Carolina Hurricanes Prospects: Erik Karlsson Looks to Make Smooth Transition to North America
By Brett Finger
Between now and the start of the preseason, Cardiac Cane will preview every Carolina Hurricanes prospect as they enter the 2015-2016 season and what we expect from them in the coming year.
Player: Erik Karlsson
Position: Left Wing
Date of Birth: July 28, 1994 (21)
Birthplace: Lerum, Sweden
Height/Weight: 6’0″/170 lbs.
2015-2016 Team: Carolina Hurricanes (NHL) or Charlotte Checkers (AHL)
Scouting Report:
"A speedy player with plenty of intensity. Has good puck skills and hockey sense. Has a rather smallish frame, but initiates physical contact and plays with a lot of heart. Contributes both ways and plays a well-rounded game. Has a great attitude. (ELITE PROSPECTS)Karlsson is a small but talented forward from Sweden who has some scoring ability. He is most effective in the role of an energy player and his best attribute is his work ethic. He plays with a physical component to his game despite his size. (HOCKEY’S FUTURE)"
While the Carolina Hurricanes don’t have the well-known Erik Karlsson, they do have an interesting, young Swedish forward by the same name, a player who looks to create a name for himself in professional hockey.
With the 99th pick (4th round) of the 2012 NHL Draft, the Hurricanes selected the incredibly undersized yet very explosive winger, and since then, Karlsson has broken into the upper ranks of the Swedish hockey leagues.
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Since his draft year in 2012, Erik Karlsson has played in 99 games in the Swedish Hockey League, the top men’s hockey league in Sweden, playing with men upwards of 10-20 years older than him.
His numbers are less than stellar. He has tallied 6 goals and 9 total points in his 99 SHL games. Karlsson played in the SHL at the ages of 18, 19, and 20.
While his SHL numbers aren’t great, Karlsson has put up solid seasons in the SuperElite J20 league in Sweden. He tallied 15 points in 9 SuperElite games a season ago before being promoted to the SHL.
Karlsson also suited up for his native country of Sweden in the U18 WJC in 2011-2012 and in the U20 WJC in 2013-2014. Sweden won silver medals in both tournaments.
After years of overseas play, the Swedish forward will make his way to North America this season. Karlsson inked a three-year entry level deal with the Carolina Hurricanes back in May of 2014.
Despite excelling in many areas of his game, one massive thing that still stands in Karlsson’s way is size. At the age of 20, the Swede stands at 6’0″, 170 pounds, which makes him drastically undersized for the NHL.
Karlsson has to get much, much stronger in the next few seasons as he gets acclimated to the North American game, one which is far more physical than that of Sweden.
With that being said, Karlsson is still just 21-years-old, and has time to get more weight on and adjust his game accordingly.
Even though Erik Karlsson doesn’t have size on his side, he has something that Canes fans love, which is passion and intensity. He plays a full 60-minute game from start to finish, giving it his all on every shift, and he has speed and skill, which he takes advantage of.
Karlsson has good hands and a solid two-way game, and despite being small, he isn’t afraid to go to the dirty areas or initiate contact when he has to.
This season, Erik Karlsson will attend Hurricanes training camp, but he will likely see a full season in the AHL with the Charlotte Checkers.
This will be Karlssons’s first year as a pro hockey player, and there is still a lot that needs to happen in his development to make him an NHLer one day.
Down the road, he projects to be more of a bottom-six player in the NHL, but he will need to put on a lot of weight and improve in many areas in order to make that happen. He has a good two-way game, which will help make him a viable option in that role.
A good season in the American League this season would be a great thing for the Carolina Hurricanes to see, because it isn’t completely clear yet just what the organization has in him.