If the Penguins want to take a swing at pure offensive upside with pick No. 22, Elton Hermansson would be just that,
The Swedish winger is a highly-skilled, creative, offensive talent. He's praised for his vision, his puck skills, his skating and his quick release. That's translated on the scoresheet. He spent most of the season with MoDo in the Swedish second league as a 17 year old, where he managed 21 points (11 goals, 10 assists) in a low-scoring professional league against grown men. Hermansson also led the U18 World Championship in scoring with 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in seven games on Sweden's way to gold. He tied for second in tournament scoring at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup with 11 points in five games as Sweden won silver.
What keeps Hermansson a likely late-first round pick is his play away from the puck. He lacks consistency in his defensive habits, and his effort level has been called into question at times. Despite having decent size at 6 foot 1, he's not physical, and could stand to add strength to his 181-pound frame.
Hermansson is ranked by Central Scouting as the fifth-best European skater in this draft class. In major ranking services, he's ranked as high as 14th overall (McKeen's Hockey) to 55th (Craig Button, TSN). The Elite Prospects consolidated rankings, which takes into account his place on the various major lists, has Hermansson slotted at No. 18.
Hermansson projects to be a top-six winger, but he's a real boom-or-bust type of prospect. If the offense translates once he moves to North America, he's going to make for an exciting prospect. If it doesn't, he doesn't quite have the 200-foot game to be a real difference-maker yet. If the Penguins believe they can help him round out the details of his game, the payoff could be big.
THE ASYLUM
Draft profiles: Hermansson high-risk, high-reward
If the Penguins want to take a swing at pure offensive upside with pick No. 22, Elton Hermansson would be just that,
The Swedish winger is a highly-skilled, creative, offensive talent. He's praised for his vision, his puck skills, his skating and his quick release. That's translated on the scoresheet. He spent most of the season with MoDo in the Swedish second league as a 17 year old, where he managed 21 points (11 goals, 10 assists) in a low-scoring professional league against grown men. Hermansson also led the U18 World Championship in scoring with 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in seven games on Sweden's way to gold. He tied for second in tournament scoring at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup with 11 points in five games as Sweden won silver.
What keeps Hermansson a likely late-first round pick is his play away from the puck. He lacks consistency in his defensive habits, and his effort level has been called into question at times. Despite having decent size at 6 foot 1, he's not physical, and could stand to add strength to his 181-pound frame.
Hermansson is ranked by Central Scouting as the fifth-best European skater in this draft class. In major ranking services, he's ranked as high as 14th overall (McKeen's Hockey) to 55th (Craig Button, TSN). The Elite Prospects consolidated rankings, which takes into account his place on the various major lists, has Hermansson slotted at No. 18.
Hermansson projects to be a top-six winger, but he's a real boom-or-bust type of prospect. If the offense translates once he moves to North America, he's going to make for an exciting prospect. If it doesn't, he doesn't quite have the 200-foot game to be a real difference-maker yet. If the Penguins believe they can help him round out the details of his game, the payoff could be big.
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