Future NHL stars are developing in Europe this season. Every other week, NHL.com will highlight a few of the top NHL-affiliated prospects outside of North America. This week, a look at how picks from the 2025 NHL Draft are faring in Europe.
Here are 11 players from the 2025 draft class that have been performing across European leagues (listed in alphabetical order):
Lasse Boelius, Assat (Liiga)
The 18-year-old, selected in the second round (No. 60) by the Anaheim Ducks, has six points (one goal, five assists) in 28 games for Assat in Liiga, the top men's professional league in Finland, this season. His point total ranks him 11th among all defensemen in Liiga aged 22 or younger, and 10th among teenagers, regardless of position.
Boelius had two assists in seven games in Liiga last season, and had 18 points (four goals, 14 assists) in 34 games for Assat in U20 SM-sarja, Finland's top junior team.
Vojtech Cihar, HC Energie Karlovy Vary (Czech)
The 18-year-old is the highest-scoring drafted prospect playing in Czech Extraliga this season, with eight points (four goals, four assists) in 27 games. The Kings, who selected Cihar in the second round (No. 59), signed him to a three-year, entry-level contract on Wednesday. He was also named to Czechia's preliminary roster for the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship last week.
Cihar, who had nine points (four goals, five assists) in 43 games for Karlovy Vary in 2024-25, is expected to report to Kelowna in the Western Hockey League at the conclusion of the 2026 WJC.
Victor Eklund, Djurgardens IF (SHL)
The 19-year-old, selected with the No. 16 pick by the New York Islanders, has 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in 25 games for Djurgarden in the SHL, Sweden's top men's professional league. Eklund, who was named to Sweden's preliminary roster for the 2026 WJC, has also competed in three exhibition games at the U20 level for Sweden, scoring five points (three goals, two assists).
Eklund had 31 points (19 goals, 12 assists) in 42 games with Djurgarden in HockeyAllsvenskan, the second-highest professional league in Sweden, in 2024-25.
Anton Frondell, Djurgardens IF (SHL)
The 18-year-old, selected with the No. 3 pick by the Chicago Blackhawks, has made a steady progression in his jump to the SHL and has 15 points (10 goals, five assists) in 25 games. Like Eklund, he was named to Sweden's preliminary roster for the 2026 WJC.
Frondell, who had 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) in 29 games with Djurgarden in 2024-25, ranks second in scoring among players aged 20 or younger in the SHL this season behind 2026 NHL Draft eligible forward Ivar Stenberg, who has 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in 25 games.
Milton Gastrin, MoDo Hockey (HockeyAllsvenskan)
The 18-year-old, selected in the second round (No. 37) by the Washington Capitals, has had a productive run with MoDo in HockeyAllsvenskan. The forward has 17 points (eight goals, nine assists) in 24 games, the second-most among players aged 19 or younger in the league.
Gastrin, who was named to Sweden's preliminary roster for the 2026 WJC, had 42 points (18 goals, 24 assists) in 40 games with MoDo last season in J20 Nationell, Sweden's top junior league.
Eddie Genborg, Timra IK (SHL)
The 18-year-old is the third-highest point producer aged 20 or younger in the SHL this season behind Frondell and Stenberg. The forward, who was selected in the second round (No. 44) by the Detroit Red Wings, has 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) in 26 games for Timra, third amongst skaters of any age for the club.
Genborg split last season between the SHL, where he had two goals in 28 games, and J20 Nationell, where he had 34 points (19 goals, 15 assists) in 28 games.
Love Harenstam, Sodertalje SK (HockeyAllsvenskan)
The 18-year-old, selected in the sixth round (No. 179) by the St. Louis Blues, has been one of the top goalies in HockeyAllsvenskan this season. He ranks third in save percentage (.916), fourth in goals-against average (2.01), eighth in saves (390), and is tied for 10th with seven wins.
Harenstam, who was named to Sweden's preliminary roster for the World Juniors, had a 10-9-0 record with a 3.31 GAA and .895 save percentage in 19 games for Skelleftea's junior team in 2024-25.
Tinus Luc Koblar, Leksands IF (SHL)
The 18-year-old forward, selected in the second round (No. 64) by the Toronto Maple Leafs, has found his footing with Leksand with five points (three goals, two assists) in 21 games, the sixth-most points amongst players under 19 years of age. Koblar has taken that SHL experience into a starring role with Norway at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship Division I, Group A tournament, where he is tied for fourth in scoring with eight points (four goals, four assists).
He had 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) in 43 games with Leksand's junior team in 2024-25.
Elijah Neuenschwander, EHC Chur (SL)
The 19-year-old, picked in the fourth round (No. 104) by the Anaheim Ducks, has a 5-3-0 record with a 2.66 GAA and .904 save percentage in eight appearances on a loan with EHC Chur in the Swiss League, the second-highest professional league in Switzerland, this season. He has not played with HC Fribourg-Gottéron in NL, his club team, yet this season, but has a 2-0-0 record with a 1.50 GAA with their U21 program.
Neuenschwander was named to Switzerland's preliminary roster for the 2026 WJC.
Benjamin Rautiainen, Tappara (Liiga)
The 20-year-old, selected in the fourth round (No. 108) by the Tampa Bay Lightning, continues to have one of the most productive seasons by a prospect in Liiga's history. Rautiainen has already surpassed the 33 points (10 goals, 23 assists) he had in 50 games with Tappara in Liiga last season, with 39 points (12 goals, 27 assists) in 29 games.
He is on pace to become the highest-scoring player aged 20 or younger, passing Saku Koivu, who had 74 points as a 20-year-old in 1994-95.
Petteri Rimpinen, Kiekko-Espoo (Liiga)
The 19-year-old, selected in the fifth round (No. 152) by the Los Angeles Kings, is 8-8-6 with a 2.78 GAA and .896 save percentage in 22 games as the starting goaltender for Kiekko-Espoo this season. He's one of just two teenaged goalies in Liiga this season to have played more than 10 games along with Seattle Kraken prospect Kim Saarinen.
Rimpinen is in his second season in Liiga; he had a 16-9-14 record with a 2.35 GAA and .912 save percentage in 40 games in 2024-25.
