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European Canadiens Prospect Report: Filip Eriksson struggling with lack of offence

Credit: Maria Gardstig / Smack Fotografering

Ivan Demidov

SKA Saint Petersburg, KHL, Russia

Six points in three games from the dynamic Ivan Demidov. As one scout said to me in a voice that was filled with irony, “What a terrible player to have to watch.”

Some caution though: four of the points came against the Kunlun Red Stars, a team that is worst in the west, and third from the bottom overall in the KHL. The most important thing was that Demidov got to play over 16 minutes in the top game against Spartak on Friday night.

Demidov has 16 points in 20 games so far this season and that will only increase. Demidov’s 0.80 points per game are good even when considering the weaker KHL, but even more so when considering an ice time of 10 minutes per game so far. With Russia not participating in the World Juniors, there will be more games for Demidov in the KHL, and the opportunity to set a new record for Juniors is wide open.

Bogdan Konyushkov

Torpedo Nihzny Novgorod, KHL, Russia

Three games for Konyushkov last week, all of them slightly over 23 minutes. He was on the ice for all three goals against versus Neftekhimik, and two goal against in the 5-4 loss to Salavat (one on the penalty kill). The even-strength goal came after a turnover just inside the blue line and Konyushkov and his defensive partner were both on the way up ice and lost a forward that just trailed behind. I don’t see that as a mistake from Konyushkov.

Makar Khanin

Dynamo Moscow, KHL / Dynamo Saint Petersburg, VHL / MHK Dynamo Moskva, MHL

Khanin was in Dynamo Moscow’s team for the game against Lokomotiv, but wasn’t used. There were no other games for him at either level of competition this week.

Yevgeni Volokhin

HC Sochi, KHL

Volokhin made his KHL debut with Sochi in Thursday’s game against Neftekhimik. He played just over 58 minutes as he was pulled for an extra attacker in the end. He finished with 21 saves on 23 shots in a solid outing for the goalie prospect.

I would guess that he will rotate as a second goalie for Sochi throughout the season. With former goalie Yegor Zavragin playing for SKA, it seems that the goalie spot in Sochi is ripe for the taking. The question is if Volokhin can grab it.

Aatos Koivu

TPS Turku, Liiga/ TPS U20, Finland

Koivu played for both the U20 and the Liiga team last week. He will most likely play in the November tournament when Finland plays Czechia, Slovakia, Switzerland, and Sweden (with Bergqvist) in order to prepare for the WJC.

I can see Koivu getting more games in the U20s leading up to Christmas in order to get ready for the World Juniors in Ottawa. His time on ice in Liiga varies a lot, including not being used in Wednesday’s game and not playing in Friday’s.

Filip Eriksson

Växjö Lakers, SHL, Sweden

I spent a little bit more time to have a look at Filip Eriksson, as well as speaking to him and his coach, Jörgen Jönsson, after the game against Rögle to understand both Växjö’s and Eriksson’s struggles this season, especially considering that Eriksson played a very good game against Frölunda last weekend.

Last week both the team and Eriksson struggled again. Team-wise, Växjö has scored the second-least amount of goals in the SHL so far. Only MoDo has scored less, a team that is marooned at the bottom of the table, what makes Växjö a middle-table team is the fact that only five teams have let in fewer goals. Växjö’s power play is at 11.1%. With the exception of MoDo and HV71, it is a tight table with eight points separating the top team from the 12th team; nothing really with the three-point system.

What strikes me in regard to Eriksson is that he is in a tough spot mentally/ He does a lot of things right: zone entries and exits, he moves well and finds open ice even if the puck doesn’t arrive or a player gets in the way of the shot. A dejected Eriksson describes the situation by comparing it to his time in HockeyAllsvenskan last year.

“You could relax [in HockeyAllsvenskan] because you knew you’d get a couple of open chances. In the SHL, you get a half-chance and you need to score because it might be the only chance you get.” It is a statement that points to the fact that he puts a lot of pressure on himself, something Jönsson agrees with.

“No one puts more pressure on him than himself.” Jönsson says he talks with Eriksson and that he uses his own experiences from a very successful hockey career to try to help the player.

Eriksson was a bit late in his defence on Rögle’s second goal of the night, and his body language showed how disappointed he was with himself. The good thing was that Jönsson sent him out for his next regular shift to give Eriksson that vote of confidence.

You can hear more from both Jönsson and Eriksson in today’s podcast.

Rasmus Bergqvist

Skellefteå AIK, SHL, Sweden

Just as predicted last weekend, Bergqvist was selected to Sweden’s U20 squad for the upcoming November internationals, the last big test before the WJC selection. There looks to be one or two openings for the WJC, and Bergqvist is in the running for one of them. The good thing for the Montreal prospect is that he is playing shifts with Axel Sandin-Pellikka in the SHL, meaning one pair could be set from the get-go, something that is important in a short tournament like the WJC.

Eriksson spoke a bit about Bergqvist and mentioned that he is in the same spot as Eriksson himself was last year, “Fighting for the last spot.”

After serving his suspension, Bergqvist played his last 23 seconds — he actually played 16:31 against Frölunda — to get to the 100-minute mark, thereby earning himself a rookie contract with Skellefteå.

Vinzenz Rohrer

Zürich Lions, National League, Switzerland

Rohrer continues to grow his game in all areas. Being used in a more defensive way, he isn’t really getting the easy points this season as Zürich has invested in offensive players. Still, he got his fifth goal of the season by scoring from behind the net via the goalkeeper.

Rohrer plays a lot more minutes and is getting a lot more experience in the professional game. That’s something that can only benefit him in the months leading up to spring when Montreal will have to decide if they want to sign him to an NHL contract.

Patrik Bexell provides some updates on the Habs European prospects, in particular Filip Eriksson’s early-season struggles.

Timestamps:

Jörgen Jönsson at 5:00
Filip Eriksson at 10:45

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