Leo Carlsson Will Be Tested In the NHL

Very few players are ready to play in the NHL soon after they are drafted. That’s a fact. It’s a small number of players in the last 20 years who were truly ready. I was surprised when Leo Carlsson signed. I thought he would play another season in the SHL.

He wants to play center. He made that clear to me in an interview.

“Center is my first position,” Carlsson stated.

Should he be the #1 center? No, he should be on the second or third line and work his way up the ladder. Don’t have him matching up against the NHL’s best right out of the gate. As a rookie, that’s a lot to handle, and there’s no need to do it. If it’s meant to be the coaches will find that out.

Carlsson probably put on some muscle this summer, and that will make him even more dangerous when he has the puck and he’s able to get through traffic with it. His strength is above average for a player his age, so he can survive for sure and most likely will start to thrive at some point this season.

“I’m pretty big, so the key is to get some speed going,” Carlsson answered.

At 6-foot-3, he can use his size to his advantage and that’s one of the reasons Anaheim chose him over Adam Fantilli and Matvei Michkov. One thing is for sure. If Carlsson is the lesser of the three, the Ducks will take some heat from their fan base down the road.

Carlsson had 10 points and fifteen assists this season in the SHL. Those are solid numbers for an 18-year-old who is playing against men. When I was hearing from some Swedish media how good this rookie was doing in the playoffs. That’s when I realized there was a chance he could go second in the 2023 NHL Draft and said as much on the radio. I still thought the percentage was small. I said no higher than 20% to one reporter who asked me.

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Carlsson showed off his speed and skill at development camp. I think he’s going to fit right into that market, and the fans will love his play. The Ducks don’t have a player like him. He checks off a lot of boxes and he will only get better as he grows into his body.

I expect him to be an All-Star caliber player in the NHL someday soon, and he could be in the Calder Race.