The Draft is one of the most exciting times for NHL teams. Each pick, from first to 224th, has the potential to become a contributing member of their new club. Of course, the reality is that very few prospects selected will go on to play NHL games, and with a limited number of roster spots, teams need to make tough decisions.
This season, the Ottawa Senators had just one player whose rights were expiring on June 1. A third-round pick in 2021, Oliver Johansson looked like a potential sleeper pick, but his production stagnated, and he showed no signs of interest in leaving the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) for North America.
On the surface, the decision was just another mundane part of running an NHL franchise. Teams need to make room for incoming talent, after all. However, with Johansson no longer in the system, the Senators now have just one player from their abysmal 2021 Draft, and it doesn’t look like he’ll push for a roster spot anytime soon. Looking at the bigger picture, it shows not only how difficult the 2021 Draft was for evaluating talent but also how badly the Senators mismanaged their draft picks.
Johansson’s Development
Sorting through the 2021 Draft class was not easy. From cancellations to shortened schedules, scouts were severely limited in their opportunities to watch top prospects compete against each other. Add in the opinion that the 2021 Draft class was far weaker than previous years, and you had a recipe for a chaotic couple of days.
The Senators’ 74th selection was a surprise, but compared to the rest of the draft, it was barely noted. Very few sources ranked Johansson, including NHL Central Scouting, and those that did generally placed him around 150th. But, at 6-foot-1 and just under 200 pounds, the Swedish forward had size, worked hard, and was a fantastic skater. Senators’ head European scout, Mikko Ruuttu, had this to say about him: “Oliver is a smart and hard-working centre or winger who plays well both ways. He’s a good skater who has good skating and playmaking ability. He’ll start the season (in Sweden) in Timra with our (signed prospect) Victor Lodin” (from “WHAT THEY GOT: A scouting report on players the Ottawa Senators selected in the 2021 NHL draft,” Ottawa Sun – 24/06/2021).
The biggest concern with Johansson was that he only played a combined 15 regular-season games across three leagues in his draft season. Although he had eight goals and 13 points, it’s…
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