Prospect Info: Mikael Wikstrand

[Burrowsaurus]

It always amazes me how Andreas Englund is often forgotten in these discussions. Captain of the Swedish team at the world juniors and named to team Sweden for the Euro hockey tour against Finland. 6'3 and tough. Is it because he's a shut down defenceman rather than a point producer? Gawd knows we need that type of guy.

Well it's just where does a guy like englund fit? He's a stay at home guy with next to zero offensive upside.

 

[EXTRAS]

Karlsson 3.0

(Klingberg was the 2.0 version)

 

[Hale The Villain]

Well it's just where does a guy like englund fit? He's a stay at home guy with next to zero offensive upside.

If he develops well going forward he may be good partner for Karlsson. Might be a solid replacement for Methot down the road.

 

[Hale The Villain]

I'd love for the Sens to sign young Swedish RD Lukas Bengtsson, Wikstrand's former teammate in Mora and Frolunda, and have him take the spot that Wikstrand was supposed to fill on the team

Then banish Wikstrand to the Oilers for a 2022 Conditional 7th round pick (condition being that he comes to North America, which he probably never will)

 

[WadeRedden]

You guys who want him over here just don't get it. He walked-out on the team and trashed the organization repeatedly in the media. He's never playing a game in an Ottawa Senators uniform.

The only way he'll ever play for us is if he comes back to development camp this summer with his tail tucked between his legs and plays exceptionally well. He'd also have to play like half a season in Bingo before getting a call-up. He won't do it. Who really gives a **** anyway? He's probably at or slightly below the skill level of a guy like Chris Wideman.

 

[FolignoQuantumLeap]

You guys who want him over here just don't get it. He walked-out on the team and trashed the organization repeatedly in the media. He's never playing a game in an Ottawa Senators uniform.

The only way he'll ever play for us is if he comes back to development camp this summer with his tail tucked between his legs and plays exceptionally well. He'd also have to play like half a season in Bingo before getting a call-up. He won't do it. Who really gives a **** anyway? He's probably at or slightly below the skill level of a guy like Chris Wideman.

When did he repeatedly trash the organization?

 

[Micklebot]

When did he repeatedly trash the organization?

The closest I can think of is a lot of tweets about SHL>AHL

In the small amount of watching him and Wideman (prior to him playing for Ottawa) I've always been much more impressed with Wikstrand, but small samples and not being in any way a pro scout, not sure that amounts to much.

I do think that management though more highly of him than Wideman, and that probably should count for something. If they thought he was a poor mans wideman, they probably would have cared less if he wanted to spend another year in the SHL.

 

[WadeRedden]

When did he repeatedly trash the organization?

In the months leading up to dev. camp he was quoted as saying something to the effect of wanting to play another year in Sweden because Binghamton wasn't a nice play to live and whatnot. He kept doing interviews/Twitter campaigns after he was suspended which I'm sure didn't make the Sens too happy.

The closest I can think of is a lot of tweets about SHL>AHL

In the small amount of watching him and Wideman (prior to him playing for Ottawa) I've always been much more impressed with Wikstrand, but small samples and not being in any way a pro scout, not sure that amounts to much.

I do think that management though more highly of him than Wideman, and that probably should count for something. If they thought he was a poor mans wideman, they probably would have cared less if he wanted to spend another year in the SHL.

1) Why do you think that?

2) Wideman isn't exactly some slouch. He's the reigning Eddie Shore Award winner and seems to have carved out a nice little spot as a 5th defensemen on an NHL team. They cared about him wanting to spend another year in Europe because with a guy like Wideman graduating to the bigs, they needed a player/s to help fill his spot in Binghamton. As fans of the Ottawa Senators, we often forget that the organization actually dedicates a lot of resources into the Binghamton team and for good reason--it serves at the apprenticeship program for the big club. You can't really expect guys like Randy Lee and Luke Richardson to do their jobs effectively if you're not supplying them with the appropriate talent necessary to be competitive. Again, they paid that kid his money. He should have been down in Bingo helping that team get better.

 

[EXTRAS]

In the months leading up to dev. camp he was quoted as saying something to the effect of wanting to play another year in Sweden because Binghamton wasn't a nice play to live and whatnot. He kept doing interviews/Twitter campaigns after he was suspended which I'm sure didn't make the Sens too happy.



1) Why do you think that?

2) Wideman isn't exactly some slouch. He's the reigning Eddie Shore Award winner and seems to have carved out a nice little spot as a 5th defensemen on an NHL team. They cared about him wanting to spend another year in Europe because with a guy like Wideman graduating to the bigs, they needed a player/s to help fill his spot in Binghamton. As fans of the Ottawa Senators, we often forget that the organization actually dedicates a lot of resources into the Binghamton team and for good reason--it serves at the apprenticeship program for the big club. You can't really expect guys like Randy Lee and Luke Richardson to do their jobs effectively if you're not supplying them with the appropriate talent necessary to be competitive. Again, they paid that kid his money. He should have been down in Bingo helping that team get better.

You realize wikstrand has put up numbers similar to karlsson and klingberg in the super elite, allsvenskan and shl, right? He isn't some slouch. He has high potential. Whether he reaches that potential is a question mark, but all the same, there is a reason the sens organization are so bitter about him leaving, and it isn't just because they need a plug for the AHL.

 

[Micklebot]

In the months leading up to dev. camp he was quoted as saying something to the effect of wanting to play another year in Sweden because Binghamton wasn't a nice play to live and whatnot. He kept doing interviews/Twitter campaigns after he was suspended which I'm sure didn't make the Sens too happy.



