NHL Draft profiles: Muggli fared well in pro league at only 17

This is the 14th story in a series of player profiles from the NHL's Scouting Combine in Buffalo, N.Y., focusing on potential second-round picks for the Penguins at 44th and 46th overall.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- For a team like the Penguins that could really benefit from their prospects being ready sooner rather than later, drafting players out of Europe who already have professional experience playing against older, bigger and stronger players could be a big plus.

Defenseman Leon Muggli brings that. At just 17 years old, Muggli is coming off a full season in the Swiss National League in which he flourished in a significant role.

Muggli listed at 6 feet and 177 pounds, is a left-handed shot. The Cham, Switzerland native describes himself as a "defensive-minded two-way defenseman."

"Good first pass, likes to follow the rush and good skating abilities and good hockey IQ," Muggli told me at the NHL Scouting Combine earlier this month in Buffalo, N.Y.. "I'm looking for this simple plays."

Muggli named the Jets' Josh Morrissey and Panthers' Gustav Forsling as defensemen he tries to model his game after, citing their "same size, similar game style." He also calls players like Predators defenseman Roman Josi and Kings forward Kevin Fiala his "role models," just for being some of the top Swiss players around.

Muggli played 42 games for EV Zug in the top Swiss league this season, often on the team's top pairing alongside former Penguins defense prospect Lukas Bengtsson, and played on the power play and penalty-kill. He said that he felt as if he adjusted to playing professionally against men "pretty quick."

"Of course, you have to get used to it with the speed and everything." Muggli said. "But for sure, to battle against grown-up men on board battles or win foot races is pretty hard."

He didn't exactly have eye-popping offensive production -- just 12 points (three goals, nine assists), the fourth-most among Zug defensemen.

Muggli didn't do much better offensively in international play this season, either. He captained Switzerland in the U18 World Junior Championship and had one goal in three games before getting injured, and represented Switzerland in the main U20 tournament and had an assist in four games, missing a game due to a suspension from a cross-check.

Working on that offensive side of his game is his biggest focus right now.

"I want to develop my offensive mind," Muggli told me. "I want to really think offense in my game, create the offense and look for plays to help my team score."

Rankings even this deep into the draft are often all over the place, with a lot of variability. But Muggli is frequently ranked somewhere in the second round, not far from where the Penguins pick at 44h and 46th overall. He's been ranked as high as 37th (Dobber Prospects) to as low as 88th (Elite Prospects) but generally skews toward the higher end of that range: 48th (Flo Hockey), 49th (Bob McKenzie and McKeen's Hockey), 50th (Smaht Scouting), 56th (FC Hockey). NHL Central Scouting ranked him the 11th-best international skater on the organization's own final list, a little jump from his midseason ranking of 13th.

Muggli met with 24 teams at the combine, and told me that the Penguins were one of them. He called the meeting "for sure special, especially with Jason Spezza there, a great player, a special player" making him one of a few prospects who sounded a little starstruck by the Penguins' assistant general manager when talking about their meetings.

Muggli's contract with Zug runs through 2025-26, and Zug general manager Reto Klay told the team's website earlier this season that he expects Muggli to stick around "at least next season," so he won't be coming over to North America just yet for whoever does eventually draft him later this month.

Muggli does a lot of things well, but there isn't really any one part of his game that's extraordinary. That, along with his minimal offensive production for a two-way defenseman, will likely have him fly under-the-radar for some teams at the draft. He's just a reliable and well-rounded defenseman, nothing flashy. But for him to break into a men's league at 17 years old and take on a big role is something that will definitely be attractive to teams.