C Noah Östlund - Djurgardens IF J20, J20 Nationell (2022, 16th, BUF)

majormajor

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Jun 23, 2018
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Östlund is a waay more skilled player than Backlund ever was. I see Jesper Bratt as a decent comparison.

A silkier version of Backlund would be like Alex Wennberg. I think Ostlund is smarter offensively but similar in that he isn't going to shoot much.

I'm not implying that Wennberg is as elite defensively as Backlund, but only a few centers are. Wennberg is excellent defensively, we shouldn't ever expect a prospect to be one of the most elite defensive centers, that's too unpredictable.
 
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VictorLustig

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Feb 8, 2012
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A silkier version of Backlund would be like Alex Wennberg. I think Ostlund is smarter offensively but similar in that he isn't going to shoot much.

I'm not implying that Wennberg is as elite defensively as Backlund, but only a few centers are. Wennberg is excellent defensively, we shouldn't ever expect a prospect to be one of the most elite defensive centers, that's too unpredictable.

I remenber when people compared Elias Pettersson to Alex Wennberg… Comparing Östlund to Wennberrg is just as bad. They have no similarities at all.
 

Evgeny Oliker

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Mar 12, 2003
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I think Bratt is not a bad comparison actually. Although I would say Ostlund is a better playmaker potnentially…but may not be as fast.
 

WhiskeyYerTheDevils

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Apr 27, 2005
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He's gonna be a whale of a player. Crazy how good that 2022 draft was for Buffalo - all 3 guys project to be legit top 6+ scorers.

I see a lot of Barzal in Ostlund, especially in their neutral zone puck carrying tendencies (though he'll never be as powerful of a skater). In the offensive zone, he might be a bit more creative than Barzal - more like a Zegras. Maybe a Barzal / Zegras hybrid?

I think Bratt is not a bad comparison actually. Although I would say Ostlund is a better playmaker potnentially…but may not be as fast.
I'm a big fan of Ostlund, but I don't know if he has the potential to be a better playmaker than Bratt. Bratt led all LW's in 5v5 assists this year, and he trails only Gaudreau, M Tkachuk, and Panarin in 5v5 assists over the last 3 years.

I do agree with the sentiment that Ostlund relies more on cerebral ability than skating ability as compared to Bratt. Ostlund is going to be a very quick skater, but Bratt is maybe the quickest winger in the league.
 

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