After drafting Filip Zadina and Joe Veleno in the first round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, Detroit added to their forward prospect pool by selecting a third player ahead of where the general consensus had them ranked. Unfortunately, a back injury sidelined the left winger for much of last season.
Vitals
Position: RW
Shoots: Left
Born: July 16, 2000
Birthplace: Uppsala, SWE
Drafted: 2018, 2nd Round, 33rd overall
Last Year: #14
Stats
Strengths:
While I personally went into the 2018 draft looking forward to seeing the defensemen that Detroit would surely draft with one or more of their first three picks, I was high on the three forwards they did draft, and remain so. The first of the three to appear in our community’s rankings (because you of course knew that Veleno and Zadina will be featured here), Berggren is a prospect Detroit fans should still be excited about.
According to Mark Hiller from Dobber Prospects:
When he is healthy, Berggren could be described as an energetic and dynamic finesse winger who is fast, strong on the puck and competes at a high level. He is a great skater with very good edge-work and can dart in and out of traffic in tight spaces to avoid defenders and generate offence. Berggren likes to deliver hits and doesn’t mind taking one either.
Weaknesses:
Hiller says that Berggren’s shot is not NHL ready yet, but that is certainly something that can be improved. Other than that, the main concern is if he can bounce back strong from his back injury last season. So far, there is no reason to believe that he can’t.
Looking Forward
If you are hoping to see Berggren in North America this season, that’s not likely. According to Ansar Khan, Berggren will return to Sweden, where he will play for Skelleftea AIK in the SHL. Competing against men should be good for his development.
This season will be a major one for his growth. He impressed in this year’s development camp, and there is good reason to optimistic that he can be an impact player in the NHL in a season or two.
We’ll leave you with a highlight reel goal that shows off his slick hands.
2019 Red Wings Top 25 Under 25:
25: Vili Saarijarvi
24: Ryan O’Reilly
23: Joe Hicketts
22: Albert Johansson
21: Robert Mastrosimone
20: Jack Adams
19: Albin Grewe
18: Otto Kivenmaki
17: Oliwer Kaski
16: Christoffer Ehn
15: Filip Larsson
14: Jared McIsaac
