Some prospects come ready made, while others require a little TLC and seasoning. Elias Pettersson falls in to the latter category.
The intellect and athleticism are evident, and boy are they are a joy to watch, but physically, he’s just not there yet.
Here’s a closer look at the young Swede.
Age on June 23: 18
From: Sundsvall, Sweden
Current Team: Timra IK (Allsvenskan)
Position: C/LW
Shoots: Left
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 165 pounds
NHL Central Scouting Rank (European): 2
Jeff Marek’s Take: “A magician with the puck on his stick. Still needs to fill out physically.”
Pett’s production
Pettersson produced 41 points in 43 games competing against older players in Sweden’s Allsvenskan league this past season, but that didn’t translate well to international play. The forward registered just one assist in six games at the World Junior Championship.
Still, the talent is clearly there and Pettersson has gained acclaim for his creativity on the ice. Check out this sweet highlight pack for some beautiful stickhandling, goals and passes.
Playmaker in the making
As you can see in the video above, Pettersson has a penchant for pretty passes. So, it’s no surprise that he compares his style to Washington Capitals centre Nicklas Backstrom and former Detroit Red Wings star Pavel Datsyuk.
The numbers back that up, too: Pettersson’s 22 assists in 2016-17 were the most by a junior in Sweden’s second division.
It’s also worth noting that he’s the younger brother of centre Emil Pettersson, who was selected by the Nashville Predators in the sixth round of the 2013 draft and most recently played in the Swedish Hockey League.
“I always looked up to him and learned from him every day,” Pettersson told The Hockey News earlier this year. “And he learned from me. It has made a big difference for me to have a brother in the SHL.”
Weight issue
An obvious concern about Pettersson is his weight. He’s tall, at 6-foot-2, but is listed at just 165 pounds. That frame makes winning puck battles a tough task, but he’s reportedly added 10 pounds in the past year and observers think the Swede will improve as he continues to gain weight.
“As he gets stronger, he’ll become even more physical and aggressive than he is now, and his creativity could definitely elevate his game to dominant levels,” according to Eliteprospects.com. “He can be described as a tenacious, jack-of-all-trades kind of player; he is well versed in all the important aspects of his own game. His speed and top-end acceleration continue to improve game by game, and his hard-nosedness shows through in his dogged pursuit of puck control.”
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