1) Why do you think that?

2) Wideman isn't exactly some slouch. He's the reigning Eddie Shore Award winner and seems to have carved out a nice little spot as a 5th defensemen on an NHL team. They cared about him wanting to spend another year in Europe because with a guy like Wideman graduating to the bigs, they needed a player/s to help fill his spot in Binghamton. As fans of the Ottawa Senators, we often forget that the organization actually dedicates a lot of resources into the Binghamton team and for good reason--it serves at the apprenticeship program for the big club. You can't really expect guys like Randy Lee and Luke Richardson to do their jobs effectively if you're not supplying them with the appropriate talent necessary to be competitive. Again, they paid that kid his money. He should have been down in Bingo helping that team get better.

Well, Management had been extremely high on Wikstrand at pretty much every opportunity. Wideman, not so much. I mean, TJ Brennan won the Eddie Shore to, but everybody knew he was a fringe dman. Wideman is what he is, a small Dman with no attributes that really stand out, but good enough at most things to be a bottom pair guy but that's about it. The club has never really shown any indication that they expect more than that from him. Wikstand on the other hand they have been far more positive about.

Separate your emotional reaction to him running off to the SHL and actually look at the two players, the various quotes and evaluations out there, some of the video floating around, and it's pretty easy to tell. He still had to adjust to the NA game, but aside from that, he was easily the more highly regarded prospect.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Well it's just where does a guy like englund fit? He's a stay at home guy with next to zero offensive upside.

A Defense first defenseman on a team that is one of the worst at defending... hmmm not sure

 

[WadeRedden]

Well, Management had been extremely high on Wikstrand at pretty much every opportunity. Wideman, not so much. I mean, TJ Brennan won the Eddie Shore to, but everybody knew he was a fringe dman. Wideman is what he is, a small Dman with no attributes that really stand out, but good enough at most things to be a bottom pair guy but that's about it. The club has never really shown any indication that they expect more than that from him. Wikstand on the other hand they have been far more positive about.

Separate your emotional reaction to him running off to the SHL and actually look at the two players, the various quotes and evaluations out there, some of the video floating around, and it's pretty easy to tell. He still had to adjust to the NA game, but aside from that, he was easily the more highly regarded prospect.

So your assessment is based on what Dorion and Co. have said about him in the media? I'm pretty sure Dorion has admitted to over-selling prospects in the press in the past.

 

[starling]

A Defense first defenseman on a team that is one of the worst at defending... hmmm not sure

He's playing 3rd pairing minutes though, so it's not his fault for the most part.

 

[Micklebot]

So your assessment is based on what Dorion and Co. have said about him in the media? I'm pretty sure Dorion has admitted to over-selling prospects in the press in the past.

No, my assessment of Wikstrand is based on my viewings, other posters viewings and scouting reports.

My understanding of how the organization values the two is based on their actions and what they say to the media, combined with how they align with how well the players have performed in my viewings and the judgments expressed in scouting reports

What are your assessments based on? From what I can gather here, they seem pretty baseless.

 

[Ouroboros]

There's a report out of Sweden that Wikstrand has signed a 4 year extension with Farjestad and requested that Ottawa terminate his ELC.

 

[Samboni]

There's a report out of Sweden that Wikstrand has signed a 4 year extension with Farjestad and requested that Ottawa terminate his ELC.

Too bad if that is true, he would have been a good addition to the blueline had things worked out. Since I don't know the facts on what motivated him to stay home, I'll resist the temptation to trash him.

 

[Micklebot]

There's a report out of Sweden that Wikstrand has signed a 4 year extension with Farjestad and requested that Ottawa terminate his ELC.

Might as well. Hopefully, should he ever decide that he's ready to come over to NA and play, he'll give us first right of refusal.

 

[Six Assets]

There's a report out of Sweden that Wikstrand has signed a 4 year extension with Farjestad and requested that Ottawa terminate his ELC.

screw this guy. No drive. No commitment.

 

[Nac Mac Feegle]

Might as well. Hopefully, should he ever decide that he's ready to come over to NA and play, he'll give us first right of refusal.

Nah. He's the type whose balls will never drop.

 

[Micklebot]

screw this guy. No drive. No commitment.

Seems to me he's just committing to something other than what you want him to commit to.

 

[Six Assets]

Seems to me he's just committing to something other than what you want him to commit to.

*No commitment to play in the best league in the universe

 

[Cosmix]

There's a report out of Sweden that Wikstrand has signed a 4 year extension with Farjestad and requested that Ottawa terminate his ELC.

I doubt that he can sign a contract with Farjestad if he already has a signed contract with the Senators. He might have a conditional offer of a contract which requires the Senators to allow it to proceed, given his existing contract with The Senators. This will be interesting to follow.

 

[Iamok]

It was pretty clear from the moment he bailed that he had no intention of coming back. Whatever, it was just a 7th anyways.

Move on and forget about him like the hundreds of other busts out there.

 

[dumbdick]

Can Ottawa just suspend the contract or whatever they do with the Russians so that we keep his rights?

 

[Tundraman]

I was not in favor of burning the 2nd year of his ELC since his pretext was highly suspect and it appears from reports it didn't match events.

Now for part of one season he can play mind games, report short term, feign injury and/or play badly to get cut etc.. until the last year of his ELC runs out next season and then he is free to pick Sweden or the KHL.

If there is any truth to this contract talk they should suspend him without mercy! I suspect the softy was BM and Dorion won't be so easy to fool but it was a mistake to fall for his excuses last season when he quit on the team.