Welcome back to another addition of your Boston Bruins Monday Morning Prospects Update. I’d like to begin by thanking you for your support. I am truly taken aback by the number of you taking the time to read and the overwhelming support. I never expected the response this blog has received this early in its life and I owe it all to you. I hope to keep bringing these to you throughout the year. We are not here to make money and Twitter and other social media outlets simply don’t allow me to give you my honest and lengthy opinion after spending hours upon hours watching your prospects.
Last week saw the USHL drop the puck on it’s 42nd season and that means three more players have resumed their journey that will (hopefully) one day lead them to the National Hockey League. They are: defenseman Mason Langenbrunner and left-wing Andre Gasseau, teammates with the Fargo Force and goaltender Philip Svedeback of the Dubuque Fighting Saints. Things will start to pick up for our next update as the NCAA will kick off it’s season this upcoming weekend where the Bruins have 9 prospects.
We will get to the three in detail as the season progresses, but this week it’s all about Oskar Jellvik, who is in Sweden with Djurgardens IF J20 squad in the Nationell J20 league. Jellvik was a 5th round pick – 149th overall by the Bruins at the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.
Let’s begin with what some of the independent scouting services had to say prior to the draft.
He is a good puck handler, and that weapon is the most effective for him on the power play. He is flexible and well-balanced when moving through opposing defenders with the puck, and looks comfortable doing it. His overall hockey sense is pretty good. When his team captures the puck, he is able to find free space to receive it, and he often beats his man in 1-on-1 situations. He finds his way through traffic both with and without the puck. He sets up hard and accurate diagonal passes to open up the defense when he enters the zone. He makes quick, short, direct passes, and he is usually aware of where his teammates are on the ice and what is going to happen next in the play. He screens the goalie well and wants to be around the net all the time. He is a player who always wants to score, and keeps his stick on the ice to be ready – FC Hockey
He is a dual threat though as he can be seen making great passes through traffic to the tape of an open teammate and he can also be seen firing lasers top shelf. The issue here is the lack of consistency and determination. What is consistent is his perimeter play, he has to attack in 90-degree motions to get rid of engaged opponents, to create time and space for himself and to change things up more. His shot has some good power to it and he is more accurate with his shot than he gets credit for. Hockey Prospect Black Book.
His skating has most of the right cues: knee-bend, ankle flexion, back straight and angled over knees, hips tilted forward. I don’t think he will ever be a speedster, but the right mechanics are there. Elite Prospects Draft Guide.
Jellvik has been an offensive force at every level he has played at and a season ago he was doing so well at almost a point-per-game clip in the J20, that he got a 3 game callup to the SHL. Mind you, in those three games he never got more than a handful of shifts and his first game with the big club only got one shift that lasted just 11 seconds.
As stated in the Elite Prospects Scouting Report, Jellvik is a technically sound skater. He has great edges and is able to change direction and dangle, but he lacks the speed required of a 5’11” winger. With a good skating coach, I believe he can add some speed since the mechanics are there. But it is an area that needs work.
Jellvik has a knack for finding the open areas of the ice undetected which means he has some hockey sense. He’s an excellent passer but I don’t know if he is a playmaker or a shooter. He has an accurate shot that finds the target but he lacks the power behind it to beat goaltenders with it (I know this is in disagreement with one of the scouting reports, but through a handful of games, I have yet to see the ability). With the exception of one season in the J-18 league, his goal to assist ratio his virtually even. He’s also an excellent stick handler. Just when a defender thinks he is going to close in on Jellvik, he distributes the puck to an awaiting teammate, usually by surprise. What he lacks in skating speed, he has in puck speed. Normally that would translate to the NHL but whether it’s enough to surprise the best defencemen in the world, well we won’t know until he starts playing against better competition.
Jellvik is your prototypical project and that is what is to be expected of a fifth-round pick. The Bruins hold his rights until July 1, 2025 and I look forward to seeing how he progresses. A couple of seasons in the SHL should do him some good before he heads to North America. I’m certain that Bruins Scout P J Axelsson will be keeping tabs on him.
Jellvik got off to a slow start offensively, going pointless in his first three games of the season. In his last two games, he recorded his first goal and first helper of the year and looks much more comfortable and confident.
I’ll be the first to admit that when I heard the Bruins make this selection, the first thing I thought was this was Axelsson using his voice to impose his guy once again.
It’s early but, Jellvik has piqued my interest.
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