After two straight deep playoff runs with the OHL’s Barrie Colts, Gabriel Eliasson will arrive at Ottawa Senators training camp in the fall eligible to be assigned to the AHL’s Belleville Senators for the first time.
He’ll also still be eligible to return to the junior hockey ranks, but the 6-foot-7 behemoth’s goal is to play against men next season.
“I always feel like the higher I play, the better I play, because I play against better players and I play with better players,” said Eliasson during development camp in late June.
“I think it's also easier to play against a little bit stronger guys, a little bit bigger guys, because I can play my game fully, like to 100 per cent, without getting too violent or getting called for everything. I think that's just helped my game to play against better players and play with better players.”
Eliasson led the OHL in penalty minutes this past season, with 122. He skates well for his size, and even demonstrated a nose for the net during small area drills at development camp.
“It's a big summer for him, right? You know, I think he took steps this year, and he has to have a great summer and come into camp ready to go,” said Senators director of player development Sam Gagner when asked how ready Eliasson is for the AHL.
“I think that's what camp is for, to start to see how guys are acclimating to the pro game, so yeah, I'm excited for him. It's a good opportunity, and a really important summer for him.”
Before he returned to Sweden for the summer, Eliasson sat down to answer a few questions.
Did you have a favourite player growing up?
I would say Niklas Hjalmarsson or Zdeno Chara.
Do you have a nickname?
Gabe.
Had you ever been to Ottawa before you were drafted?
No, never.
Are you a video game player at all?
A little bit. When Fortnite was the hype in COVID year, [EA] NHL, and stuff like that.
Do you listen to podcasts at all?
Not really. I like to watch things instead of listening.
What do you like to watch?
Different things. Sports, some action or thriller movies.
Favourite movie, if you had to pick?
Maybe Spider-Man.
What artist did you listen to the most this year?
Avicii.
If you could pick any attribute to take from an NHL player’s game and immediately add to yours, what would you pick?
Defence and physicality, from, I would say, maybe Nikita Zadorov.
Growing up, how did you learn English? Was it just through school, or did you pick it up in other ways?
Yeah, it was just in school. First eight years of school, we had one hour of English a week, and that was like, we learned some basic words, like ‘hi’, ‘hello’, ‘how are you’, some colours, and stuff like that. But I think I became better in English in my draft year, when I talked to a lot of teams and I could actually hear them talk. And then obviously being in Canada now for two years, hearing them talk every day is making it very much easier to talk.
With Barrie this season, you made a nice run in the playoffs to the OHL finals. What was that experience like for you?
Oh, it was great. We started off the season and we didn't know that we were supposed to go for it. We went for it the year before, so we thought we would probably not even make the playoffs, because we didn't have any, like, juice on the team, we had a new coach and everything. We wanted to rebuild a little bit, and then we just started making trades when we won a couple of games. We got Mason Zebeski that is [at development camp] today, and he was a big part of the team and part of our success, and yeah, it was just great. It was such a fun year, and always nice to have that experience.
What does your summer training regimen look like?
I have a good plan this summer. It’s been short, it was a late season, end of May, and I’ve just been home for three, four weeks. So I’ve been training for like, three weeks, and building up my strength again, working in a lot of quickness stuff and working out. And obviously on the ice, working on my puck skill, being comfortable with the puck, and yeah, getting stronger.
In between dev camp and the rookie tournament in the fall, what are you looking forward to doing this summer?
Just getting better, training, and then just hanging out with my friends and family. You spend the whole year, almost, here so it's nice to spend some time with them when you come home to Sweden again. And yeah, just enjoying the time there.
Seeing all of the Swedes that have joined the Senators this offseason, what’s your reaction to that?
It’s so fun. I love when you have some Swedes to talk with, and it’s always nice to feel like you’re home, a bit.
Do you know any of the new guys at all, Andre Burakovsky, William Eklund, Samuel Ersson?
I know Eklund’s brother, actually, Victor Eklund. He’s a [2006] guy, too. But I’ve heard good things about William, too.
