Several years of pick volume and position has put the Boston Bruins developmental system behind a lot of other teams around the NHL, but when it comes to Sweden, the team has a couple of impressive forward prospects in Fabian Lysell and Oskar Steen.
Lysell, 18, was the team’s first-round selection in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, a good value pickup at 21st overall when he slid a bit from where he was projected to go in pre-draft projections. Since then, he made a positive impression on the team at his first NHL rookie and main training camp and is producing in juniors with the WHL’s Vancouver Giants. With nine goals and 26 points in 21 games in his rookie (and likely only) season in that league, Lysell was named to Sweden’s World Junior Championship team this week, giving Boston fans a player to watch in the annual top tier under-20 tournament after Christmas.
Steen is a contrast to the flashy youngster, a veteran pro in Sweden before spending the last several seasons in the AHL with Providence. The 23-year-old right wing was a later pick by Boston, going 165th overall in 2016. However, given his two assists in three NHL games this year, coupled with his best AHL campaign to date and clear evidence that he was trending as a scorer when he signed with the B’s, Steen could end up succeeding beyond the most optimistic of expectations.
Lysell scouting report and WJC projection
When the Bruins signed Lysell to a three-year entry-level contract in August, it led to immediate speculation that he could play the new season in the AHL with Providence. In order to sign him, Boston had to purchase the remaining year of his pro contract with Lulea HF, but as it turns out, the plan to have him play top minutes and all situations in juniors was a sound one. The 5-foot-10, 172-pound right-shot wing took a little time to acclimate to the more rough-and-tumble WHL, but he looks more settled and comfortable, and the points are now coming with regularity.
Lysell is a top-end skater whose instant acceleration and quick-cut, lateral agility poses real challenges for defenders who try to hold their gaps as he comes straight at them at top speed.
He has quick hands and the ability to carry pucks at full gallop without having to slow down, and he has some natural dangle and creativity to beat defenders 1-on-1.
Lysell is particularly dangerous with the man advantage. He uses his speed/quickness combination to exploit extra time and space in the offensive zone, able to work pucks through seams with deft, pinpoint passing, or attack the net himself. While he doesn’t have as rapid or accurate a release as the top-scoring wingers in the game, Lysell can hit the back of the net when he opens up his hips to step into one-timers or get between the hash marks to snapshots through traffic. His all-around game is still a work in progress, but he’s playing with some jam and abrasiveness to the extent that a skill guy with his slight frame/body type can employ.
Lysell joins five other first-round picks from the 2021 draft on Team Sweden to compete at the WJC in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta Dec. 26-Jan. 5. William Eklund, who went seventh overall to the San Jose Sharks, began the year in the NHL but was sent back home to Djurgarden on Nov. 5. Sweden also boasts prime talent on the back end, with sixth overall defenseman Simon Edvinsson (Detroit) and goaltender Jesper Wallstedt, who went one selection ahead of Lysell to Minnesota at 20th. Lysell is one more highly skilled and dangerous forward along with Eklund and Isak Rosen (Buffalo-14th) and Oskar Olausson (Colorado- 28th) who will all combine to create matchup nightmares for opposing defenses.
Watch for Lysell to see significant time on the power play, as that is where he is able to make the biggest impact. He also has a big game reputation, scoring a pair of goals to knock favored Team USA out of the World Under-18 Championship last spring. With the talent they have, Sweden is a dark horse to win it if not being a favorite. Should they go all the way to gold, Lysell will likely be a key to that success, as he is starting to play his best hockey of the season, and is still flush with confidence from the successful run he had in Boston in the rookie and exhibition games.
Steen on path to being an NHL regular
Taken 136 spots after Trent Frederic, Steen might be the player who actually develops into a top-nine winger with offensive upside in the long run.
At the time of his latest call-up, Steen’s six goals and 13 points led Providence in scoring and were two points more than he had all of last season’s pandemic-shortened schedule in half the games.
Although shorter in stature, Steen’s fire hydrant build allows him to roll off of body contact and stay on his skates (he has a powerful lower trunk). He’s a natural shooter with an eye to snap pucks to the back of the net when the shooting lanes open. He scored 29 goals in his final 62 Swedish pro league games split between Farjestads and Borkloven, but to be on that kind of pace given the style of hockey played in Europe on the larger ice surfaces, where shots are fewer and far between, speaks volumes about his potential to score in the NHL.
Steen is still looking for his first NHL goal in six games and counting, but it won’t be long now. He plays with energy and tenacity, having registered a pair of assists already. As he gets more and more comfortable with the language, the setting, and the pace of the NHL, he appears to be on an upward trend to stick in Boston sooner rather than later.
There are always the cap ramifications to consider, so fans should bear that in mind if/when Steen is shuttled back and forth to Providence.  With the team struggling to score consistently, he’s one internal option that the Bruins just might be willing to stick with a bit longer. It appears that in the next couple of years, the opportunity is there for Steen to take advantage of in Boston.
