Prospect Info: #219OA - Hurricanes select RHD Joel Nystrom

[DaveG]

5'10 overager (D+1) that played for Färjestad BK of the SHL

Didn't put up much in terms of numbers in 27 games at that level but had some nice numbers at the U20 level in 15 games

Click to read more...

 

[Unsustainable]

Cool

 

[cptjeff]

Has anyone run the stats on how often overagers go anywhere at all? I don't think the number is high.

 

[DaveG]

Has anyone run the stats on how often overagers go anywhere at all? I don't think the number is high.

I mean we took Wallmark as a D+2 IIRC and he turned out to be pretty alright. Pretty sure Sellgren was an overager as well.

Sounds like he grew a bit this past year which got him on some radars. Eliteprospect actually had him as a late 2nd/early 3rd though McKeens was closer to his selection spot (5th-6th round value).

 

[Nikishin Go Boom]

Geekie was an overager

 

[TheReelChuckFletcher]

Nystrom is an interesting prospect that I've watched a small amount of tape on. Obviously not enough to form a true opinion on, but based on what I saw, I think that his game is projectable in many ways, especially when it comes to skating and stickwork, that could look good on a bottom pair in 5 years if EVERYTHING goes right.

 

[Lucky Lindy]

Asked a journalist that follows Nyströms team Färjestad about him, and this is the answer I got:

Got some chances after injuries and played good, smart and calm for his age. The plan this year is for him to be one of six regular defensemen, and maybe he gets to play with Mikael Wikstrand, a pretty big signing for Färjestad this year (they are maybe the favorite to win the title this year). He also thinks Nyström is going to play for Sweden in WJC this winter, and he is playing with Sweden U20 right now in Plymouth. Says Nyström can improve in his own zone, "but that is pretty much everyone when the make the step from juniors to the big league".

That was some info, will be fun following him this year.

 

[Discipline Daddy]

Regarding the overagers thing, I would say for decades NHL GMs have had irrational fears about drafting overagers. You almost never saw it. Maybe you'd get 1-2 notable ones per draft who absolutely KILLED it, like Tanner Pearson. An unusually high number of those overagers panned out to be NHL players, at least from my recollection.

In the past few years, the Maple Leafs have taken a ton of overagers. Kyle Dubas was interviewed and he said that he thought it was one of the most underutilized sources of skill in the league. I think the Borg has the same approach. Take talent for talent. When an 18-year-old puts up middling stats and you draft him, you are elated when he puts up good stats the next year. So why would you be averse to drafting a 19-year-old with good stats if his middling stats the previous year left him undrafted?

This was a pretty interesting read on that subject: Why overage players could be found money in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft

 

[A Star is Burns]

You can either draft them as overagers or worry about trying to sign them as sought after UFAs if they break out later. Does seem worth it late at least.

 

[Lucky Lindy]

Just scored his first SHL-goal, and is 1+3 in nine game so far.

 

[geehaad]

 

[Nikishin Go Boom]

I appreciate this person’s efforts but Nystrom is on a 3 game hot streak of 2 Gs and 3 assists. 6 points in 22 other games.

What is better for me: he had 16.5 minutes his first game but then didn’t get above 15.5 over the next 8. Over the last 7 his ice time is 17:45, 17:58, 22:03, 23:33, 21:25, 20:54, and 19:54, respectively.

 

[geehaad]

He's a defenseman picked by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 7th round of the draft...of course he's good.

 

[TheReelChuckFletcher]

He's a defenseman picked by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 7th round of the draft...of course he's good.

Canes have quite the track record in recent years of getting guys that are at least callup-level worthy in the third round and later. Heck, you never know if one of those guys Lorentzes his way into a permanent NHL role with us or if they win a permanent job for another NHL club, like Roy in Vegas and (it seems) Geekie in Seattle.

 

[Nikishin Go Boom]

What is weird is how Nystrom fell to the 7th. His rankings were:

• NHL Central Scouting: 48th (EU Skaters)
• McKeen’s Hockey: 170
• Elite Prospects: 63
• Dobber Prospects: 81

hopefully he is a third round talent we found in the 7th to add to our depth.

 

[DaveG]

63 by HockeyProspect as well (black book), and the review of him was absolutely glowing pre-draft. Between Morrow, Honka, and Nystrom we definitely have no shortage of high-offensive upside RHDs in the system long-term, and that's not even touching on having TDA on the team currently.

The only thing I can say/think here is that smaller guys tend to be extremely divisive among scouts if their skating isn't truly exceptional, doubly so for defensemen. I wouldn't think twice about drafting a 5'11 defenseman with his skill level in hopes that at worst he can develop into a #6/PP specialist. Most teams still disagree and are still in the mindset that "you can't teach size" and physicality is still more important than skill and puck control when it comes to winning and building a contender.

 

[spockBokk]

63 by HockeyProspect as well (black book), and the review of him was absolutely glowing pre-draft. Between Morrow, Honka, and Nystrom we definitely have no shortage of high-offensive upside RHDs in the system long-term, and that's not even touching on having TDA on the team currently.

The only thing I can say/think here is that smaller guys tend to be extremely divisive among scouts if their skating isn't truly exceptional, doubly so for defensemen. I wouldn't think twice about drafting a 5'11 defenseman with his skill level in hopes that at worst he can develop into a #6/PP specialist. Most teams still disagree and are still in the mindset that "you can't teach size" and physicality is still more important than skill and puck control when it comes to winning and building a contender.

I’d add Heimosalmi into that group as well. He’s having a rough season stats-wise in Liiga, but he still has plenty of potential. (I still kinda wish they’d have drafted Raty over Heimosalmi at 44OA, but what can ya do)

 

[DaveG]

I’d add Heimosalmi into that group as well. He’s having a rough season stats-wise in Liiga, but he still has plenty of potential. (I still kinda wish they’d have drafted Raty over Heimosalmi at 44OA, but what can ya do)

Yeah, Fensore's not doing too badly either for that matter, just haven't caught BU much this season since I've been focused more on UMass (duh) and Northeastern games (homer gonna homer)

 

[emptyNedder]

The only thing I can say/think here is that smaller guys tend to be extremely divisive among scouts if their skating isn't truly exceptional, doubly so for defensemen.

He was undersized and an over-ager, so not that surprising. Nineteen and twenty-year-olds also seem divisive.

 

[TheReelChuckFletcher]

He was undersized and an over-ager, so not that surprising. Nineteen and twenty-year-olds also seem divisive.

Teams last draft actually didn't shy away from the overage crop. Guys that I really liked, like Janis Moser (a triple-overager, in fact!), actually went in the 2nd round. It's important to point out, however, that #size was a huge priority for some reason for many GMs in the 2021 draft, and Carolina was one of the very few exceptions to this.

 

[emptyNedder]

however, that #size was a huge priority for some reason for many GMs in the 2021 draft, and Carolina was one of the very few exceptions to this.

The bigger exception may be that the Canes prospects who look the most likely to succeed as of today are all 6' or above.

 

[TheReelChuckFletcher]

The bigger exception may be that the Canes prospects who look the most likely to succeed as of today are all 6' or above.

Cough Seth Jarvis Cough Who Already Succeeded Is Just 5'10" Cough



In all seriousness, though, the smaller prospects have also been drafted lower in the pecking order on average, so to say. I'm just saying that the Canes have proven to be thoroughly unafraid of smaller players in the later rounds of the draft, so much so that guys that know way more about the yuts than I do have said that Carolina has been a massive outlier in this regard relative to the league since the 2019 draft.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

Through 40 games with Farjestads he's +12 with 20 points.

Any chance he is signed or are there better options in the system?