Hjalmarsson has been among the top performers for Boras HC, the minor-league team for Vastra Frolunda HC Goteborg of the SEL with 14 goals, 19 assists in 40 games.
Um...no. Frolunda will typically loan Boras a couple of their Jr aged played that aren't quite good enough to make Frolunda's SEL team but are well beyond the level of play in the Jr league they would play in for Frolunda's Jr team but beyond that, they are not affiliated. The Allsvenskan IS NOT a minor league set up to feed players to the SEL like the AHL is to the NHL.
I also think the writer has Hjalmarsson way too low. The kid's undersized but so are a lot of young kids. He lead a pro team in scoring as a 19 yr old. The talent's there.
I also don't agree with Wagner over Junland and like Robb, think Sonne should be ahead of Wagner as well.
I also think Hjalmarsson seems low. He was a significant factor at the WJCs for Sweden as well, which isn't mentioned at all in his ranking. From what I saw he was willing to play in traffic, which is key for smaller forwards - now if he just bulks up a little bit and makes the jump, he should be on his way for you guys.
I've noticed many players grades have fallen unnecessarily, not just with the Blues prospects, but several teams prospects since the spring rankings have begun rolling out. I don't get it.
I've noticed many players grades have fallen unnecessarily, not just with the Blues prospects, but several teams prospects since the spring rankings have begun rolling out. I don't get it.
I've noticed many players grades have fallen unnecessarily, not just with the Blues prospects, but several teams prospects since the spring rankings have begun rolling out. I don't get it.
My guess is that they decided to edit more strictly to perform even more as a news source and even less as a fanzine. There were some fairly imbalanced ratings before and an overall reduction of ratings is part of leveling the playing field.
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Also, I kinda got the impression that the number-letter grading system has shifted a little bit. Before, number was supposed to represent an absolute ceiling and letter was likelihood to hit that ceiling. Maybe that's the way it's still supposed to be, but I just get this feeling of a shift towards both the number and letter scoring likelihoods - with the number attempting to target the likeliest development path and the letter indicating how certain that is.
So, before a 7C would have been a second-liner/second-pairing/journeyman goaltender at best AND sort of a longshot to reach that potential on top of it. Now, a 7C seems more like a project with serious untapped potential, who could go swing to a 5 or a 9, but 7 is the likeliest path, and a C is just how clear/foggy the future is for that guy.
Maybe that's not the editing standard. But while I can't put my finger on it, it doesn't seem like the system is the same as it was just a few years ago - both in standards (for the better) and in design (no real opinion, that is even if it's actually any different).
I would move Drazenovic, Lemtygov and Barriball out of the top 20. Sonne should be 10th, Fairchild 11,Hjalmarsson 12th, Junland 13, Wagner 14, Lehtera 15, Bergland 16, Nigro 17, Schultz 18, Warfosky 19, Peluso 20, Livingston 21, Schwarz 22
When you look at this list you realize how many prospects the Blues have that have a chance to play in the NHL and have trade value. When Sonne is your #10 prospect and Hjalmarsson #12 it says a lot about how deep the Blues talent pool is and what an outstanding job of drafting Jarmo and company have done.
Hjalmarsson should be at least 5 spots higher. He's been impressive in both the WJC and in playing in Boras. It's not many 19-year olds leading their team in scoring in a professional league.
Kristoffer Berglund should be in top 10 and at least a few spots higher than Junland. I've watch them both a lot and Berglund is the better hockey player in almost all parts of the game.
Kristoffer Berglund should be in top 10 and at least a few spots higher than Junland. I've watch them both a lot and Berglund is the better hockey player in almost all parts of the game.
6'2", 200 lbs > 5'10", 180 lbs
Junland is more suited to the physical, North American game.
What an embarrassment of riches. I bet your list of unranked propects can beat some other teams ranked prospects. Lehtera, Berra, Nigro, Schwarz at 20, K.Berglund at 18, Sonne at 13 I mean come on. . You can use all this depth to quire premiere NHL talent sometime in the near future and be a dangerous team in a few years.
Hey guys, thanks for the positive feedback about the piece, sorry for any discrepancies, the piece was done on the fly.
I have seen most of the players in the Blues system play, either in person or on video, and I am impressed with the players the Blues have in their system.
Regarding some of the rankings, it was extremely difficult to come to a consensus top-20. This seemed to be one that was least disagreeable. There are players in the Blues system such as Lehtera who could possibly crack some team's top-10.
The prospects that have impressed me the most this season as far as growth are Patrick Berglund, Cade Fairchild, and Jonus Junland.
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. You can use all this depth to quire premiere NHL talent sometime in the near future and be a dangerous team in a few years.
