 hockey.
In my first piece of 2020/2021, I take a look at three Swedish prospects that caught my eyes the most. The profiles here aren’t long, just three quick thoughts about what I’ve seen in a couple of games.
Simon Robertsson, RW, 6’0″, 181 lbs
Robertsson entered the 2020/2021 season with superb fashion. Before the first international break, he picked up 20 points in 15 games and also cracked onto the senior team twice. Swedes have a lot of offensive talents coming into the 2021 draft and Robertsson is one of them, if not the best one. He plays with high-end speed, creativity, and superb technicality. He has a bottomless dynamo inside his body and especially in his legs. His stamina is maybe the best of all 2021 draft-eligible players. He forechecks hard, and backchecks when it’s needed. He just needs to add strength but at this age, it’s a pretty common issue.
Anton Olsson, LHD, 6’1″, 183 lbs
Anton Olsson is one of the most interesting players to watch. There were a lot of talks about his countryman defender Simon Edvinsson but Olsson stayed unnoticeable. Everything has changed when the season started. He can play efficiently on both ends of the ice. He’s a great skater, he has quick feet but where he shines now the most (where he made a huge progress in the off-season) is his defensive game. This is a sign that reminds me of Drysdale in this part of the season last year. He uses his stick in his own zone very well, he translated into men’s hockey as a real pro. He looks mature in terms of decision-making, he’s pretty reliable and makes those little defensive plays all the time. As always, you can never be too powerful and strength is the thing he needs to work one. That will also improve his shot that is not that strong right now. If he can carry over his great decision-making from the defensive zone to the offensive zone and stops throwing weak pucks into the crease too often, he can join a Tier 1 group of defensemen in this year’s draft.
Jesper Wallstedt, G, 6’3″, 214 lbs
Another star-goalie on the rise. Jesper Wallstedt holds the flag as high as Askarov did this prior year. He’s not that flashy, but his style is based on good positioning. He’s already one of the best in the SHL. He should have been a number one goalie in the Swedish Junior league last season and should have got a couple of shots in the SHL, but played only one junior-level game, didn’t allow a single goal, and now he fights for a No. 1 spot with David Rautio. He got into the net 6 times, Wallstedt 4 times, but it looks like Wallstedt is getting there. His save percentage 0.929% is much better than Rautio’s as well as the GAA (1.92). He’s on the way to get into the top-10 of this draft and pass Askarov’s position (11th to NSH).