NHL 2016 Draft Radar: Carl Grundstrom
By Sam Blazer
7 years agoAs far as Swedish hockey names go, Carl Grundstrom has the sloppy joe’s of names. Not terribly elegant but I guess it will get the job done.
The spirited winger has made it his business to go against type and be a little more physical than his other Swedish counterparts. Where exactly does he fit in on an NHL team?
The Stats
Having played in the Swedish Superelit for a couple of years, he performed well but had an average transition to the SHL even though he led all Swedish draft eligibles in scoring. His performance in the World Junior Championship was well below many scouts expectations, given what he has shown teams in the past. The WJC is only one tournament but when you are on the biggest stage, you definitely need to shine.
The Eye Test
Some scouts had some things to say about Grundstrom, some nice, some not so nice.
“Grundstrom didn’t have a great tournament, scoring just one goal. With the depth of the Swedish team he tended to play down in the lineup, often as a fourth line forward. He’s a good skater with a good shot. He played physical. He had a couple nice chances where he snuck in behind the defencemen and positioned himself beside the net.”
“Led all SHL
draft-eligible players in scoring with 16 points and was second with 53 penalty
minutes in 49 games…Tied for ninth among SHL forwards with 75 hits…His 86 shots
on goal were eighth-best for MoDo while ranking 21st on the club in ice time at
13:50 per game…Named to Sweden’s under-20 National Team for the 2016 World
Junior Championship, where he scored a goal in seven games…Led Sweden in
scoring with a goal and three assists in four games at the U20 Four Nations
Tournament in Russia last August.”
“Grundström is a power forward in the making. I can see him becoming either a great compliment on a topline with two more skilled players or in a checking role. His abilities in front and around the crease makes me believe more in the complimentary role than the checking role. He is a good draft option as a second or third rounder because you know what you will be getting. He has the potential to become a regular NHL player but not certain enough that he has the elite potential teams look for in the first round.”
Does he fit on the Red Wings?
Grundstrom isn’t going to be a player that jumps into the league right away and will take some seasoning before he becomes anything in the league. That fits right into the Red Wings philosophy and he will most likely see time with MODO before he heads over to North America. People can’t peg where his ceiling and floor are as a player and because of it, I believe he has suffered. Unsure of his ability to be a top six forward, he will most likely go in the second round and be a bit of a steal.
Player Oddity
For whatever reason in 2015, Grundstrom liked posting photos of friends with tobacco pouches/snus in their mouths. Here are a couple examples:
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