In Depth: Linus Karlsson
...a look at Vancouver's new prospect
By
Ryan Biech @ryanbiech / Freelance writer
Karlsson was selected by the Sharks in the 3rd round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft after spending the majority of his draft season in the SuperElit, a junior league in Sweden. He did also appear in 13 games with Karlskrona HK in the Swedish Elite League, picking up on an assist in the small sample size.
His point totals and underlying numbers in the SuperElit were encouraging and suggested that he had more to give at the professional level than the one assist in 13 games might've suggested.
In 42 SuperElit games during the 2017-18 season, Karlsson posted 27 goals and 25 assists.
Those totals had him finish second in league scoring and tied for first goals. He posted really strong goals for percentage during this year as well, with his team scoring 59.2% of the even strength goals with him on the ice.
To further illustrate his play during his draft year, that 59.2% GF% was +24.9% compared to the average among his teammates. With Karlsson on the ice, they had a plus-23 differential and when Karlsson was on the bench, they had a minus-34 goal differential.
That dominance, at that level, saw Karlsson move from an unranked prospect by NHL Central Scouting to the 39th best European skater by the time the draft rolled around.
From a traditional scouting viewpoint, Karlsson is a two-way centre who relies on his hockey sense to appear to be one step ahead of the play and doesn't give up on plays easily, He uses his size, at 6'1" and 180 lbs, to effectively pressure his opponents when he engages them. There aren't many players who will be outworked on a nightly basis than Karlsson.
On the offensive side of the game, he has a nice wrist shot that is quick to leave his stick with some decent velocity. He isn't the quickest skater, but that doesn't stop him from pushing the pace with that aforementioned work ethic.
In his own zone, Karlsson uses his hockey IQ to disrupt lanes and effectively close off opponent's lanes.
The right-handed shooter won't ever blow anyone away with highlight reel plays but the combination of work ethic, smarts, and underrated playmaking abilities allows him to generate offence while being very responsible in his own zone.
Karlskrona was relegated to the Allsvenskan for this season after falling in the playoffs to Timra IK. That meant that with Karlsson making his way out of the junior leagues and to the professional levels, he has been playing this year in the second division. He's been placed in a middle six role behind some veteran centres and has posted four goals and 13 assists in 48 games this season.
The offence isn't quite at the same level as last year, but he is ranked 5th in points among U20 players in the Allsvenskan and is tied for the most penalty minutes among that same peer group.
Karlsson is a bit of a late bloomer in terms of his growth, but has shown that he can create offence throughout his development. He put up really impressive numbers at the SuperElit level last season and did so at the other various U20 and U18 leagues over the previous years.
Ideally, he would've posted some more impressive boxcar stats this season in the Allsvenskan, but given the depth of the team and the role that he has played, his point totals are understandable. The fact that he appeared in the SHL last season and is a regular in the Allsvenskan as a 19-year-old is a good sign in terms of long term projections.
Like any prospect, there will need to be some rounding out to some elements of his game, but Karlsson is an intriguing option for the organization in the future as a two-way centre who thinks the game very well.
