Thoughts on How The Red Wing Swedes Did at the World Juniors

[MVPete96]

There’s no way you’d mind should be changed on the quality of a prospect over a 5 game sample size. Threads like this are silly and most people seem to forget that this is really a tournament for 19 year olds so any prospect playing that is under the age of 19 should not be judged harshly

 

[SirloinUB]

Soderblom is getting overhyped. Sure he looked good but lets keep in mind his size advantage against kids the same age or younger than him. It seems the same people who critiqued Rasmussen's D+2 WHL season are the ones highest on Soderblom after his junior showcase.

 

[Frk It]

He's playing full time pro hockey in the SHL now. If you mean NHL ready then I completely disagree. He was abysmal the entire tournament. Not even "bad compared to my high expectations" just straight up bad. The only time he looked somewhat competent was when he was on the power play and had to stand still and fire uncontested one timers. He failed the eye test when you first watched the games, but I've gone through and rewatched a few periods and when you focus in on him it's just glaringly obvious. Literally every time he touched the puck in the offensive zone the play would die. Either a give away, an awful pass to nobody, or a bad shot. He couldn't win a battle on the boards, he couldn't keep the puck in the zone when he needed to, and he couldn't complete a clean pass. I assume this tournament was an outlier for him, but still it must hurt to be a New Jersey fan and watch that.

I meant NHL ready, I know he has playing in the SHL for a bit. Ultimately, I think the things he needs to improve on he may be better served learning in the NHL or AHL at this point. Not sure more time in the SHL will correct those things.

I think he is pretty well developed physically, so that was a large basis for me thinking he could make the jump. I have not really watched him in the SHL this year, so I don't know if those same issues you saw are things he just did in the short tournament are things he is chronically doing in the SHL as well.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Soderblom is getting overhyped. Sure he looked decent but lets keep in mind his size advantage against everyone not in the NBA. It seems the same people who critiqued Rasmussen's D+2 WHL season are the ones highest on Soderblom after his junior showcase.

Fixed for you.

There were times he was driving the net and had a defenseman in front of him reaching in for a poke check and they couldn't swat the blade of his stick. These were kids that were 6'0 and 6'1". Not goliaths but not exactly Cole Caulfield either. He'll have the same reach advantage in the NHL against guys that are 6'2" and 6'3".

 

[SirloinUB]

Fixed for you.

There were times he was driving the net and had a defenseman in front of him reaching in for a poke check and they couldn't swat the blade of his stick. These were kids that were 6'0 and 6'1". Not goliaths but not exactly Cole Caulfield either. He'll have the same reach advantage in the NHL against guys that are 6'2" and 6'3".

Yes and no. Reach is valid but a 6'2 210 lb dmen is going to have a lot more strength to contain and push him around. I mean if this kind of size is such an advantage the hype for the better but similarly sized Rasmussen should be higher.

 

[The Red Line]

Sure, I wanted Raymond to score more, but I liked what I saw of him. Great skater, always looking to set the play up, backcheckinig.

The best thing I saw from Raymond was how he directed the play of the whole team while he was on the ice. Like actually pointing his stick and telling everyone where to be and what to do. He has a great vision for the entire ice and is able to control the puck while also planning ahead.

He's got a couple years of development, sure, but I liked what I saw from him.

Soderblom was awesome, but I'm far from convinced about his actual NHL chances, but it'd be great to see him find a role.

 

[WaW]

I think most of the negative analysis here is unwarranted. Sweden were a mess as a team and I take absolutely nothing away regarding any of our prospects tbh. They were ravaged by COVID before the tournament, which completely f***ed any and all chemistry players had with each other from previous tournaments. I dont feel any better or worse about any of our Swedish prospects. Pretty much no one on that team looked comfortable.

Soderblom played well against Austria (woop-dee-f***ing-doo) and the CZE, and had the goal against Finland, but as others have mentioned, he pushed around 17-19 year old kids with his 6'8 frame. He is years away from the NHL if he's ever gonna make it, and as a 6th round pick, if he plays as little as 1 NHL game, he's a success story.

 

[Rzombo4 prez]

It is really hard not to like Beniers. I thought he was good at Michigan but as been even better this tournament. He is so smart and reads the play so well. I am a big skating guy and I don't typically like average skaters when looking for centers but I am making a big exception for Beniers. I very much get a ROR vibe from him at this stage. He will need to continue to work on his skating, posture and core strength but I think he is going to be a hell of an NHL player and has a legit claim to being the first-forward-off-of-the-board.

 

[MBH]

There’s no way you’d mind should be changed on the quality of a prospect over a 5 game sample size. Threads like this are silly

That's an asinine position.
I've just watched Soderblom more than I ever have - ever.
I've watched Raymond and the other Swedes more closely than ever.

Criticisms like yours are illogical.